According to a recent study from personal finance company SoFi, which looked at the highest-paying states in the country, employees in 12 locations—including Massachusetts, California, Connecticut, and Maryland—earn significantly more than the national average salary.
“The average salary in some states is quite different from the average salary nationwide,” SoFi noted in the report. “That’s partly because the cost of living, which affects how much a company pays its employees, varies significantly by state. Also, inflation impacts states to varying degrees. In addition, industries with a concentrated presence in certain states—such as banking or automobile manufacturing—can affect the overall quality of job opportunities in that area.”
Using data from the Social Security Administration to estimate the average salary in the U.S. at $66,622, SoFi determined that cities on the West Coast and in the Northeast have some of the highest average salaries. The South, however, is home to states that tend to pay the least, such as Mississippi, South Carolina, and Alabama.
Massachusetts is the top-paying state, the report noted, with the average salary there coming in at $80,330. New York landed in second place, with a pay scale of approximately $78,624, much better than the wage in Mississippi—the lowest-paying state—where the annual average salary is $47,569.
The following chart shows both the average and median income (in single-income households) in each state, according to data from Forbes and the U.S. Census Bureau.
| State | Average | Median |
|---|---|---|
| Alabama | $53,394 | $59,605 |
| Alaska | $66,130 | $82,512 |
| Arizona | $63,045 | $66,340 |
| Arkansas | $51,251 | $54,658 |
| California | $76,960 | $74,819 |
| Colorado | $71,968 | $77,331 |
| Connecticut | $73,736 | $81,285 |
| Delaware | $65,998 | $75,674 |
| Florida | $60,216 | $62,973 |
| Georgia | $61,256 | $62,468 |
| Hawaii | $65,042 | $78,745 |
| Idaho | $55,640 | $68,781 |
| Illinois | $67,122 | $66,950 |
| Indiana | $56,410 | $60,351 |
| Iowa | $56,410 | $61,283 |
| Kansas | $56,264 | $64,518 |
| Kentucky | $54,018 | $57,509 |
| Louisiana | $53,435 | $53,821 |
| Maine | $60,008 | $66,369 |
| Maryland | $73,632 | $81,293 |
| Massachusetts | $80,330 | $81,170 |
| Michigan | $60,590 | $64,579 |
| Minnesota | $66,706 | $72,319 |
| Mississippi | $47,569 | $51,554 |
| Missouri | $57,574 | $59,605 |
| Montana | $55,910 | $65,242 |
| Nebraska | $58,074 | $63,813 |
| Nevada | $58,906 | $64,412 |
| New Hampshire | $66,102 | $84,017 |
| New Jersey | $73,986 | $83,102 |
| New Mexico | $57,512 | $56,766 |
| New York | $78,624 | $69,135 |
| North Carolina | $59,717 | $61,811 |
| North Dakota | $59,051 | $66,813 |
| Ohio | $59,883 | $61,617 |
| Oklahoma | $53,456 | $55,362 |
| Oregon | $66,706 | $70,266 |
| Pennsylvania | $61,922 | $66,923 |
| Rhode Island | $66,602 | $72,515 |
| South Carolina | $54,246 | $59,661 |
| South Dakota | $53,227 | $63,862 |
| Tennessee | $56,035 | $59,052 |
| Texas | $61,235 | $61,460 |
| Utah | $61,069 | $78,917 |
| Vermont | $62,774 | $65,712 |
| Virginia | $70,054 | $75,756 |
| Washington | $78,125 | $86,558 |
| West Virginia | $52,208 | $57,979 |
| Wisconsin | $59,509 | $66,106 |
| Wyoming | $57,928 | $61,866 |
“The average annual average salary in the U.S. is $66,622. The median annual salary, which is often less skewed by outlying numbers, is $61,984. It’s worth noting that average and median salaries vary quite a bit by state. States in the Northeast and on the West Coast tend to pay higher salaries, while those in the South often pay less,” SoFI said in the report. “What’s stopping people from moving to a higher-paying state? Often, it’s housing prices, which rise along with the cost of living in ‘richer’ states.”
With Tribune News Services
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Tags: pay, Payroll, salaries, Small Business, states
