Best states for a defense attorney

Q: What is the best state for defense attorneys?

The best state to be a defense attorney is California based on defense attorney salaries and job opportunities.

Q: What is the highest paying state for defense attorneys?

The highest paying state for defense attorneys is Maine based on Zippia’s salary database.

Q: What is the worst state for defense attorneys?

The worst state for defense attorneys is Maine, due to a combination of low salaries and few job opportunities.

Rank 1 - 10
11 - 20
21 - 30
31 - 40
41 - 51

Defense attorney opportunities vary in different parts of the country. In order to help you determine the best states for defense attorneys, we ranked all fifty states from best to worst for defense attorneys.Pay, benefits, and opportunities vary greatly by state, and it's no different for defense attorneys. We found that California is the best state in the nation for defense attorneys, and people in Pacifica earn the most in the field.

To that end, we dove into our dataset of job and salary numbers to figure out which states have the best opportunities for defense attorneys. California is the best state for defense attorneys, where the median salary is $123,064.California is the best state, and Pacifica is the city with the highest pay for defense attorneys.

10 best states for defense attorneys in 2026

1. California
Total defense attorney jobs: 355
Average annual salary: $123,064
Lowest 10 percent earn: $82,000
Highest 10 percent earn: $184,000
Location Quotient:
1.48
Defense attorney jobs in California
2. New York
Total defense attorney jobs: 161
Average annual salary: $109,837
Lowest 10 percent earn: $72,000
Highest 10 percent earn: $167,000
Location Quotient:
1.53
Defense attorney jobs in New York
3. Massachusetts
Total defense attorney jobs: 78
Average annual salary: $106,859
Lowest 10 percent earn: $69,000
Highest 10 percent earn: $163,000
Location Quotient:
1.04
Defense attorney jobs in Massachusetts
4. District of Columbia
Total defense attorney jobs: 136
Average annual salary: $107,797
Lowest 10 percent earn: $71,000
Highest 10 percent earn: $162,000
Location Quotient:
9.91
Defense attorney jobs in District of Columbia
5. Alaska
Total defense attorney jobs: 5
Average annual salary: $106,640
Lowest 10 percent earn: $76,000
Highest 10 percent earn: $149,000
Location Quotient:
0.73
Defense attorney jobs in Alaska
6. Washington
Total defense attorney jobs: 43
Average annual salary: $106,516
Lowest 10 percent earn: $71,000
Highest 10 percent earn: $159,000
Location Quotient:
0.72
Defense attorney jobs in Washington
7. Texas
Total defense attorney jobs: 186
Average annual salary: $94,729
Lowest 10 percent earn: $63,000
Highest 10 percent earn: $140,000
Location Quotient:
1.12
Defense attorney jobs in Texas
8. New Jersey
Total defense attorney jobs: 56
Average annual salary: $103,528
Lowest 10 percent earn: $68,000
Highest 10 percent earn: $157,000
Location Quotient:
0.86
Defense attorney jobs in New Jersey
9. Nevada
Total defense attorney jobs: 10
Average annual salary: $104,718
Lowest 10 percent earn: $69,000
Highest 10 percent earn: $158,000
Location Quotient:
0.58
Defense attorney jobs in Nevada
10. Virginia
Total defense attorney jobs: 73
Average annual salary: $95,941
Lowest 10 percent earn: $64,000
Highest 10 percent earn: $143,000
Location Quotient:
0.95
Defense attorney jobs in Virginia

Defense attorney jobsNear Columbus, OH

How Zippia determines the best states to be a defense attorney

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

Detailed list of the best states for a defense attorney

Rank	State	Average salary	Lowest 10% earn	Population	Job count
1	California	$123,064	$82,000	39,536,653	355
2	New York	$109,837	$72,000	19,849,399	161
3	Massachusetts	$106,859	$69,000	6,859,819	78
4	District of Columbia	$107,797	$71,000	693,972	136
5	Alaska	$106,640	$76,000	739,795	5
6	Washington	$106,516	$71,000	7,405,743	43
7	Texas	$94,729	$63,000	28,304,596	186
8	New Jersey	$103,528	$68,000	9,005,644	56
9	Nevada	$104,718	$69,000	2,998,039	10
10	Virginia	$95,941	$64,000	8,470,020	73
11	Oregon	$106,757	$71,000	4,142,776	13
12	Illinois	$92,506	$61,000	12,802,023	90
13	Colorado	$91,275	$61,000	5,607,154	49
14	Georgia	$87,023	$59,000	10,429,379	117
15	Tennessee	$89,469	$60,000	6,715,984	25
16	Arizona	$87,289	$58,000	7,016,270	48
17	Utah	$94,150	$62,000	3,101,833	10
18	Michigan	$86,210	$56,000	9,962,311	50
19	Pennsylvania	$88,085	$58,000	12,805,537	51
20	Idaho	$85,230	$56,000	1,716,943	14
21	Maryland	$91,306	$60,000	6,052,177	41
22	Vermont	$91,784	$59,000	623,657	1
23	Connecticut	$91,322	$59,000	3,588,184	13
24	Louisiana	$82,873	$55,000	4,684,333	21
25	Rhode Island	$85,894	$56,000	1,059,639	5
26	Ohio	$83,998	$55,000	11,658,609	41
27	Florida	$79,046	$53,000	20,984,400	273
28	Iowa	$86,395	$57,000	3,145,711	5
29	Delaware	$86,405	$57,000	961,939	3
30	Wyoming	$72,392	$48,000	579,315	23
31	Minnesota	$80,919	$54,000	5,576,606	34
32	Wisconsin	$77,548	$51,000	5,795,483	30
33	West Virginia	$81,565	$54,000	1,815,857	1
34	Hawaii	$76,228	$57,000	1,427,538	8
35	North Dakota	$76,860	$52,000	755,393	5
36	Montana	$73,511	$49,000	1,050,493	15
37	New Mexico	$76,332	$50,000	2,088,070	12
38	Missouri	$76,373	$51,000	6,113,532	38
39	Alabama	$78,774	$53,000	4,874,747	10
40	New Hampshire	$78,827	$51,000	1,342,795	6
41	Nebraska	$74,886	$50,000	1,920,076	10
42	North Carolina	$72,250	$48,000	10,273,419	45
43	Arkansas	$70,464	$47,000	3,004,279	14
44	South Carolina	$68,466	$46,000	5,024,369	31
45	Kentucky	$71,353	$47,000	4,454,189	12
46	South Dakota	$70,770	$48,000	869,666	2
47	Kansas	$70,770	$48,000	2,913,123	8
48	Indiana	$57,141	$37,000	6,666,818	37
49	Oklahoma	$65,630	$44,000	3,930,864	12
50	Mississippi	$68,879	$46,000	2,984,100	5
51	Maine	$56,325	$36,000	1,335,907	5

Highest paying states for defense attorneys

Rank	State	Avg. Defense Attorney Salary
1	California	$123,064
2	New York	$109,837
3	Massachusetts	$106,859
4	District of Columbia	$107,797
5	Alaska	$106,640
6	Washington	$106,516
7	Texas	$94,729
8	New Jersey	$103,528
9	Nevada	$104,718
10	Virginia	$95,941
11	Oregon	$106,757
12	Illinois	$92,506
13	Colorado	$91,275
14	Georgia	$87,023
15	Tennessee	$89,469
16	Arizona	$87,289
17	Utah	$94,150
18	Michigan	$86,210
19	Pennsylvania	$88,085
20	Idaho	$85,230
21	Maryland	$91,306
22	Vermont	$91,784
23	Connecticut	$91,322
24	Louisiana	$82,873
25	Rhode Island	$85,894
26	Ohio	$83,998
27	Florida	$79,046
28	Iowa	$86,395
29	Delaware	$86,405
30	Wyoming	$72,392
31	Minnesota	$80,919
32	Wisconsin	$77,548
33	West Virginia	$81,565
34	Hawaii	$76,228
35	North Dakota	$76,860
36	Montana	$73,511
37	New Mexico	$76,332
38	Missouri	$76,373
39	Alabama	$78,774
40	New Hampshire	$78,827
41	Nebraska	$74,886
42	North Carolina	$72,250
43	Arkansas	$70,464
44	South Carolina	$68,466
45	Kentucky	$71,353
46	South Dakota	$70,770
47	Kansas	$70,770
48	Indiana	$57,141
49	Oklahoma	$65,630
50	Mississippi	$68,879
51	Maine	$56,325

Defense attorney best states FAQs

What is the best state for defense attorneys?

What is the highest paying state for defense attorneys?

What is the worst state for defense attorneys?

Have more questions? See all answers to common legal questions.

Search for defense attorney jobs

Zippia Careers
Legal Industry
Defense Attorney
Best states for Defense Attorneys

Updated January 8, 2025

Browse legal jobs

Total defense attorney jobs:	355
Average annual salary:	$123,064
Lowest 10 percent earn:	$82,000
Highest 10 percent earn:	$184,000
Location Quotient:	1.48

Best states for a defense attorney

10 best states for defense attorneys in 2026

1. California

2. New York

3. Massachusetts

4. District of Columbia

5. Alaska

6. Washington

7. Texas

8. New Jersey

9. Nevada

10. Virginia