
Bill Dickinson/Getty Images
With job openings dropping and wage growth slowing, the US labor market is cooling off.
But there are some pockets of the country that have more buzzing job markets than others.
Financial data firm SmartAsset recently published a study ranking 348 cities around the US on how attractive their job markets are. The study uses Census Bureau data from 2023, the most recent data available, and considers local unemployment rates, median annual earnings, three-year income growth, the percentage of its workforce that has a remote job, and more.
Below, we’ve listed the top 15 cities in the ranking, along with the above data points. For reference, here are the median values for each variable across the study sample:
- Unemployment rate: 4.45%
- Median earnings: $42,140
- 3-year income growth: 25.28%
- Percent working remotely: 11.93%
15. Nashville, Tennessee

Mike/Getty Images
Unemployment rate: 3.13%
Median earnings: $50,304
3-year income growth: 38.37%
Percent working remotely: 17.81%
14. St. Louis, Missouri

Art Wager/Getty Images
Unemployment rate: 4.69%
Median earnings: $59,986
3-year income growth: 34.47%
Percent working remotely: 13.30%
13. Scottsdale, Arizona

antsdrone/Shutterstock
Unemployment rate: 2.97%
Median earnings: $57,183
3-year income growth: 28.38%
Percent working remotely: 26.52%
12. Wichita Falls, Texas

DenisTangneyJr/Getty Images
Unemployment rate: 2.51%
Median earnings: $68,390
3-year income growth: 39.65%
Percent working remotely: 7.58%
11. Austin, Texas

Getty Images
Unemployment rate: 3.95%
Median earnings: $36,585
3-year income growth: 34.97%
Percent working remotely: 26.54%
10. Sunnyvale, California

Sundry Photography/Shutterstock
Unemployment rate: 3.45%
Median earnings: $111,905
3-year income growth: 31.12%
Percent working remotely: 15.33%
9. Westminster, Colorado

John Coletti/Getty Images
Unemployment rate: 1.69%
Median earnings: $70,711
3-year income growth: 37.73%
Percent working remotely: 19.35%
8. Sioux Falls, South Dakota

Jacob Boomsma/Shutterstock
Unemployment rate: 2.36%
Median earnings: $56,858
3-year income growth: 29.89%
Percent working remotely: 9.26%
7. Cary, North Carolina

KAD Photo/Shutterstock
Unemployment rate: 3.50%
Median earnings: $47,203
3-year income growth: 23.13%
Percent working remotely: 27.96%
6. Santa Clara, California

Mariusz S. Jurgielewicz/Shutterstock
Unemployment rate: 4.24%
Median earnings: $90,384
3-year income growth: 40.97%
Percent working remotely: 16.51%
5. Carmel, Indiana

Michael Godek/Getty Images
Unemployment rate: 2.27%
Median earnings: $101,038
3-year income growth: 21.49%
Percent working remotely: 27.75%
4. Bellevue, Washington

Ryan C Slimak Photo
Unemployment rate: 4.29%
Median earnings: $76,228
3-year income growth: 32.43%
Percent working remotely: 24.59%
3. Seattle, Washington

Sean Pavone/Shutterstock
Unemployment rate: 4.17%
Median earnings: $46,443
3-year income growth: 35.99%
Percent working remotely: 26.87%
2. Richmond, Virginia

Bill Dickinson/Getty Images
Unemployment rate: 3.80%
Median earnings: $73,138
3-year income growth: 49.47%
Percent working remotely: 15.81%
1. Bend, Oregon

Mike Albright Photography/Shutterstock
Unemployment rate: 3.16%
Median earnings: $51,382
3-year income growth: 44.22%
Percent working remotely: 26.89%
The post The 15 best job markets in the country — where incomes are surging and unemployment is low appeared first on Business Insider.