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Best states for a residence director
- Rank 1 - 10
- 11 - 20
- 21 - 30
- 31 - 40
- 41 - 51
Not all states present equal opportunity for employees, and when it comes to residence director jobs, it's no different. We know how hard job search can be, and in order to make your life a little easier, we have the information you need in order to determine where you might want to start your job search. We wanted to look at the best states for residence directors -- where there are plenty of residence director jobs to go around and residence 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 residence directors. Washington is the best state for residence directors, where the median salary is $62,848.We found that the South is best for residence directors, and the Northeast is the worst. Bellingham, WA is the best city in the country for residence director jobs, where as Washington is the best state in the country.
10 best states for residence directors in 2026
1. Washington
Total residence director jobs: 111 Average annual salary: $62,848 Lowest 10 percent earn: $47,000 Highest 10 percent earn: $82,000 Location Quotient: 0.68
2. California
Total residence director jobs: 528 Average annual salary: $61,390 Lowest 10 percent earn: $43,000 Highest 10 percent earn: $86,000 Location Quotient: 0.8
3. New York
Total residence director jobs: 399 Average annual salary: $57,379 Lowest 10 percent earn: $37,000 Highest 10 percent earn: $87,000 Location Quotient: 1.38
4. Iowa
Total residence director jobs: 529 Average annual salary: $49,779 Lowest 10 percent earn: $37,000 Highest 10 percent earn: $65,000 Location Quotient: 6.48
5. Louisiana
Total residence director jobs: 495 Average annual salary: $49,596 Lowest 10 percent earn: $36,000 Highest 10 percent earn: $67,000 Location Quotient: 6.89
6. Maine
Total residence director jobs: 7 Average annual salary: $63,639 Lowest 10 percent earn: $41,000 Highest 10 percent earn: $97,000 Location Quotient: 0.23
7. New Jersey
Total residence director jobs: 147 Average annual salary: $55,019 Lowest 10 percent earn: $36,000 Highest 10 percent earn: $83,000 Location Quotient: 0.82
8. North Dakota
Total residence director jobs: 4 Average annual salary: $63,986 Lowest 10 percent earn: $50,000 Highest 10 percent earn: $81,000 Location Quotient: 0.19
9. Arizona
Total residence director jobs: 50 Average annual salary: $55,621 Lowest 10 percent earn: $41,000 Highest 10 percent earn: $75,000 Location Quotient: 0.38
10. Minnesota
Total residence director jobs: 64 Average annual salary: $54,150 Lowest 10 percent earn: $41,000 Highest 10 percent earn: $70,000 Location Quotient: 0.43
Residence director jobsNear Columbus, OH
How Zippia determines the best states to be a residence director
You can read about how the best state rankings are calculated here.
Detailed list of the best states for a residence director
| Rank | State | Average salary | Lowest 10% earn | Population | Job count |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Washington | $62,848 | $47,000 | 7,405,743 | 111 |
| 2 | California | $61,390 | $43,000 | 39,536,653 | 528 |
| 3 | New York | $57,379 | $37,000 | 19,849,399 | 399 |
| 4 | Iowa | $49,779 | $37,000 | 3,145,711 | 529 |
| 5 | Louisiana | $49,596 | $36,000 | 4,684,333 | 495 |
| 6 | Maine | $63,639 | $41,000 | 1,335,907 | 7 |
| 7 | New Jersey | $55,019 | $36,000 | 9,005,644 | 147 |
| 8 | North Dakota | $63,986 | $50,000 | 755,393 | 4 |
| 9 | Arizona | $55,621 | $41,000 | 7,016,270 | 50 |
| 10 | Minnesota | $54,150 | $41,000 | 5,576,606 | 64 |
| 11 | Oregon | $52,468 | $38,000 | 4,142,776 | 58 |
| 12 | Vermont | $52,358 | $34,000 | 623,657 | 10 |
| 13 | Virginia | $54,057 | $36,000 | 8,470,020 | 130 |
| 14 | South Dakota | $46,202 | $35,000 | 869,666 | 197 |
| 15 | Illinois | $50,181 | $37,000 | 12,802,023 | 161 |
| 16 | New Hampshire | $55,783 | $36,000 | 1,342,795 | 8 |
| 17 | North Carolina | $49,457 | $35,000 | 10,273,419 | 122 |
| 18 | Alabama | $46,422 | $34,000 | 4,874,747 | 504 |
| 19 | West Virginia | $53,841 | $37,000 | 1,815,857 | 3 |
| 20 | Connecticut | $52,468 | $34,000 | 3,588,184 | 43 |
| 21 | Massachusetts | $51,169 | $33,000 | 6,859,819 | 182 |
| 22 | Alaska | $52,949 | $44,000 | 739,795 | 6 |
| 23 | Colorado | $50,083 | $39,000 | 5,607,154 | 78 |
| 24 | Wyoming | $51,596 | $40,000 | 579,315 | 2 |
| 25 | Pennsylvania | $48,028 | $31,000 | 12,805,537 | 131 |
| 26 | Kansas | $47,178 | $36,000 | 2,913,123 | 26 |
| 27 | Montana | $47,117 | $37,000 | 1,050,493 | 10 |
| 28 | Michigan | $45,188 | $32,000 | 9,962,311 | 69 |
| 29 | Wisconsin | $43,853 | $32,000 | 5,795,483 | 80 |
| 30 | Mississippi | $41,836 | $31,000 | 2,984,100 | 302 |
| 31 | Nebraska | $44,152 | $34,000 | 1,920,076 | 22 |
| 32 | Maryland | $48,402 | $32,000 | 6,052,177 | 50 |
| 33 | Nevada | $45,583 | $33,000 | 2,998,039 | 14 |
| 34 | Arkansas | $39,872 | $30,000 | 3,004,279 | 495 |
| 35 | Idaho | $46,442 | $35,000 | 1,716,943 | 5 |
| 36 | Utah | $44,675 | $34,000 | 3,101,833 | 22 |
| 37 | Hawaii | $49,651 | $44,000 | 1,427,538 | 5 |
| 38 | South Carolina | $43,664 | $31,000 | 5,024,369 | 37 |
| 39 | Missouri | $42,957 | $32,000 | 6,113,532 | 59 |
| 40 | District of Columbia | $38,598 | $26,000 | 693,972 | 51 |
| 41 | Texas | $41,212 | $30,000 | 28,304,596 | 239 |
| 42 | Oklahoma | $36,657 | $28,000 | 3,930,864 | 447 |
| 43 | Indiana | $42,163 | $30,000 | 6,666,818 | 46 |
| 44 | Rhode Island | $40,922 | $26,000 | 1,059,639 | 10 |
| 45 | Florida | $41,932 | $30,000 | 20,984,400 | 129 |
| 46 | New Mexico | $42,667 | $32,000 | 2,088,070 | 10 |
| 47 | Georgia | $36,810 | $27,000 | 10,429,379 | 153 |
| 48 | Kentucky | $38,290 | $28,000 | 4,454,189 | 34 |
| 49 | Tennessee | $39,852 | $29,000 | 6,715,984 | 37 |
| 50 | Ohio | $36,726 | $26,000 | 11,658,609 | 94 |
| 51 | Delaware | $39,616 | $26,000 | 961,939 | 5 |
Highest paying states for residence directors
| Rank | State | Avg. Residence Director Salary |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Washington | $62,848 |
| 2 | California | $61,390 |
| 3 | New York | $57,379 |
| 4 | Iowa | $49,779 |
| 5 | Louisiana | $49,596 |
| 6 | Maine | $63,639 |
| 7 | New Jersey | $55,019 |
| 8 | North Dakota | $63,986 |
| 9 | Arizona | $55,621 |
| 10 | Minnesota | $54,150 |
| 11 | Oregon | $52,468 |
| 12 | Vermont | $52,358 |
| 13 | Virginia | $54,057 |
| 14 | South Dakota | $46,202 |
| 15 | Illinois | $50,181 |
| 16 | New Hampshire | $55,783 |
| 17 | North Carolina | $49,457 |
| 18 | Alabama | $46,422 |
| 19 | West Virginia | $53,841 |
| 20 | Connecticut | $52,468 |
| 21 | Massachusetts | $51,169 |
| 22 | Alaska | $52,949 |
| 23 | Colorado | $50,083 |
| 24 | Wyoming | $51,596 |
| 25 | Pennsylvania | $48,028 |
| 26 | Kansas | $47,178 |
| 27 | Montana | $47,117 |
| 28 | Michigan | $45,188 |
| 29 | Wisconsin | $43,853 |
| 30 | Mississippi | $41,836 |
| 31 | Nebraska | $44,152 |
| 32 | Maryland | $48,402 |
| 33 | Nevada | $45,583 |
| 34 | Arkansas | $39,872 |
| 35 | Idaho | $46,442 |
| 36 | Utah | $44,675 |
| 37 | Hawaii | $49,651 |
| 38 | South Carolina | $43,664 |
| 39 | Missouri | $42,957 |
| 40 | District of Columbia | $38,598 |
| 41 | Texas | $41,212 |
| 42 | Oklahoma | $36,657 |
| 43 | Indiana | $42,163 |
| 44 | Rhode Island | $40,922 |
| 45 | Florida | $41,932 |
| 46 | New Mexico | $42,667 |
| 47 | Georgia | $36,810 |
| 48 | Kentucky | $38,290 |
| 49 | Tennessee | $39,852 |
| 50 | Ohio | $36,726 |
| 51 | Delaware | $39,616 |
Residence director best states FAQs
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Updated January 8, 2025