Maps
Mapped: Which is the Best U.S. City for Entry-Level Jobs by Pay?
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Which is the Best U.S. City for Well-Paid Entry-Level Jobs?
The anxieties around a first-job are immense: fear of the unknown, performance pressure, and the need to navigate new professional environments.
But good pay can help manage these worries. Lots and more has been written on which careers are the highest-paid, but how does geography factor into the equation?
To find the best U.S. city and state for well-paid entry-level jobs, NeoMam Studios visualizes data from Resume.io showing the percentage of local entry-level job listings that offer a salary above (and below) a city or state’s median hourly wages.
Ranked: 50 U.S. Cities By Entry-Level Job Pay
This dataset covers each U.S. state, as well as Washington, D.C. and 50 major cities. Median wage data is sourced from the Bureau of Labor Statistics, and the number of entry-level jobs and their pay rates from Indeed.com.
Bozeman, Montana (nicknamed “Boz Angeles” for its constant stream of celebrity visitors) and Iowa City both have nearly 88% of their entry-level jobs promising above their state’s median pay.
For an apples-to-apples comparison however, Iowa City’s median wage comes in slightly higher at $22.52/hour compared to Bozeman’s $20.71/hour.
Note: Toggle the embedded table between U.S. cities and states ranked by best entry-level jobs.
Another Midwestern urban center, Kansas City, ranked fourth, promises a high likelihood of above-media pay for first-job hunters (83.1%).
Generally, the more populous the city, the more jobs, and the higher the likelihood of beating median pay. However larger cities that are not the state capital also seem to do well on this metric: Fort Smith, Arkansas (ranked 5th), Lexington, Kentucky (6th), New Haven, Connecticut (7th), and Oakland, California (8th).
Ranked: U.S. States By Entry-Level Job Pay
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In South Dakota, and Montana, ranked first and second in the state by best entry-level pay ranks, more than three-quarters of junior role listings offer pay above the state’s median wage.
This works out more than $19.17/hour ($39,900/year) for South Dakota and $20.29/hour ($42,200/year) for Montana for their entry-level jobs.
In fact the first nine states on the ranks, where nearly 70% of the entry-level job listings offer above-state-median pay, are from the Midwest or West.
Kentucky, ranked 10th, has 67% of their starter job openings stating above median pay ($40,200/year), the highest from the American South.
Predictably, states with higher median pay (California, Connecticut, Massachusetts, Washington, New York) have lower numbers of entry-level job openings which promise pay above that level.
However, exceptions occur. For example, Wyoming’s median pay comes in around the same as Maine ($21.80/hour) but 68% of its entry-level job listings offer median-beating pay, compared to Maine’s 57%.
Hawaii is the worst state for a decent starting salary, with two-thirds of the analyzed listings offering below the median pay of $48,600/year. Most of the state’s jobs are concentrated in the tourism industry, part of the service sector, known for long hours, seasonal work, and low pay.
This article was published as a part of Visual Capitalist's Creator Program, which features data-driven visuals from some of our favorite Creators around the world.
Maps
The Largest Earthquakes in the New York Area (1970-2024)
The earthquake that shook buildings across New York in April 2024 was the third-largest quake in the Northeast U.S. over the past 50 years.
The Largest Earthquakes in the New York Area
This was originally posted on our Voronoi app. Download the app for free on Apple or Android and discover incredible data-driven charts from a variety of trusted sources.
The 4.8 magnitude earthquake that shook buildings across New York on Friday, April 5th, 2024 was the third-largest quake in the U.S. Northeast area over the past 50 years.
In this map, we illustrate earthquakes with a magnitude of 4.0 or greater recorded in the Northeastern U.S. since 1970, according to the United States Geological Survey (USGS).
Shallow Quakes and Older Buildings
The earthquake that struck the U.S. Northeast in April 2024 was felt by millions of people from Washington, D.C., to north of Boston. It even caused a full ground stop at Newark Airport.
The quake, occurring just 5 km beneath the Earth’s surface, was considered shallow, which is what contributed to more intense shaking at the surface.
According to the USGS, rocks in the eastern U.S. are significantly older, denser, and harder than those on the western side, compressed by time. This makes them more efficient conduits for seismic energy. Additionally, buildings in the Northeast tend to be older and may not adhere to the latest earthquake codes.
Despite disrupting work and school life, the earthquake was considered minor, according to the Michigan Technological University magnitude scale:
Magnitude | Earthquake Effects | Estimated Number Each Year |
---|---|---|
2.5 or less | Usually not felt, but can be recorded by seismograph. | Millions |
2.5 to 5.4 | Often felt, but only causes minor damage. | 500,000 |
5.5 to 6.0 | Slight damage to buildings and other structures. | 350 |
6.1 to 6.9 | May cause a lot of damage in very populated areas. | 100 |
7.0 to 7.9 | Major earthquake. Serious damage. | 10-15 |
8.0 or greater | Great earthquake. Can totally destroy communities near the epicenter. | One every year or two |
The largest earthquake felt in the area over the past 50 years was a 5.3 magnitude quake that occurred in Au Sable Forks, New York, in 2002. It damaged houses and cracked roads in a remote corner of the Adirondack Mountains, but caused no injuries.
Date | Magnitude | Location | State |
---|---|---|---|
April 20, 2002 | 5.3 | Au Sable Forks | New York |
October 7, 1983 | 5.1 | Newcomb | New York |
April 5, 2024 | 4.8 | Whitehouse Station | New Jersey |
October 16, 2012 | 4.7 | Hollis Center | Maine |
January 16, 1994 | 4.6 | Sinking Spring | Pennsylvania |
January 19, 1982 | 4.5 | Sanbornton | New Hampshire |
September 25, 1998 | 4.5 | Adamsville | Pennsylvania |
June 9, 1975 | 4.2 | Altona | New York |
May 29, 1983 | 4.2 | Peru | Maine |
April 23, 1984 | 4.2 | Conestoga | Pennsylvania |
January 16, 1994 | 4.2 | Sinking Spring | Pennsylvania |
November 3, 1975 | 4 | Long Lake | New York |
June 17, 1991 | 4 | Worcester | New York |
The largest earthquake in U.S. history, however, was the 1964 Good Friday quake in Alaska, measuring 9.2 magnitude and killing 131 people.
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