10 best, worst cities to start a career

Atlanta topped WalletHub’s 2026 ranking of the best and worst places to start a career, while New York City ranked worst.

For the ranking, released May 11, the personal finance company compared 182 cities — including the 150 most-populated U.S. cities, plus at least two of the most populated cities in each state — across two dimensions: professional opportunities and quality of life.

WalletHub evaluated the dimensions using 25 metrics ranging from availability of entry-level jobs to housing affordability.

Each metric was graded on a 100-point scale, with 100 representing the best conditions for job-market entrants. WalletHub used each city’s weighted average across all metrics to calculate its overall score and rank the cities. More information about the methodology is available here.

The best cities to start a career, according to the analysis:

1. Atlanta — 71.33
2. Orlando, Fla. — 70.28
3. Austin, Texas — 67.37
4. Tampa, Fla. — 67.10
5. Miami — 65.92
6. Charleston, S.C. — 64.12
7. Pittsburgh — 62.73
8. Knoxville, Tenn. — 61.82
9. Salt Lake City — 61.66
10. Columbia, S.C. — 61.16

The worst cities to start a career, according to the analysis:

1. New York City — 34.67
2. Bridgeport, Conn. — 35.79
3. Detroit — 37.17
4. Port St. Lucie, Fla. — 37.23
5. Chula Vista, Calif. — 37.86
6. Oxnard, Calif. — 37.88
7. Pearl City, Hawaii — 38.02
8. Shreveport, La. — 38.05
9. Jackson, Miss. — 38.12
10. Anaheim, Calif. — 38.66

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