With STEM jobs projected to grow 10.8% between 2022 and 2032, compared to 2.3% for other occupations, the personal-finance website WalletHub followed up its overall report on the Best Cities for Jobs with an in-depth analysis of 2024’s Best & Worst Metro Areas for STEM Professionals.
To determine the best markets for STEM workers, WalletHub compared the 100 biggest metro areas across 21 key metrics. The data set ranges from per-capita job openings for STEM graduates to the median wage growth for STEM workers.
| Best for STEM | Worst for STEM | |
| 1. Austin, TX | 91. Baton Rouge, LA | |
| 2. Seattle, WA | 92. Bridgeport, CT | |
| 3. Atlanta, GA | 93. Greensboro, NC | |
| 4. Boston, MA | 94. Cape Coral, FL | |
| 5. Sacramento, CA | 95. Memphis, TN | |
| 6. San Jose, CA | 96. Oxnard, CA | |
| 7. San Francisco, CA | 97. North Port, FL | |
| 8. Pittsburgh, PA | 98. Augusta, GA | |
| 9. Madison, WI | 99. Little Rock, AR | |
| 10. Minneapolis, MN | 100. Jackson, MS |
Best vs. Worst
- Greenville, South Carolina, has the most STEM job openings per capita – 29.9 times higher than in Deltona, Florida, which has the fewest.
- San Jose, California, has the highest average monthly earnings for new employees in STEM industries – 3.3 times higher than in Little Rock, Arkansas, which has the lowest.
- San Jose, California, has the highest share of workers in STEM occupations – 11.4 times higher than in McAllen, Texas, which has the lowest.
- Palm Bay, Florida, has the highest median annual wage for STEM workers* – 2.3 times higher than in Honolulu, which has the lowest.
*Adjusted by the cost of living.
