Explore Jobs

Find Specific Jobs

Explore Careers

Explore Professions

Best Companies

Explore Companies

These Are The 10 Best Places Places In Kansas To Get A Job

By Chris Kolmar
Jan. 15, 2017

Find a Job You Really Want In

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

If you’re starting to look for a job in Kansas, you’ve come to the right place.

You might think off the top of your head that Topeka would be an excellent place to find a job. And while the capital does offer many opportunities, it isn’t the best in the state according to the data.

Here at Zippia, we aim to answer questions like this using cold hard facts and analysis. So we set our sights on determining the best place in Kansas to find a job.

After analyzing all 42 plus places in Kansas, we came up with this list as the best places for jobs in the Sunflower State:

  1. Hays
  2. Liberal
  3. Pratt
  4. Iola
  5. Concordia
  6. Eudora
  7. Lawrence
  8. Colby
  9. Pittsburg
  10. Winfield

So listen up Parsons as we explain how we created this ranking, you could learn some things from the rest of the state.

How We Determined The Best Places For Jobs In Sunflower State

We first researched detailed data on all places in Kansas. However, in order to properly compare places in an apples-to-apples manner, we set a minimum population threshold of 5,000 people.

This left us with 42 places in Kansas to analyze.

We then ranked each place across a number of criteria from one to 42, with one being the best.

We took the average rank across all criteria, with the place posting the lowest overall score being crowned the winner of the title “Best Place For Jobs In Kansas”.

The criteria we looked at were:

  • Unemployment rate
  • Recent job growth
  • Future job growth
  • Median household income

Sources of criteria include the the BLS and Sperling’s Best Places.

If your city or town isn’t among the top 10, jump down to the bottom of the post to see a detailed chart and a downloadable file of all the data.

Otherwise, learn how these cities moved up the career ladder.

1. Hays

Population: 20,586Unemployment Rate: 2.30%
Recent Job Growth: 5.11%
Future Job Growth: 47.90%

2. Liberal

Population: 20,687Unemployment Rate: 3.30%
Recent Job Growth: 4.84%
Future Job Growth: 46.40%

3. Pratt

Population: 6,834Unemployment Rate: 2.90%
Recent Job Growth: 3.23%
Future Job Growth: 43.60%

4. Iola

Population: 5,715Unemployment Rate: 4.10%
Recent Job Growth: 6.77%
Future Job Growth: 49.40%

5. Concordia

Population: 5,359Unemployment Rate: 2.90%
Recent Job Growth: 1.90%
Future Job Growth: 40.90%

6. Eudora

Population: 6,406 Unemployment Rate: 3.90%
Recent Job Growth: 3.31%
Future Job Growth: 42.70%

7. Lawrence

Population: 87,963Unemployment Rate: 3.90%
Recent Job Growth: 3.31%
Future Job Growth: 42.70%

8. Colby

Population: 5,347Unemployment Rate: 2.90%
Recent Job Growth: 1.30%
Future Job Growth: 39.70%

9. Pittsburg

Population: 20,197Unemployment Rate: 4.60%
Recent Job Growth: 4.05%
Future Job Growth: 43.50%

10. Winfield

Source: Wikipedia

Population: 12,335Unemployment Rate: 4.10%
Recent Job Growth: 1.93%
Future Job Growth: 39.80%

Detailed List Of The Best Places In Kansas For Jobs

City Rank Population Unemployment Rate Recent Job Growth Future Job Growth
Hays 1 20,586 2.30% 5.11% 47.90%
Liberal 2 20,687 3.30% 4.84% 46.40%
Pratt 3 6,834 2.90% 3.23% 43.60%
Iola 4 5,715 4.10% 6.77% 49.40%
Concordia 5 5,359 2.90% 1.90% 40.90%
Eudora 6 6,406 3.90% 3.31% 42.70%
Lawrence 7 87,963 3.90% 3.31% 42.70%
Colby 8 5,347 2.90% 1.30% 39.70%
Pittsburg 9 20,197 4.60% 4.05% 43.50%
Winfield 10 12,335 4.10% 1.93% 39.80%
Leawood 11 31,955 3.50% 0.73% 38.00%
Ulysses 12 6,007 3.10% 0.68% 38.30%
Hutchinson 13 41,939 4.40% 1.26% 38.10%
Lenexa 14 48,300 3.80% 0.73% 37.70%
Emporia 15 25,245 4.80% 1.42% 38.00%
Olathe 16 125,902 3.90% 0.73% 37.60%
Manhattan 17 52,988 3.40% 0.68% 38.00%
Atchison 18 10,970 5.80% 2.20% 38.60%
Shawnee 19 62,106 4.00% 0.73% 37.50%
McPherson 20 13,194 3.10% 0.51% 37.90%
Gardner 21 19,117 4.00% 0.73% 37.50%
Merriam 22 11,090 4.00% 0.73% 37.50%
Mission 23 9,414 4.00% 0.73% 37.50%
Salina 24 47,605 4.30% 0.67% 37.00%
Paola 25 5,565 4.60% 0.72% 36.80%
Topeka 26 127,312 5.30% 0.79% 36.30%
Ottawa 27 12,596 5.20% 0.73% 36.30%
Newton 28 19,036 4.10% 0.30% 36.50%
Lansing 29 11,260 5.30% 0.73% 36.20%
Abilene 30 6,826 4.60% 0.39% 36.20%
Wellington 31 8,123 4.90% 0.30% 35.70%
Andover 32 11,727 5.10% 0.30% 35.50%
Augusta 33 9,231 5.10% 0.30% 35.50%
Leavenworth 34 35,434 6.00% 0.72% 35.40%
Independence 35 9,428 5.70% 0.52% 35.30%
Coffeyville 36 10,219 5.70% 0.52% 35.30%
Mulvane 37 5,957 5.40% 0.30% 35.20%
Haysville 38 10,622 5.40% 0.30% 35.20%
Derby 39 22,555 5.40% 0.30% 35.20%
Wichita 40 381,176 5.60% 0.30% 35.00%
Chanute 41 9,138 5.60% -1.05% 32.30%
Parsons 42 10,506 6.40% -2.20% 29.20%
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.

Responsive Image

Related posts