New York had the highest average weekly wage of the 50 states in the first quarter of 2026, at $2,363, or $122,876 a year at 52 weeks, followed by Massachusetts at $2,201 and Connecticut at $2,080 [1][2]. The District of Columbia, which is not a state, was higher still at $2,725 a week [1][6]. Mississippi had the lowest average at $1,051 a week ($54,652 a year), so the average job in New York paid 2.2 times as much as one in Mississippi [1][3].
Which states pay the highest average wages?
The ten highest averages in January to March 2026 were in the District of Columbia, New York, Massachusetts, Connecticut, Washington, California, New Jersey, Colorado, Illinois and Maryland [1]. Washington ($1,998) and California ($1,986) were the only states west of Colorado in the top ten [1]. The middle of the ranking, the 26th of 51, was Ohio at $1,417 a week [1].
The ten lowest were Mississippi ($1,051), West Virginia ($1,188), South Dakota ($1,211), Montana ($1,229), New Mexico and Oklahoma (both $1,235), Kentucky ($1,248), Idaho ($1,254), and Louisiana and Nebraska (both $1,274) [1][3].
Average weekly wage in all 50 states and DC
The table ranks the 50 states and the District of Columbia by average weekly wage in the first quarter of 2026. The annualized figure is the weekly wage times 52; it is a simple conversion, not a reported annual wage. The table adds the change from the first quarter of 2025, the unemployment rate in August 2026, the typical home value in August 2026 and the typical home value divided by the annualized wage [1][4].
| Rank | State | Avg weekly wage, Q1 2026 | Annualized (x52) | Change vs Q1 2025 | Unemployment, Aug 2026 | Typical home value, Aug 2026 | Home value / annual pay |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | District of Columbia | $2,725 | $141,700 | +4.5% | 5.7% | $570,119 | 4.0 |
| 2 | New York | $2,363 | $122,876 | +6.5% | 4.3% | $526,714 | 4.3 |
| 3 | Massachusetts | $2,201 | $114,452 | +4.8% | 4.3% | $661,897 | 5.8 |
| 4 | Connecticut | $2,080 | $108,160 | +5.2% | 5.1% | $450,873 | 4.2 |
| 5 | Washington | $1,998 | $103,896 | +2.7% | 4.9% | $591,879 | 5.7 |
| 6 | California | $1,986 | $103,272 | +2.7% | 5.1% | $764,158 | 7.4 |
| 7 | New Jersey | $1,879 | $97,708 | +3.3% | 4.3% | $580,353 | 5.9 |
| 8 | Colorado | $1,774 | $92,248 | +5.4% | 4.0% | $532,748 | 5.8 |
| 9 | Illinois | $1,731 | $90,012 | +4.1% | 4.7% | $297,573 | 3.3 |
| 10 | Maryland | $1,676 | $87,152 | +2.7% | 4.1% | $428,308 | 4.9 |
| 11 | Virginia | $1,665 | $86,580 | +4.0% | 3.6% | $414,662 | 4.8 |
| 12 | New Hampshire | $1,656 | $86,112 | +3.0% | 2.8% | $516,307 | 6.0 |
| 13 | Texas | $1,646 | $85,592 | +3.8% | 4.4% | $299,367 | 3.5 |
| 14 | Minnesota | $1,630 | $84,760 | +3.8% | 4.4% | $350,752 | 4.1 |
| 15 | Delaware | $1,606 | $83,512 | +3.1% | 4.7% | $406,074 | 4.9 |
| 16 | Pennsylvania | $1,550 | $80,600 | +3.3% | 3.7% | $290,402 | 3.6 |
| 17 | Georgia | $1,539 | $80,028 | +3.3% | 3.2% | $330,817 | 4.1 |
| 18 | Alaska | $1,519 | $78,988 | +4.8% | 4.3% | $398,664 | 5.0 |
| 19 | Florida | $1,518 | $78,936 | +4.3% | 4.5% | $375,471 | 4.8 |
| 20 | North Carolina | $1,515 | $78,780 | +3.3% | 3.5% | $334,774 | 4.2 |
| 21 | Arizona | $1,495 | $77,740 | +4.5% | 4.9% | $417,990 | 5.4 |
| 22 | Rhode Island | $1,487 | $77,324 | +4.2% | 3.7% | $511,233 | 6.6 |
| 23 | Oregon | $1,481 | $77,012 | +4.6% | 5.1% | $496,113 | 6.4 |
| 24 | Michigan | $1,445 | $75,140 | +3.9% | 5.0% | $266,293 | 3.5 |
| 25 | Tennessee | $1,426 | $74,152 | +4.4% | 3.4% | $334,108 | 4.5 |
| 26 | Ohio | $1,417 | $73,684 | +4.0% | 3.3% | $248,803 | 3.4 |
| 27 | Utah | $1,415 | $73,580 | +4.0% | 3.5% | $534,582 | 7.3 |
| 28 | Nevada | $1,391 | $72,332 | +2.1% | 4.8% | $442,027 | 6.1 |
| 29 | Hawaii | $1,387 | $72,124 | +1.7% | 2.7% | $833,340 | 11.6 |
| 30 | Indiana | $1,356 | $70,512 | +2.7% | 3.3% | $260,095 | 3.7 |
| 31 | Missouri | $1,354 | $70,408 | +3.4% | 3.5% | $267,879 | 3.8 |
| 32 | Wisconsin | $1,353 | $70,356 | +3.7% | 3.2% | $339,699 | 4.8 |
| 33 | North Dakota | $1,333 | $69,316 | +2.4% | 2.2% | $292,293 | 4.2 |
| 34 | Maine | $1,327 | $69,004 | +3.5% | 3.2% | $415,552 | 6.0 |
| 35 | Vermont | $1,322 | $68,744 | +3.0% | 2.6% | $399,053 | 5.8 |
| 36 | Iowa | $1,301 | $67,652 | +3.9% | 3.2% | $239,547 | 3.5 |
| 37 | South Carolina | $1,296 | $67,392 | +4.0% | 4.1% | $306,323 | 4.5 |
| 38 | Alabama | $1,292 | $67,184 | +3.6% | 3.4% | $241,613 | 3.6 |
| 39 | Arkansas | $1,291 | $67,132 | +4.6% | 3.9% | $227,264 | 3.4 |
| 40 | Wyoming | $1,287 | $66,924 | +5.8% | 3.0% | $371,854 | 5.6 |
| 41 | Kansas | $1,286 | $66,872 | +3.1% | 3.8% | $249,603 | 3.7 |
| 42 | Nebraska | $1,274 | $66,248 | +3.7% | 2.9% | $280,673 | 4.2 |
| 42 | Louisiana | $1,274 | $66,248 | +4.0% | 4.2% | $217,039 | 3.3 |
| 44 | Idaho | $1,254 | $65,208 | +6.2% | 3.6% | $478,744 | 7.3 |
| 45 | Kentucky | $1,248 | $64,896 | +2.9% | 4.7% | $232,578 | 3.6 |
| 46 | New Mexico | $1,235 | $64,220 | +2.7% | 4.7% | $318,241 | 5.0 |
| 46 | Oklahoma | $1,235 | $64,220 | +3.6% | 4.3% | $223,261 | 3.5 |
| 48 | Montana | $1,229 | $63,908 | +3.5% | 3.2% | $471,746 | 7.4 |
| 49 | South Dakota | $1,211 | $62,972 | +4.2% | 2.0% | $321,574 | 5.1 |
| 50 | West Virginia | $1,188 | $61,776 | +3.4% | 4.0% | $179,496 | 2.9 |
| 51 | Mississippi | $1,051 | $54,652 | +3.3% | 3.4% | $197,606 | 3.6 |
Source: DataPorium Local Economy, average weekly wage of all jobs covered by unemployment insurance for the first quarter of 2026 and seasonally adjusted unemployment rates for August 2026 (preliminary) [1]; typical home values as of August 31, 2026 from DataPorium Real Estate [4]. Ties share a rank.
Where are wages growing fastest?
Average weekly pay rose in every state and DC between the first quarter of 2025 and the first quarter of 2026 [1]. The fastest increases were in New York (+6.5%), Idaho (+6.2%), Wyoming (+5.8%), Colorado (+5.4%) and Connecticut (+5.2%) [1][2][5]. The slowest were in Hawaii (+1.7%), Nevada (+2.1%) and North Dakota (+2.4%), followed by five states at +2.7%: California, Indiana, Maryland, New Mexico and Washington [1].
Idaho stands out for pairing fast pay growth with job growth: its number of jobs rose 1.9% from a year earlier, second only to Nevada's 2.0% [1][5]. In the District of Columbia, the number of jobs fell 4.5%, the largest decline of any state or DC, while the average wage rose 4.5% [1][6].
In the first quarter of 2026, the average job paid $2,363 a week in New York and $1,051 in Mississippi, and pay rose from a year earlier in all 50 states and DC.
Do high-wage states have low unemployment?
Not in 2026. The ten highest-paying places averaged a 4.65% unemployment rate in August 2026, against 3.70% for the ten lowest-paying states (simple averages of the state rates) [1]. The District of Columbia had both the highest average wage and the highest unemployment rate, 5.7% [1][6]. The lowest rates were in South Dakota (2.0%), North Dakota (2.2%), Vermont (2.6%), Hawaii (2.7%) and New Hampshire (2.8%), and of those only New Hampshire ranks in the top half by pay [1].
Do higher wages keep up with home prices?
A high wage goes further where homes cost less. Dividing the typical home value by the annualized wage gives a rough price-to-pay ratio [1][4]. By that measure, West Virginia had the lowest ratio, 2.9: a typical home value of $179,496 against $61,776 of annualized pay [1][4]. Louisiana (3.3) and Illinois (3.3) followed; Illinois ranks ninth for pay but has a typical home value of $297,573 [1][4].
Hawaii had by far the highest ratio, 11.6, with a typical home value of $833,340 and annualized pay of $72,124 [1][4]. California (7.4), Montana (7.4), Idaho (7.3) and Utah (7.3) followed [1][4]. New York's high pay put its ratio at 4.3, lower than Massachusetts (5.8) or Washington (5.7) [1][4].
Where are people moving?
Nine of the ten highest-paying places lost more people to other states than they gained in the newest migration year in the data, 2022 to 2023; Colorado was the exception, with a net gain of 1.5 people per 1,000 residents [1]. New York had the largest net loss, 10.7 per 1,000 [1][2]. The largest net gains were in South Carolina (14.7 per 1,000), Delaware (9.6), North Carolina (8.6), Idaho (8.1) and Tennessee (7.9); South Carolina ranks 37th by pay and Idaho 44th [1]. Migration here counts changes of address on federal tax returns, so people who do not file are not included.
How we ranked
States are ranked by the average weekly wage of all jobs covered by unemployment insurance in the first quarter of 2026 (January to March), the newest quarter published, as shown on DataPorium's local economy pages [1]. These figures come from official Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) quarterly data. The average covers all covered jobs, full-time and part-time, public and private; it is total pay divided by jobs, not a median, and a single quarter can differ from the full-year average. The annualized figure multiplies the weekly wage by 52. The 1-year change compares the first quarter of 2026 with the first quarter of 2025. Unemployment rates are seasonally adjusted state rates for August 2026, which are preliminary. Typical home values are as of August 31, 2026 [4]. Net migration is people moving in minus people moving out per 1,000 residents, from changes of tax-return address between 2022 and 2023. The District of Columbia is included in the table but is not a state; Puerto Rico ($724 a week) is not ranked. Each state's figures are on its DataPorium page, for example New York, Mississippi and Idaho, and the overview is on the DataPorium local economy page [1][2][3][5].
Frequently asked questions
Which state has the highest average wage?
New York, at $2,363 a week in the first quarter of 2026, or $122,876 a year at 52 weeks [1]. The District of Columbia was higher at $2,725 a week but is not a state [1].
Which state has the lowest average wage?
Mississippi, at $1,051 a week in the first quarter of 2026, or $54,652 a year at 52 weeks, followed by West Virginia at $1,188 [1].
Where are wages rising the fastest?
New York's average weekly wage rose 6.5% from the first quarter of 2025 to the first quarter of 2026, followed by Idaho (+6.2%) and Wyoming (+5.8%) [1]. Hawaii had the smallest increase, 1.7% [1].
Is the average weekly wage the same as the median salary?
No. It is total pay of all covered jobs divided by the number of jobs, so a few very high salaries raise it; a median would be the middle job. Part-time jobs are included [1].
Sources & References
- [1] DataPorium Local Economy (unemployment, average weekly pay and migration by state)
- [2] DataPorium Local Economy, New York (jobs, pay and unemployment)
- [3] DataPorium Local Economy, Mississippi (jobs, pay and unemployment)
- [4] DataPorium Real Estate (typical home values by state, August 2026)
- [5] DataPorium Local Economy, Idaho (jobs, pay and unemployment)
- [6] DataPorium Local Economy, District of Columbia (jobs, pay and unemployment)
