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Best states for a library director
- Rank 1 - 10
- 11 - 20
- 21 - 30
- 31 - 40
- 41 - 51
Library director opportunities vary in different parts of the country. In order to help you determine the best states for library directors, we ranked all fifty states from best to worst for library directors.We wanted to look at the best states for library directors -- where there are plenty of library director jobs to go around and library directors 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 library directors. New Jersey is the best state for library directors, where the median salary is $58,462.If you are currently seeking employment as a library director, you can find open job positions using Zippia's search tools.
10 best states for library directors in 2025
1. New Jersey
Total library director jobs: 123 Average annual salary: $58,462 Lowest 10 percent earn: $36,000 Highest 10 percent earn: $93,000 Location Quotient: 0.792. Connecticut
Total library director jobs: 47 Average annual salary: $56,348 Lowest 10 percent earn: $35,000 Highest 10 percent earn: $89,000 Location Quotient: 0.723. District of Columbia
Total library director jobs: 53 Average annual salary: $56,693 Lowest 10 percent earn: $34,000 Highest 10 percent earn: $92,000 Location Quotient: 1.614. Alaska
Total library director jobs: 6 Average annual salary: $65,094 Lowest 10 percent earn: $42,000 Highest 10 percent earn: $98,000 Location Quotient: 0.375. Pennsylvania
Total library director jobs: 113 Average annual salary: $50,515 Lowest 10 percent earn: $31,000 Highest 10 percent earn: $81,000 Location Quotient: 0.56. West Virginia
Total library director jobs: 257 Average annual salary: $44,779 Lowest 10 percent earn: $27,000 Highest 10 percent earn: $72,000 Location Quotient: 8.67. Michigan
Total library director jobs: 54 Average annual salary: $52,908 Lowest 10 percent earn: $34,000 Highest 10 percent earn: $82,000 Location Quotient: 0.368. Wisconsin
Total library director jobs: 74 Average annual salary: $47,149 Lowest 10 percent earn: $31,000 Highest 10 percent earn: $71,000 Location Quotient: 0.689. Massachusetts
Total library director jobs: 150 Average annual salary: $48,328 Lowest 10 percent earn: $31,000 Highest 10 percent earn: $75,000 Location Quotient: 0.8310. Rhode Island
Total library director jobs: 12 Average annual salary: $48,985 Lowest 10 percent earn: $31,000 Highest 10 percent earn: $76,000 Location Quotient: 0.5
Library director jobsNear Columbus, OH
How Zippia determines the best states to be a library director
You can read about how the best state rankings are calculated here.
Detailed list of the best states for a library director
| Rank | State | Average salary | Lowest 10% earn | Population | Job count |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | New Jersey | $58,462 | $36,000 | 9,005,644 | 123 |
| 2 | Connecticut | $56,348 | $35,000 | 3,588,184 | 47 |
| 3 | District of Columbia | $56,693 | $34,000 | 693,972 | 53 |
| 4 | Alaska | $65,094 | $42,000 | 739,795 | 6 |
| 5 | Pennsylvania | $50,515 | $31,000 | 12,805,537 | 113 |
| 6 | West Virginia | $44,779 | $27,000 | 1,815,857 | 257 |
| 7 | Michigan | $52,908 | $34,000 | 9,962,311 | 54 |
| 8 | Wisconsin | $47,149 | $31,000 | 5,795,483 | 74 |
| 9 | Massachusetts | $48,328 | $31,000 | 6,859,819 | 150 |
| 10 | Rhode Island | $48,985 | $31,000 | 1,059,639 | 12 |
| 11 | Maryland | $54,738 | $33,000 | 6,052,177 | 48 |
| 12 | Minnesota | $50,346 | $34,000 | 5,576,606 | 55 |
| 13 | Delaware | $52,767 | $32,000 | 961,939 | 7 |
| 14 | Oregon | $47,279 | $27,000 | 4,142,776 | 50 |
| 15 | Nevada | $47,120 | $27,000 | 2,998,039 | 18 |
| 16 | North Carolina | $44,686 | $27,000 | 10,273,419 | 93 |
| 17 | Mississippi | $47,521 | $28,000 | 2,984,100 | 11 |
| 18 | New York | $45,178 | $28,000 | 19,849,399 | 274 |
| 19 | Virginia | $45,977 | $28,000 | 8,470,020 | 87 |
| 20 | California | $46,392 | $26,000 | 39,536,653 | 484 |
| 21 | North Dakota | $47,787 | $33,000 | 755,393 | 3 |
| 22 | Washington | $45,410 | $26,000 | 7,405,743 | 79 |
| 23 | Alabama | $40,517 | $24,000 | 4,874,747 | 512 |
| 24 | Georgia | $42,415 | $25,000 | 10,429,379 | 141 |
| 25 | South Carolina | $40,705 | $24,000 | 5,024,369 | 682 |
| 26 | Nebraska | $43,227 | $27,000 | 1,920,076 | 21 |
| 27 | Texas | $42,523 | $25,000 | 28,304,596 | 232 |
| 28 | Ohio | $43,780 | $27,000 | 11,658,609 | 71 |
| 29 | Utah | $44,278 | $26,000 | 3,101,833 | 19 |
| 30 | Illinois | $42,138 | $27,000 | 12,802,023 | 162 |
| 31 | Vermont | $42,289 | $28,000 | 623,657 | 10 |
| 32 | Louisiana | $39,761 | $23,000 | 4,684,333 | 496 |
| 33 | New Hampshire | $45,106 | $29,000 | 1,342,795 | 9 |
| 34 | Indiana | $41,357 | $26,000 | 6,666,818 | 41 |
| 35 | Kentucky | $40,814 | $25,000 | 4,454,189 | 30 |
| 36 | Oklahoma | $37,312 | $22,000 | 3,930,864 | 417 |
| 37 | Iowa | $38,708 | $25,000 | 3,145,711 | 31 |
| 38 | South Dakota | $33,628 | $22,000 | 869,666 | 172 |
| 39 | Arizona | $38,445 | $22,000 | 7,016,270 | 52 |
| 40 | Colorado | $35,819 | $22,000 | 5,607,154 | 97 |
| 41 | Tennessee | $38,580 | $23,000 | 6,715,984 | 32 |
| 42 | Missouri | $37,427 | $23,000 | 6,113,532 | 58 |
| 43 | Hawaii | $43,091 | $34,000 | 1,427,538 | 3 |
| 44 | Florida | $38,787 | $22,000 | 20,984,400 | 124 |
| 45 | Kansas | $38,403 | $24,000 | 2,913,123 | 16 |
| 46 | New Mexico | $38,261 | $22,000 | 2,088,070 | 11 |
| 47 | Arkansas | $34,680 | $21,000 | 3,004,279 | 25 |
| 48 | Maine | $38,087 | $25,000 | 1,335,907 | 5 |
| 49 | Montana | $32,097 | $19,000 | 1,050,493 | 15 |
| 50 | Wyoming | $31,355 | $19,000 | 579,315 | 5 |
| 51 | Idaho | $35,223 | $20,000 | 1,716,943 | 6 |
Highest paying states for library directors
| Rank | State | Avg. Library Director Salary |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | New Jersey | $58,462 |
| 2 | Connecticut | $56,348 |
| 3 | District of Columbia | $56,693 |
| 4 | Alaska | $65,094 |
| 5 | Pennsylvania | $50,515 |
| 6 | West Virginia | $44,779 |
| 7 | Michigan | $52,908 |
| 8 | Wisconsin | $47,149 |
| 9 | Massachusetts | $48,328 |
| 10 | Rhode Island | $48,985 |
| 11 | Maryland | $54,738 |
| 12 | Minnesota | $50,346 |
| 13 | Delaware | $52,767 |
| 14 | Oregon | $47,279 |
| 15 | Nevada | $47,120 |
| 16 | North Carolina | $44,686 |
| 17 | Mississippi | $47,521 |
| 18 | New York | $45,178 |
| 19 | Virginia | $45,977 |
| 20 | California | $46,392 |
| 21 | North Dakota | $47,787 |
| 22 | Washington | $45,410 |
| 23 | Alabama | $40,517 |
| 24 | Georgia | $42,415 |
| 25 | South Carolina | $40,705 |
| 26 | Nebraska | $43,227 |
| 27 | Texas | $42,523 |
| 28 | Ohio | $43,780 |
| 29 | Utah | $44,278 |
| 30 | Illinois | $42,138 |
| 31 | Vermont | $42,289 |
| 32 | Louisiana | $39,761 |
| 33 | New Hampshire | $45,106 |
| 34 | Indiana | $41,357 |
| 35 | Kentucky | $40,814 |
| 36 | Oklahoma | $37,312 |
| 37 | Iowa | $38,708 |
| 38 | South Dakota | $33,628 |
| 39 | Arizona | $38,445 |
| 40 | Colorado | $35,819 |
| 41 | Tennessee | $38,580 |
| 42 | Missouri | $37,427 |
| 43 | Hawaii | $43,091 |
| 44 | Florida | $38,787 |
| 45 | Kansas | $38,403 |
| 46 | New Mexico | $38,261 |
| 47 | Arkansas | $34,680 |
| 48 | Maine | $38,087 |
| 49 | Montana | $32,097 |
| 50 | Wyoming | $31,355 |
| 51 | Idaho | $35,223 |
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Updated January 8, 2025