These Are The 10 Best Cities For Finance Analysts

.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 Finance Analysts, 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 finance analysts the most for their career. These are the cities across the US where finance analysts 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 finance analysts.The result is this list of the best cities finance analysts:

So there you have it — San Francisco is the best city when it comes to being a finance analyst.

And where should you consider avoiding if you’re a finance analyst? That would be Monroe.

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

How we determined the best cities to be a finance analysts?

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 finance analysts in America we needed to figure out where the jobs are and how well finance analysts 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 253 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 253 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 finance analysts in America.

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

1. San Francisco, CA

Total Jobs: 7,110
Average Annual Salary: $137,810
Average Entry Level Salary: $65,510
Location Quotient: 3.58

2. San Jose, CA

Total Jobs: 4,010
Average Annual Salary: $116,700
Average Entry Level Salary: $68,970
Location Quotient: 2.04

3. Oakland, CA

Total Jobs: 3,270
Average Annual Salary: $107,920
Average Entry Level Salary: $63,870
Location Quotient: 1.6

4. New York, NY

Total Jobs: 41,350
Average Annual Salary: $124,580
Average Entry Level Salary: $61,130
Location Quotient: 3.28

5. Houston, TX

Total Jobs: 6,680
Average Annual Salary: $101,980
Average Entry Level Salary: $51,800
Location Quotient: 1.17

6. Dallas, TX

Total Jobs: 7,280
Average Annual Salary: $96,180
Average Entry Level Salary: $50,710
Location Quotient: 1.61

7. San Rafael, CA

Total Jobs: 350
Average Annual Salary: $103,960
Average Entry Level Salary: $63,030
Location Quotient: 1.61

8. Austin, TX

Total Jobs: 3,040
Average Annual Salary: $95,350
Average Entry Level Salary: $49,150
Location Quotient: 1.68

9. Detroit, MI

Total Jobs: 1,920
Average Annual Salary: $87,900
Average Entry Level Salary: $53,430
Location Quotient: 1.36

10. Charlotte, NC

Total Jobs: 4,220
Average Annual Salary: $92,130
Average Entry Level Salary: $49,420
Location Quotient: 1.95

And that’s our list of the best cities for finance analysts

If you’re looking to start out your career as a finance analyst 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 finance analyst in America:

Detailed List Of The Best Cities For Finance Analysts

Rank	State	Average Salary	Entry Level Salary	# Of People
1	San Francisco, CA	$137,810	$65,510	7,110
2	San Jose, CA	$116,700	$68,970	4,010
3	Oakland, CA	$107,920	$63,870	3,270
4	New York, NY	$124,580	$61,130	41,350
5	Houston, TX	$101,980	$51,800	6,680
6	Dallas, TX	$96,180	$50,710	7,280
7	San Rafael, CA	$103,960	$63,030	350
8	Austin, TX	$95,350	$49,150	3,040
9	Detroit, MI	$87,900	$53,430	1,920
10	Charlotte, NC	$92,130	$49,420	4,220
11	Huntsville, AL	$98,250	$54,920	260
12	Cleveland, OH	$83,660	$49,660	1,880
13	Newark, NJ	$102,530	$57,980	2,710
14	Anchorage, AK	$99,220	$59,280	280
15	Chattanooga, TN	$87,850	$51,030	290
16	Portland, OR	$92,850	$53,120	2,140
17	Boston, MA	$110,040	$55,960	11,280
18	Sioux Falls, SD	$79,370	$44,350	400
19	San Antonio, TX	$89,660	$46,580	1,990
20	Minneapolis, MN	$87,370	$51,740	5,480
21	Durham, NC	$79,780	$50,070	1,000
22	Seattle, WA	$87,880	$52,050	2,930
23	Raleigh, NC	$88,210	$52,580	810
24	Montgomery County, PA	$86,670	$47,760	3,340
25	Winston, NC	$82,440	$50,630	530
26	Kansas City, MO	$80,480	$45,290	1,980
27	Flint, MI	$90,390	$58,310	130
28	Philadelphia, PA	$90,680	$46,720	2,470
29	Bridgeport, CT	$113,310	$52,820	3,070
30	St. Louis, MO	$92,510	$43,600	2,320
31	Anaheim, CA	$97,660	$54,920	3,560
32	San Luis Obispo, CA	$124,830	$71,480	80
33	Naples, FL	$119,640	$54,490	120
34	Atlanta, GA	$80,530	$46,400	5,630
35	Kingsport, TN	$87,130	$48,690	110
36	Milwaukee, WI	$82,060	$49,590	2,340
37	Midland, MI	$82,700	$52,110	40
38	Nashville, TN	$75,940	$46,450	1,660
39	Denver, CO	$107,430	$47,530	3,190
40	Louisville/Jefferson County, KY	$80,180	$43,360	660
41	Los Angeles, CA	$93,010	$56,630	7,550
42	Monroe, MI	$88,700	$68,750	30
43	Niles, MI	$72,830	$51,070	140
44	Chicago, IL	$94,840	$46,370	10,230
45	Cedar Rapids, IA	$73,460	$50,800	270
46	Allentown, PA	$88,620	$52,140	330
47	Richmond, VA	$92,360	$51,770	1,020
48	Columbus, OH	$73,600	$42,930	3,190
49	Charlottesville, VA	$111,700	$49,510	160
50	Bismarck, ND	$82,620	$50,410	70
51	Santa Fe, NM	$79,510	$47,170	90
52	Muncie, IN	$81,430	$52,600	40
53	Wilmington, DE	$85,870	$47,830	3,180
54	Silver Spring, MD	$96,300	$51,920	1,850
55	Elkhart, IN	$78,700	$49,460	120
56	Tulsa, OK	$78,570	$45,020	540
57	West Palm Beach, FL	$88,850	$49,620	790
58	Omaha, NE	$73,760	$44,950	1,340
59	Lansing, MI	$70,090	$51,470	390
60	Framingham, MA	$90,070	$55,800	500
61	Salt Lake City, UT	$79,850	$43,190	1,320
62	Akron, OH	$72,300	$47,420	340
63	Rochester, MN	$76,820	$51,100	220
64	Boise City, ID	$76,800	$48,690	240
65	Iowa City, IA	$72,540	$52,470	110
66	Weirton, WV	$71,720	$46,510	40
67	Birmingham, AL	$92,580	$37,830	840
68	Burlington, VT	$106,140	$45,520	140
69	Madison, WI	$78,550	$47,470	770
70	Winchester, VA	$96,690	$54,220	40
71	Peabody, MA	$107,540	$57,790	80
72	Baltimore, MD	$97,160	$50,140	3,440
73	Warren, MI	$76,410	$45,630	1,950
74	Montgomery, AL	$94,040	$49,350	50
75	Vallejo, CA	$94,000	$57,080	120
76	Lincoln, NE	$73,490	$46,670	210
77	Fayetteville, AR	$82,780	$45,740	120
78	Wilmington, NC	$84,340	$54,110	70
79	Hartford, CT	$88,850	$53,850	1,810
80	Fargo, ND	$68,110	$49,950	160
81	Albuquerque, NM	$79,490	$46,270	390
82	Eugene, OR	$94,140	$50,330	120
83	Pittsburgh, PA	$76,260	$45,130	2,450
84	San Diego, CA	$94,790	$49,880	2,530
85	Rockford, IL	$105,720	$47,900	130
86	Spartanburg, SC	$73,500	$51,330	90
87	Salinas, CA	$97,640	$61,980	90
88	Wichita, KS	$74,670	$52,120	230
89	Salem, OR	$109,280	$53,310	40
90	Memphis, TN	$76,510	$42,600	800
91	Peoria, IL	$88,760	$48,550	170
92	Indianapolis, IN	$70,970	$45,240	1,140
93	Greenville, SC	$71,130	$47,450	350
94	Dayton, OH	$71,730	$43,550	390
95	Santa Cruz, CA	$96,030	$53,010	90
96	State College, PA	$80,720	$52,700	40
97	Providence, RI	$74,880	$49,250	1,500
98	Sacramento, CA	$86,330	$52,870	1,300
99	Evansville, IN	$77,850	$46,780	90
100	Beaumont, TX	$92,150	$46,260	80

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