There are a number of factors that determine the quality of a job market — unemployment, income growth, commute time and benefits, to name just a few — and some cities have far better prospects to offer workers than others.
To find out where America's best and worst job markets are, SmartAsset used 2022 US Census Burea data across a range of metrics to compare and rank the country's 344 largest cities.
The most desirable job market overall was Santa Clara, California, where wages saw a 53.4 percent increase over three years and the average income for workers was the highest of any city ($100,182). Housing costs accounted for 34.1 percent of the average resident's income, making the city more affordable than the study's median of 40.2 percent.
Bellevue, Washington, was the country's second-best job market, with average earnings of $92,319 and close to 40 percent of people working remotely.
The worst job market belonged to Waterbury, Connecticut, where unemployment stood at over eight percent and median wages were just $32,371.
The second-worst spot for job hunters, Paterson, New Jersey, had an unemployment rate of 9.1 percent, while housing in the city cost more than half of the average worker's earnings.
Via SmartAsset.
[Image credit: Zac Gudakov]
