With this in mind, job-hunting site Glassdoor recently came up with a cost-of-living ratio – calculated by taking a city’s median base salary and dividing it by its median home value – to find cities in the U.S. where your pay will go the furthest. Here it is: a countdown of the top 25 cities where you can live like a king or queen on less than $70K a year, along with each city’s cost of living ratio (a higher ratio number is better), median base salary, median home value and number of open jobs.
25. Raleigh, N.C.
Cost-of-living ratio: 30%
Median base salary: $62,000
Median home value: $209,400
Number of open jobs: 22,339
24. Minneapolis-St. Paul
Cost-of-living ratio: 30%
Median base salary: $65,000
Median home value: $219,400
Number of open jobs: 64,026
23. Jacksonville, Fla.
Cost-of-living ratio: 30%
Median base salary: $50,000
Median home value: $165,900
Number of open jobs: 18,205
22. Richmond, Va.
Cost-of-living ratio: 31%
Median base salary: $59,800
Median home value: $191,500
Number of open jobs: 21,454
21. Hartford, Conn.
Cost-of-living ratio: 32%
Median base salary: $68,000
Median home value: $215,800
Number of open jobs: 19,025
20. Tampa, Fla.
Cost-of-living ratio: 32%
Median base salary: $52,000
Median home value: $163,600
Number of open jobs: 40,830
19. Chicago
Cost-of-living ratio: 33%
Median base salary: $63,000
Median home value: $193,800
Number of open jobs: 155,173
18. Dallas-Fort Worth
Cost-of-living ratio: 33%
Median base salary: $61,000
Median home value: $182,100
Number of open jobs: 121,241
17. Charlotte, N.C.
Cost-of-living ratio: 36%
Median base salary: $58,000
Median home value: $159,800
Number of open jobs: 37,180
16. San Antonio
Cost-of-living ratio: 37%
Median base salary: $55,000
Median home value: $150,200
Number of open jobs: 28,378
15. Atlanta
Cost-of-living ratio: 37%
Median base salary: $60,000
Median home value: $163,000
Number of open jobs: 90,739
14. Columbus, Ohio
Cost-of-living ratio: 37%
Median base salary: $57,000
Median home value: $154,600
Number of open jobs: 30,728
13. Oklahoma City
Cost-of-living ratio: 38%
Median base salary: $50,000
Median home value: $132,500
Number of open jobs: 16,388
12. Houston
Cost-of-living ratio: 38%
Median base salary: $65,000
Median home value: $172,100
Number of open jobs: 72,033
11. Buffalo, N.Y.
Cost-of-living ratio: 39%
Median base salary: $50,000
Median home value: $128,100
Number of open jobs: 13,599
10. Louisville, Ky.
Cost-of-living ratio: 39%
Median base salary: $54,000
Median home value: $137,500
Number of open jobs: 22,693
9. Kansas City, Mo.
Cost-of-living ratio: 39%
Median base salary: $58,000
Median home value: $147,500
Number of open jobs: 35,639
8. Birmingham
Cost-of-living ratio: 40%
Median base salary: $50,800
Median home value: $128,00
Number of open jobs: 15,299
7. Cincinnati, Ohio
Cost-of-living ratio: 40%
Median base salary: $57,179
Median home value: $143,400
Number of open jobs: 32,605
6. St. Louis
Cost of living ratio: 40%
Median base salary: $56,896
Median home value: $141,900
Number of open jobs: 35,300
5. Indianapolis
Cost-of-living ratio: 43%
Median base salary: $56,000
Median home value: $130,200
Number of open jobs: 33,090
4. Cleveland
Cost-of-living ratio: 44%
Median base salary: $55,000
Median home value: $125,500
Number of open jobs: 29,304
3. Pittsburgh
Cost-of-living ratio: 45%
Median base salary: $56,896
Median home value: $126,700
Number of open jobs: 46,379
2. Memphis, Tenn.
Cost-of-living ratio: 46%
Median base salary: $52,000
Median home value: $112,100
Number of open jobs: 17,892
1. Detroit
Cost-of-living ratio: 50%
Median base salary: $61,500
Median home value: $123,100
Number of open jobs: 54,808
