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Here are the best and worst places to find a job in 2019

Alexandra Villarreal
January 8, 2019
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It’s a good time to be a job seeker. The economy is booming, and with a record low 3.7% unemployment rate, employees are actually ghosting their supervisors because they know how much opportunity is out there.

But though it may be a job seeker’s market, that doesn’t mean it’s easy to get a good position anywhere in the United States. And even if it’s possible to get a job, people in some regions of the country make a whole lot more in adjusted income than in other areas.

Thankfully, personal finance site WalletHub has put together a list of the best and worst places for job seekers in the United States in 2019. With 182 locations on the list, check to see how your city fares and whether a cross-country move may be on the horizon.

From best to worst

Overall Rank
(1 = Best)		 City Total Score ‘Job Market’ Rank ‘Socio-economics’ Rank
1 Scottsdale, AZ 66.58 2 6
2 Columbia, MD 65.78 4 5
3 Orlando, FL 64.76 1 48
4 San Francisco, CA 64.67 3 25
5 Colorado Springs, CO 62.85 6 42
6 Portland, ME 62.81 8 36
7 Plano, TX 62.62 5 55
8 Washington, DC 61.79 11 32
9 Boston, MA 61.70 7 73
10 Chandler, AZ 61.65 14 11
11 South Burlington, VT 61.45 15 10
12 Minneapolis, MN 60.98 20 3
13 Denver, CO 60.63 13 40
14 Tempe, AZ 60.41 19 9
15 Pittsburgh, PA 59.84 34 2
16 Austin, TX 59.73 17 27
17 Madison, WI 59.44 41 4
18 Atlanta, GA 59.40 16 49
19 Portland, OR 59.23 24 24
20 Overland Park, KS 58.94 31 17
21 Irving, TX 58.84 9 128
22 Seattle, WA 58.80 36 16
23 Nashua, NH 58.49 39 18
24 Fremont, CA 58.28 27 47
25 St. Paul, MN 58.26 43 19
26 Dallas, TX 58.23 12 117
27 Charleston, SC 58.23 33 26
28 San Diego, CA 58.00 37 28
29 Virginia Beach, VA 57.96 32 37
30 Boise, ID 57.95 52 7
31 Miami, FL 57.90 10 164
32 San Jose, CA 57.83 28 59
33 Salt Lake City, UT 57.78 38 35
34 Irvine, CA 57.71 44 23
35 Manchester, NH 57.59 30 52
36 Grand Prairie, TX 57.51 29 75
37 Tampa, FL 57.22 49 30
38 Burlington, VT 57.04 75 1
39 Gilbert, AZ 56.84 35 67
40 Pearl City, HI 56.80 23 87
41 Peoria, AZ 56.67 40 68
42 Jacksonville, FL 56.62 21 109
43 Fort Lauderdale, FL 56.41 18 135
44 Rancho Cucamonga, CA 56.37 57 20
45 Amarillo, TX 55.64 45 82
46 Garland, TX 55.61 26 133
47 Warwick, RI 55.58 65 31
48 Aurora, CO 55.48 22 148
49 Fargo, ND 55.46 80 13
50 Omaha, NE 55.44 79 14
51 Lincoln, NE 55.36 87 12
52 Grand Rapids, MI 55.35 62 43
53 Phoenix, AZ 55.25 54 66
54 Cedar Rapids, IA 55.16 90 8
55 Salem, OR 55.09 55 64
56 Sacramento, CA 55.08 56 60
57 Arlington, TX 55.05 25 153
58 Fort Worth, TX 55.01 42 114
59 Vancouver, WA 54.98 48 104
60 Des Moines, IA 54.64 70 53
61 Nashville, TN 54.54 50 105
62 Honolulu, HI 54.54 78 37
63 Raleigh, NC 54.49 68 57
64 Reno, NV 54.48 67 58
65 Mesa, AZ 54.36 58 77
66 St. Petersburg, FL 54.33 61 72
67 Chesapeake, VA 54.29 60 74
68 Glendale, AZ 54.26 47 126
69 Cincinnati, OH 53.94 81 50
70 Richmond, VA 53.67 66 101
71 Huntington Beach, CA 53.63 89 44
72 Chattanooga, TN 53.56 46 160
73 Columbus, OH 53.53 97 33
74 Tacoma, WA 53.51 69 90
75 Tallahassee, FL 53.48 76 70
76 West Valley City, UT 53.38 98 29
77 Bismarck, ND 53.30 107 15
78 Huntsville, AL 53.17 64 102
79 Pembroke Pines, FL 52.97 72 103
80 Little Rock, AR 52.86 51 154
81 Los Angeles, CA 52.83 73 93
82 Houston, TX 52.78 59 127
83 Newport News, VA 52.44 63 143
84 Sioux Falls, SD 52.43 119 22
85 New York, NY 52.40 85 86
86 San Antonio, TX 52.30 86 88
87 Santa Rosa, CA 52.23 74 113
88 Dover, DE 52.08 82 98
89 Baltimore, MD 51.70 53 173
90 Lexington-Fayette, KY 51.65 104 62
91 Lewiston, ME 51.60 95 91
92 Lubbock, TX 51.58 71 140
93 Durham, NC 51.56 83 116
94 Billings, MT 51.51 116 54
95 Columbia, SC 51.48 93 106
96 Rapid City, SD 51.36 123 41
97 Milwaukee, WI 51.35 94 108
98 Ontario, CA 51.23 88 124
99 Spokane, WA 51.14 102 85
100 Port St. Lucie, FL 51.08 92 118
101 Oceanside, CA 51.05 84 145
102 Charlotte, NC 50.87 101 94
103 Garden Grove, CA 50.70 128 34
104 Cheyenne, WY 50.70 127 45
105 Tucson, AZ 50.66 115 78
106 St. Louis, MO 50.66 100 112
107 Oakland, CA 50.61 77 158
108 Providence, RI 50.60 108 83
109 Fontana, CA 50.49 124 69
110 Glendale, CA 50.33 110 89
111 Worcester, MA 50.16 110 95
112 Knoxville, TN 49.87 120 99
113 Birmingham, AL 49.73 91 171
114 Las Vegas, NV 49.60 137 39
115 Norfolk, VA 49.54 96 162
116 Riverside, CA 49.53 106 119
117 Tulsa, OK 49.43 103 141
118 Long Beach, CA 49.39 105 125
119 Wilmington, DE 49.36 122 107
120 Indianapolis, IN 49.23 99 165
121 Kansas City, MO 49.22 121 110
122 Anaheim, CA 49.17 113 130
123 Chula Vista, CA 49.15 112 132
124 Baton Rouge, LA 49.10 114 139
125 Santa Ana, CA 49.02 118 123
126 Casper, WY 49.01 153 21
127 Nampa, ID 48.94 117 144
128 Juneau, AK 48.71 144 61
129 Louisville, KY 48.64 134 84
130 Santa Clarita, CA 48.55 136 79
131 Corpus Christi, TX 48.53 109 147
132 Chicago, IL 48.44 149 56
133 El Paso, TX 48.23 132 97
134 Oklahoma City, OK 48.21 139 81
135 Jersey City, NJ 47.82 157 46
136 Aurora, IL 47.56 154 65
137 Missoula, MT 47.51 159 51
138 Charleston, WV 47.22 133 138
139 Fort Smith, AR 47.06 126 167
140 Albuquerque, NM 47.06 143 111
141 Henderson, NV 47.05 158 63
142 Greensboro, NC 46.94 140 121
143 Akron, OH 46.88 142 122
144 Fort Wayne, IN 46.76 135 142
145 Cape Coral, FL 46.74 152 92
146 Rochester, NY 46.61 156 80
147 Wichita, KS 46.34 131 166
148 Montgomery, AL 46.30 130 168
149 Yonkers, NY 46.20 162 71
150 Moreno Valley, CA 45.94 141 157
151 Springfield, MO 45.92 146 151
152 Memphis, TN 45.82 129 181
153 Laredo, TX 45.77 145 150
154 Philadelphia, PA 45.74 151 134
155 Buffalo, NY 45.62 163 76
156 Columbus, GA 45.50 148 155
157 Modesto, CA 45.45 155 131
158 Mobile, AL 45.38 138 172
159 Hialeah, FL 45.07 125 182
160 Augusta, GA 44.61 150 178
161 Jackson, MS 44.54 147 177
162 Huntington, WV 43.90 165 136
163 Bridgeport, CT 43.68 164 149
164 San Bernardino, CA 43.64 160 163
165 New Haven, CT 43.50 174 96
166 Anchorage, AK 43.32 169 129
167 Oxnard, CA 43.23 172 115
168 Bakersfield, CA 42.88 175 120
169 Winston-Salem, NC 42.62 167 169
170 Cleveland, OH 42.45 168 161
171 New Orleans, LA 42.42 173 146
172 Gulfport, MS 42.32 166 175
173 Detroit, MI 42.19 161 180
174 North Las Vegas, NV 41.77 178 137
175 Fresno, CA 41.76 176 159
176 Stockton, CA 41.30 170 176
177 Brownsville, TX 41.25 177 156
178 Shreveport, LA 40.64 171 179
179 Toledo, OH 40.56 179 170
180 Newark, NJ 39.01 180 152
181 Las Cruces, NM 38.88 182 100
182 Fayetteville, NC 36.91 181 174

A bit more data

To get into the nitty-gritty, WalletHub sorted cities into even more categories — including number of job opportunities and commute times.

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