These Are The 10 Best Cities For Forensic Investigators

.street-view{width:100%;height:300px;pointer-events:none;}

Whether you’re just starting out your career, or looking to make a move, it can be important to know what part of the country offers the best chance for your long term career prospects. And for a very common profession like Forensic Investigators, the regional differences can have a big impact on your salary and career options.

To help you make the best decision possible, we at Zippia wanted to look at the cities that offer forensic investigators the most for their career. These are the cities across the US where forensic investigators get paid well, relative to the cost of living, and jobs are plentiful.

So we did what we do best and dove into the numbers from the BLS to figure out which cities have the best opportunities for forensic investigators.The result is this list of the best cities forensic investigators:

So there you have it — Springfield is the best city when it comes to being a forensic investigator.

And where should you consider avoiding if you’re a forensic investigator? That would be Montgomery County.

Read on to see how we completed our research on the best cities for forensic investigators and for more on the top ten cities.

How we determined the best cities to be a forensic investigators?

Here at Zippia, we talk to a lot of people of all different backgrounds looking for jobs. Our research has concluded that there are two common things people want in a job:

Availability of jobs
Pay

So in order to find out the best cities for forensic investigators in America we needed to figure out where the jobs are and how well forensic investigators get paid. This led to the following criteria taken from the Bureau of Labor Statistics’s Occupational Employment Statistics for 2015:

Location quotient. A measure of how common a job is a given city.
Average annual salary.
Average annual salary for entry level work.

To make all the salary numbers more apples to apples across cities, we compared the salary data relative to the state’s cost of living.

This left us with enough data for 80 metro areas across the country. We then took the primary area of the metro and labeled that the ‘city’ for this analysis. So, for example, “Boston-Cambridge-Newton, MA NECTA Division” became simply Boston.

In order to develop an overall ranking, we ranked each city for each criteria from 1 to 80 where 1 was the best.

We then averaged all the rankings for a city into a Job Score with the city having the lowest overall Job Score earning the distinction of being the best city for forensic investigators in America.

So without further ado, let’s get into just what made each city so great for forensic investigators.

1. Springfield, IL

Total Jobs: 50
Average Annual Salary: $92,290
Average Entry Level Salary: $61,420
Location Quotient: 4.46

2. Akron, OH

Total Jobs: 70
Average Annual Salary: $63,960
Average Entry Level Salary: $49,910
Location Quotient: 2.07

3. Las Vegas, NV

Total Jobs: 190
Average Annual Salary: $72,800
Average Entry Level Salary: $53,020
Location Quotient: 2.05

4. Oxnard, CA

Total Jobs: 60
Average Annual Salary: $90,160
Average Entry Level Salary: $51,730
Location Quotient: 2.08

5. Topeka, KS

Total Jobs: 40
Average Annual Salary: $60,400
Average Entry Level Salary: $46,630
Location Quotient: 3.65

6. Los Angeles, CA

Total Jobs: 700
Average Annual Salary: $89,570
Average Entry Level Salary: $56,200
Location Quotient: 1.67

7. Oakland, CA

Total Jobs: 260
Average Annual Salary: $78,590
Average Entry Level Salary: $50,130
Location Quotient: 2.42

8. Reno, NV

Total Jobs: 30
Average Annual Salary: $75,680
Average Entry Level Salary: $53,650
Location Quotient: 1.53

9. Stockton, CA

Total Jobs: 50
Average Annual Salary: $74,840
Average Entry Level Salary: $51,930
Location Quotient: 2.04

10. Sacramento, CA

Total Jobs: 110
Average Annual Salary: $87,500
Average Entry Level Salary: $60,370
Location Quotient: 1.29

And that’s our list of the best cities for forensic investigators

If you’re looking to start out your career as a forensic investigator these are the cities that should be at the top of your list. You’ll find high pay, available jobs, and chances for career advancement.

If you’re curious, here are the worst cities to be a forensic investigator in America:

Montgomery County, PA
Madison, WI
Newark, NJ

Detailed List Of The Best Cities For Forensic Investigators

Rank	State	Average Salary	Entry Level Salary	# Of People
1	Springfield, IL	$92,290	$61,420	50
2	Akron, OH	$63,960	$49,910	70
3	Las Vegas, NV	$72,800	$53,020	190
4	Oxnard, CA	$90,160	$51,730	60
5	Topeka, KS	$60,400	$46,630	40
6	Los Angeles, CA	$89,570	$56,200	700
7	Oakland, CA	$78,590	$50,130	260
8	Reno, NV	$75,680	$53,650	30
9	Stockton, CA	$74,840	$51,930	50
10	Sacramento, CA	$87,500	$60,370	110
11	Birmingham, AL	$66,820	$42,090	70
12	Albany, NY	$68,550	$48,270	130
13	Indianapolis, IN	$60,640	$40,780	170
14	Columbus, OH	$60,480	$44,290	150
15	Anaheim, CA	$81,970	$48,050	240
16	Jackson, MS	$52,980	$34,320	90
17	Tacoma, WA	$65,380	$50,260	40
18	Lincoln, NE	$56,070	$41,770	30
19	Springfield, MO	$52,150	$40,440	30
20	San Diego, CA	$76,340	$53,730	150
21	San Francisco, CA	$84,210	$55,890	70
22	Phoenix, AZ	$57,970	$36,340	570
23	San Jose, CA	$75,510	$56,280	90
24	Portland, OR	$65,130	$48,480	140
25	Riverside, CA	$64,840	$44,060	240
26	Seattle, WA	$66,330	$48,280	160
27	Miami, FL	$62,400	$40,550	170
28	Denver, CO	$62,950	$43,060	210
29	Jefferson City, MO	$47,030	$31,970	70
30	Flagstaff, AZ	$56,880	$33,120	40
31	Lake County, IL	$72,080	$44,100	30
32	Salt Lake City, UT	$52,440	$36,510	120
33	Chicago, IL	$68,940	$43,460	330
34	Omaha, NE	$52,400	$40,780	70
35	St. Louis, MO	$78,400	$35,170	40
36	Boise City, ID	$49,410	$33,160	50
37	Colorado Springs, CO	$58,120	$42,860	40
38	Baton Rouge, LA	$50,780	$32,700	100
39	Warren, MI	$64,250	$41,360	30
40	Houston, TX	$61,430	$38,480	160
41	Richmond, VA	$62,230	$35,960	100
42	Kansas City, MO	$45,880	$29,430	310
43	Philadelphia, PA	$55,710	$39,920	100
44	West Palm Beach, FL	$58,760	$38,470	80
45	Little Rock, AR	$40,380	$29,590	130
46	Tucson, AZ	$50,130	$31,550	120
47	Austin, TX	$47,770	$33,350	170
48	Redding, CA	$55,300	$33,670	30
49	Knoxville, TN	$51,730	$33,270	50
50	Nashville, TN	$45,630	$27,720	250
51	Fresno, CA	$61,340	$35,970	60
52	New York, NY	$66,010	$44,080	470
53	Fayetteville, NC	$42,390	$32,730	30
54	Tampa, FL	$47,980	$33,110	280
55	Fort Lauderdale, FL	$51,590	$34,180	140
56	Pensacola, FL	$41,610	$30,550	70
57	Bakersfield, CA	$55,090	$40,180	40
58	Tallahassee, FL	$40,270	$27,170	160
59	Oklahoma City, OK	$57,870	$18,900	90
60	Wichita, KS	$48,640	$34,250	30
61	Fort Worth, TX	$52,750	$33,240	100
62	Baltimore, MD	$59,230	$33,970	230
63	Raleigh, NC	$46,820	$34,580	80
64	Lakeland, FL	$44,300	$32,720	40
65	Minneapolis, MN	$56,400	$38,560	40
66	Orlando, FL	$45,210	$30,170	220
67	Dallas, TX	$52,110	$33,540	150
68	Durham, NC	$45,920	$35,400	30
69	Atlanta, GA	$53,130	$32,540	160
70	Cape Coral, FL	$42,390	$27,620	50
71	Virginia Beach, VA	$54,470	$34,210	90
72	Jacksonville, FL	$43,270	$31,890	110
73	El Paso, TX	$39,900	$32,730	40
74	Charlotte, NC	$47,720	$34,390	80
75	Corpus Christi, TX	$35,890	$21,150	30
76	Grand Rapids, MI	$49,420	$18,110	60
77	San Antonio, TX	$45,090	$27,650	100
78	Newark, NJ	$55,180	$32,370	40
79	Madison, WI	$45,850	$27,580	40
80	Montgomery County, PA	$37,410	$25,920	70

Never miss an opportunity that’s right for you.

Author

Chris Kolmar

Chris Kolmar is a co-founder of Zippia and the editor-in-chief of the Zippia career advice blog. He has hired over 50 people in his career, been hired five times, and wants to help you land your next job. His research has been featured on the New York Times, Thrillist, VOX, The Atlantic, and a host of local news. More recently, he's been quoted on USA Today, BusinessInsider, and CNBC.

Create Resume