Best states for a funding specialist

Q: What is the best state for funding specialists?

The best state to be a funding specialist is Hawaii based on funding specialist salaries and job opportunities.

Q: What is the highest paying state for funding specialists?

The highest paying state for funding specialists is Montana based on Zippia’s salary database.

Q: What is the worst state for funding specialists?

The worst state for funding specialists is Montana, due to a combination of low salaries and few job opportunities.

Quoted expert

Donna Kukarola

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It seems like funding specialists are becoming more and more common across America. But working conditions and demand for funding specialists aren't the same everywhere in the U.S. Although there are abundant funding specialist jobs in the United States, a large number of them are in the Midwest. Hawaii is the best state in the country for funding specialist jobs.

To that end, we dove into our dataset of job and salary numbers to figure out which states have the best opportunities for funding specialists. Hawaii is the best state for funding specialists, where the median salary is $63,620.We found that Hawaii is the best state for funding specialist jobs, whereas Montana is the worst.

10 best states for funding specialists in 2026

1. Hawaii
Total funding specialist jobs: 153
Average annual salary: $63,620
Lowest 10 percent earn: $47,000
Highest 10 percent earn: $84,000
Location Quotient:
1.74
Funding specialist jobs in Hawaii
2. Nevada
Total funding specialist jobs: 250
Average annual salary: $55,203
Lowest 10 percent earn: $33,000
Highest 10 percent earn: $90,000
Location Quotient:
1.14
Funding specialist jobs in Nevada
3. Arizona
Total funding specialist jobs: 889
Average annual salary: $50,565
Lowest 10 percent earn: $31,000
Highest 10 percent earn: $81,000
Location Quotient:
1.45
Funding specialist jobs in Arizona
4. Rhode Island
Total funding specialist jobs: 143
Average annual salary: $49,455
Lowest 10 percent earn: $31,000
Highest 10 percent earn: $78,000
Location Quotient:
1.12
Funding specialist jobs in Rhode Island
5. California
Total funding specialist jobs: 2,971
Average annual salary: $62,399
Lowest 10 percent earn: $38,000
Highest 10 percent earn: $101,000
Location Quotient:
0.97
Funding specialist jobs in California
6. Delaware
Total funding specialist jobs: 157
Average annual salary: $49,231
Lowest 10 percent earn: $30,000
Highest 10 percent earn: $80,000
Location Quotient:
1.19
Funding specialist jobs in Delaware
7. New Jersey
Total funding specialist jobs: 783
Average annual salary: $55,543
Lowest 10 percent earn: $33,000
Highest 10 percent earn: $90,000
Location Quotient:
0.94
Funding specialist jobs in New Jersey
8. District of Columbia
Total funding specialist jobs: 298
Average annual salary: $50,792
Lowest 10 percent earn: $31,000
Highest 10 percent earn: $83,000
Location Quotient:
1.69
Funding specialist jobs in District of Columbia
9. Florida
Total funding specialist jobs: 1,779
Average annual salary: $48,453
Lowest 10 percent earn: $27,000
Highest 10 percent earn: $83,000
Location Quotient:
1.09
Funding specialist jobs in Florida
10. Alaska
Total funding specialist jobs: 110
Average annual salary: $46,157
Lowest 10 percent earn: $32,000
Highest 10 percent earn: $65,000
Location Quotient:
1.26
Funding specialist jobs in Alaska

Funding specialist jobsNear Columbus, OH

How Zippia determines the best states to be a funding specialist

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

Detailed list of the best states for a funding specialist

Rank	State	Average salary	Lowest 10% earn	Population	Job count
1	Hawaii	$63,620	$47,000	1,427,538	153
2	Nevada	$55,203	$33,000	2,998,039	250
3	Arizona	$50,565	$31,000	7,016,270	889
4	Rhode Island	$49,455	$31,000	1,059,639	143
5	California	$62,399	$38,000	39,536,653	2,971
6	Delaware	$49,231	$30,000	961,939	157
7	New Jersey	$55,543	$33,000	9,005,644	783
8	District of Columbia	$50,792	$31,000	693,972	298
9	Florida	$48,453	$27,000	20,984,400	1,779
10	Alaska	$46,157	$32,000	739,795	110
11	Texas	$47,289	$27,000	28,304,596	2,261
12	Pennsylvania	$46,355	$28,000	12,805,537	1,251
13	Louisiana	$49,173	$28,000	4,684,333	290
14	North Carolina	$42,151	$25,000	10,273,419	1,134
15	Oregon	$46,475	$27,000	4,142,776	429
16	Kansas	$42,119	$26,000	2,913,123	330
17	Connecticut	$47,527	$29,000	3,588,184	300
18	New York	$42,811	$26,000	19,849,399	1,530
19	Maryland	$42,831	$26,000	6,052,177	737
20	Massachusetts	$44,886	$28,000	6,859,819	840
21	Georgia	$42,336	$25,000	10,429,379	970
22	New Mexico	$40,727	$25,000	2,088,070	200
23	Virginia	$42,399	$25,000	8,470,020	947
24	Michigan	$38,834	$24,000	9,962,311	811
25	Idaho	$39,601	$23,000	1,716,943	172
26	Mississippi	$40,672	$24,000	2,984,100	172
27	Maine	$36,510	$25,000	1,335,907	155
28	Iowa	$37,394	$23,000	3,145,711	421
29	West Virginia	$38,659	$24,000	1,815,857	131
30	Utah	$37,701	$22,000	3,101,833	353
31	Tennessee	$37,752	$23,000	6,715,984	515
32	Illinois	$37,916	$24,000	12,802,023	1,286
33	Ohio	$37,445	$23,000	11,658,609	996
34	Oklahoma	$38,416	$23,000	3,930,864	272
35	Arkansas	$37,767	$23,000	3,004,279	222
36	Indiana	$37,567	$23,000	6,666,818	614
37	South Carolina	$39,047	$23,000	5,024,369	368
38	Wisconsin	$38,628	$24,000	5,795,483	409
39	Vermont	$35,338	$23,000	623,657	84
40	South Dakota	$32,748	$21,000	869,666	132
41	North Dakota	$32,226	$20,000	755,393	157
42	Colorado	$36,514	$22,000	5,607,154	660
43	Wyoming	$31,659	$19,000	579,315	99
44	Nebraska	$32,933	$20,000	1,920,076	268
45	New Hampshire	$34,765	$22,000	1,342,795	174
46	Washington	$36,239	$21,000	7,405,743	716
47	Kentucky	$36,188	$22,000	4,454,189	321
48	Alabama	$35,594	$21,000	4,874,747	363
49	Missouri	$35,128	$22,000	6,113,532	542
50	Minnesota	$33,943	$21,000	5,576,606	653
51	Montana	$30,409	$18,000	1,050,493	124

Highest paying states for funding specialists

Rank	State	Avg. Funding Specialist Salary
1	Hawaii	$63,620
2	Nevada	$55,203
3	Arizona	$50,565
4	Rhode Island	$49,455
5	California	$62,399
6	Delaware	$49,231
7	New Jersey	$55,543
8	District of Columbia	$50,792
9	Florida	$48,453
10	Alaska	$46,157
11	Texas	$47,289
12	Pennsylvania	$46,355
13	Louisiana	$49,173
14	North Carolina	$42,151
15	Oregon	$46,475
16	Kansas	$42,119
17	Connecticut	$47,527
18	New York	$42,811
19	Maryland	$42,831
20	Massachusetts	$44,886
21	Georgia	$42,336
22	New Mexico	$40,727
23	Virginia	$42,399
24	Michigan	$38,834
25	Idaho	$39,601
26	Mississippi	$40,672
27	Maine	$36,510
28	Iowa	$37,394
29	West Virginia	$38,659
30	Utah	$37,701
31	Tennessee	$37,752
32	Illinois	$37,916
33	Ohio	$37,445
34	Oklahoma	$38,416
35	Arkansas	$37,767
36	Indiana	$37,567
37	South Carolina	$39,047
38	Wisconsin	$38,628
39	Vermont	$35,338
40	South Dakota	$32,748
41	North Dakota	$32,226
42	Colorado	$36,514
43	Wyoming	$31,659
44	Nebraska	$32,933
45	New Hampshire	$34,765
46	Washington	$36,239
47	Kentucky	$36,188
48	Alabama	$35,594
49	Missouri	$35,128
50	Minnesota	$33,943
51	Montana	$30,409

Expert opinions on the best states for funding specialists

Are there any particularly good places in the United States for funding specialists to find work opportunities?
Donna Kukarola
Procurement Director, Forsyth County, Georgia
This one, not so sure of, the southeast continues to see options as well as mid-western states.

Funding specialist best states FAQs

What is the best state for funding specialists?

What is the highest paying state for funding specialists?

What is the worst state for funding specialists?

Have more questions? See all answers to common business and financial questions.

Search for funding specialist jobs

Updated January 8, 2025

Browse business and financial jobs

Total funding specialist jobs:	153
Average annual salary:	$63,620
Lowest 10 percent earn:	$47,000
Highest 10 percent earn:	$84,000
Location Quotient:	1.74

Best states for a funding specialist

10 best states for funding specialists in 2026

1. Hawaii

2. Nevada

3. Arizona

4. Rhode Island

5. California

6. Delaware

7. New Jersey

8. District of Columbia

9. Florida

10. Alaska