Best states for an associate planner

Q: What is the best state for associate planners?

The best state to be an associate planner is California based on associate planner salaries and job opportunities.

Q: What is the highest paying state for associate planners?

The highest paying state for associate planners is Arkansas based on Zippia’s salary database.

Q: What is the worst state for associate planners?

The worst state for associate planners is West Virginia, due to a combination of low salaries and few job opportunities.

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Job opportunities vary from state to state, and life, physical, and social science careers are no different. Because we know how difficult it can be to know which states are the best when it comes to associate planner jobs, we decided to crunch some numbers to bring you the best states for associate planners.We wanted to look at the best states for associate planners -- where there are plenty of associate planner jobs to go around and associate planners get paid what they deserve during every phase of their career.

To that end, we dove into our dataset of job and salary numbers to figure out which states have the best opportunities for associate planners. California is the best state for associate planners, where the median salary is $83,333.California is the best state, and Windsor is the city with the highest pay for associate planners.

10 best states for associate planners in 2026

1. California
Total associate planner jobs: 833
Average annual salary: $83,333
Lowest 10 percent earn: $56,000
Highest 10 percent earn: $122,000
Location Quotient:
1.58
Associate planner jobs in California
2. District of Columbia
Total associate planner jobs: 39
Average annual salary: $84,937
Lowest 10 percent earn: $57,000
Highest 10 percent earn: $125,000
Location Quotient:
1.29
Associate planner jobs in District of Columbia
3. Nevada
Total associate planner jobs: 51
Average annual salary: $70,300
Lowest 10 percent earn: $48,000
Highest 10 percent earn: $102,000
Location Quotient:
1.35
Associate planner jobs in Nevada
4. Connecticut
Total associate planner jobs: 90
Average annual salary: $69,695
Lowest 10 percent earn: $47,000
Highest 10 percent earn: $101,000
Location Quotient:
1.51
Associate planner jobs in Connecticut
5. New York
Total associate planner jobs: 318
Average annual salary: $72,090
Lowest 10 percent earn: $49,000
Highest 10 percent earn: $105,000
Location Quotient:
1.38
Associate planner jobs in New York
6. Oregon
Total associate planner jobs: 70
Average annual salary: $72,462
Lowest 10 percent earn: $51,000
Highest 10 percent earn: $100,000
Location Quotient:
0.94
Associate planner jobs in Oregon
7. Pennsylvania
Total associate planner jobs: 236
Average annual salary: $66,745
Lowest 10 percent earn: $45,000
Highest 10 percent earn: $97,000
Location Quotient:
1.13
Associate planner jobs in Pennsylvania
8. Massachusetts
Total associate planner jobs: 166
Average annual salary: $69,910
Lowest 10 percent earn: $48,000
Highest 10 percent earn: $101,000
Location Quotient:
1
Associate planner jobs in Massachusetts
9. Washington
Total associate planner jobs: 125
Average annual salary: $71,544
Lowest 10 percent earn: $52,000
Highest 10 percent earn: $97,000
Location Quotient:
0.95
Associate planner jobs in Washington
10. Maryland
Total associate planner jobs: 162
Average annual salary: $67,829
Lowest 10 percent earn: $46,000
Highest 10 percent earn: $99,000
Location Quotient:
1.42
Associate planner jobs in Maryland

Associate planner jobsNear Columbus, OH

How Zippia determines the best states to be an associate planner

You can read about how the best state rankings are calculated here.

Detailed list of the best states for an associate planner

Rank	State	Average salary	Lowest 10% earn	Population	Job count
1	California	$83,333	$56,000	39,536,653	833
2	District of Columbia	$84,937	$57,000	693,972	39
3	Nevada	$70,300	$48,000	2,998,039	51
4	Connecticut	$69,695	$47,000	3,588,184	90
5	New York	$72,090	$49,000	19,849,399	318
6	Oregon	$72,462	$51,000	4,142,776	70
7	Pennsylvania	$66,745	$45,000	12,805,537	236
8	Massachusetts	$69,910	$48,000	6,859,819	166
9	Washington	$71,544	$52,000	7,405,743	125
10	Maryland	$67,829	$46,000	6,052,177	162
11	New Jersey	$69,373	$47,000	9,005,644	109
12	Delaware	$68,991	$46,000	961,939	16
13	Rhode Island	$68,120	$46,000	1,059,639	10
14	Arizona	$61,389	$42,000	7,016,270	122
15	Kentucky	$63,328	$43,000	4,454,189	50
16	Vermont	$67,336	$47,000	623,657	7
17	Alaska	$66,909	$57,000	739,795	11
18	Colorado	$61,017	$44,000	5,607,154	157
19	Kansas	$63,900	$46,000	2,913,123	21
20	Minnesota	$61,593	$45,000	5,576,606	105
21	Virginia	$60,377	$40,000	8,470,020	236
22	Hawaii	$62,119	$50,000	1,427,538	31
23	Florida	$60,695	$38,000	20,984,400	240
24	Louisiana	$62,866	$40,000	4,684,333	19
25	New Hampshire	$55,777	$38,000	1,342,795	45
26	North Carolina	$56,382	$37,000	10,273,419	178
27	Wyoming	$61,435	$45,000	579,315	1
28	Texas	$56,846	$37,000	28,304,596	322
29	Illinois	$56,639	$40,000	12,802,023	209
30	Wisconsin	$53,558	$38,000	5,795,483	108
31	Nebraska	$54,603	$40,000	1,920,076	32
32	Ohio	$54,309	$37,000	11,658,609	135
33	Alabama	$52,566	$34,000	4,874,747	80
34	North Dakota	$55,539	$42,000	755,393	11
35	Maine	$56,767	$40,000	1,335,907	8
36	Iowa	$53,831	$39,000	3,145,711	55
37	Utah	$53,535	$38,000	3,101,833	59
38	Oklahoma	$55,662	$39,000	3,930,864	13
39	Tennessee	$53,131	$36,000	6,715,984	81
40	South Carolina	$50,935	$33,000	5,024,369	93
41	Mississippi	$52,713	$35,000	2,984,100	20
42	Georgia	$51,809	$34,000	10,429,379	157
43	Missouri	$54,482	$38,000	6,113,532	60
44	Indiana	$51,670	$36,000	6,666,818	86
45	Idaho	$53,793	$39,000	1,716,943	9
46	Michigan	$50,865	$35,000	9,962,311	97
47	Montana	$51,321	$38,000	1,050,493	2
48	South Dakota	$49,938	$37,000	869,666	3
49	New Mexico	$47,950	$33,000	2,088,070	21
50	Arkansas	$45,028	$31,000	3,004,279	33
51	West Virginia	$47,558	$32,000	1,815,857	6

Highest paying states for associate planners

Rank	State	Avg. Associate Planner Salary
1	California	$83,333
2	District of Columbia	$84,937
3	Nevada	$70,300
4	Connecticut	$69,695
5	New York	$72,090
6	Oregon	$72,462
7	Pennsylvania	$66,745
8	Massachusetts	$69,910
9	Washington	$71,544
10	Maryland	$67,829
11	New Jersey	$69,373
12	Delaware	$68,991
13	Rhode Island	$68,120
14	Arizona	$61,389
15	Kentucky	$63,328
16	Vermont	$67,336
17	Alaska	$66,909
18	Colorado	$61,017
19	Kansas	$63,900
20	Minnesota	$61,593
21	Virginia	$60,377
22	Hawaii	$62,119
23	Florida	$60,695
24	Louisiana	$62,866
25	New Hampshire	$55,777
26	North Carolina	$56,382
27	Wyoming	$61,435
28	Texas	$56,846
29	Illinois	$56,639
30	Wisconsin	$53,558
31	Nebraska	$54,603
32	Ohio	$54,309
33	Alabama	$52,566
34	North Dakota	$55,539
35	Maine	$56,767
36	Iowa	$53,831
37	Utah	$53,535
38	Oklahoma	$55,662
39	Tennessee	$53,131
40	South Carolina	$50,935
41	Mississippi	$52,713
42	Georgia	$51,809
43	Missouri	$54,482
44	Indiana	$51,670
45	Idaho	$53,793
46	Michigan	$50,865
47	Montana	$51,321
48	South Dakota	$49,938
49	New Mexico	$47,950
50	Arkansas	$45,028
51	West Virginia	$47,558

Associate planner best states FAQs

What is the best state for associate planners?

What is the highest paying state for associate planners?

What is the worst state for associate planners?

Have more questions? See all answers to common life, physical, and social science questions.

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Associate Planner
Best states for Associate Planners

Updated January 8, 2025

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Total associate planner jobs:	833
Average annual salary:	$83,333
Lowest 10 percent earn:	$56,000
Highest 10 percent earn:	$122,000
Location Quotient:	1.58

Best states for an associate planner

10 best states for associate planners in 2026

1. California

2. District of Columbia

3. Nevada

4. Connecticut

5. New York

6. Oregon

7. Pennsylvania

8. Massachusetts

9. Washington

10. Maryland