Atlanta, again!
182 U.S. cities to start a career, ranked. 🏢🏆🇺🇸
Years ago, when I got my first job, fresh out of college, I was excited. So excited, in fact, that I never realized I’d started my career in a city that would go on to be ranked 163rd out of 182 for new job applicants.
That would be New Haven, Connecticut which came in at that inauspicious slot on the WalletHub list of the “Best & Worst Places to Start a Career for 2025.”
Even better for the story — but worse, in retrospect for my prospects — is that I actually worked for the company in a branch office closer to Bridgeport, which WalletHub says is literally the second-worst place anyone could choose to start a career in 2025.
I’m happy with how my life turned out. But, maybe things would have been easier if I’d chosen a more auspicious place to begin working?
For that matter, maybe if I wanted to advise young people now, or consider where to expand my business, it might help to know which cities are ranked at the top of the list? Let’s dig in.
Atlanta, again!
WalletHub compared the relative professional opportunities and overall liability of 182 U.S. cities, including America’s 150 biggest cities and at least two of the biggest cities in every state in coming up with their list.
Top of the charts? Atlanta. As WalletHub put it:
Atlanta is the best place to start a career, boasting one of the highest growth rates in the median household income, at around 8.2% annually. The median annual household income in Atlanta is already pretty high as well, at nearly $85,400.
In addition, Atlanta has a lot of job opportunities at companies that are rated at least 4 out of 5 stars on Glassdoor, along with plentiful entry-level jobs, and people have a high rate of satisfaction with their jobs.
For people who want to not only start a career but also start their own business, Atlanta ranks as the eighth-best large city. It also ranks fourth among the most fun cities and it’s the best city for singles, allowing people who move for their career to also find happiness outside of work.
In fact, while WalletHub doesn’t trumpet this, Atlanta has topped the list for at least three years: 2023, 2024, and now 2025.
The South wins big
As we round out the top of the list, there’s a distinct trend: Southern cities rank higher: 11 out of the top 20, in fact:
Atlanta, GA
Orlando, FL
Tampa, FL
Austin, TX
Miami, FL
Charleston, SC
Richmond, VA
Salt Lake City, UT
Columbia, SC
Pittsburgh, PA
Minneapolis, MN
Charleston, WV
Wilmington, DE
St. Louis, MO
Boise, ID
Scottsdale, AZ
Raleigh, NC
Tempe, AZ
Knoxville, TN
Boston, MA
A lot of this has to do with the methodology of course, including factors like the “number of entry-level jobs per 100,000 residents” and “average starting salary adjusted for cost of living” in calculating “professional opportunities,” and factors like “number of jobs accessible by a 30-minute transit” and “projected population growth” in calculating “quality of life.”
Oh, Connecticut
At the other end of the scale, we wind up with 8 out of the bottom 20 cities in California, plus five more in the Northeast.
Although, in defense of those of us who currently reside in the Northeast, I think most people who live up here, for example in the New York City area, are likely to respond “fuggetaboutit” when we take a close look:
New Haven, CT
Grand Prairie, TX
Santa Rosa, CA
Gulfport, MS
Ontario, CA
Jackson, MS
Anaheim, CA
Yonkers, NY
Bakersfield, CA
Chula Vista, CA
Moreno Valley, CA
Toledo, OH
Newark, NJ
Santa Clarita, CA
Shreveport, LA
Detroit, MI
New York, NY
Oxnard, CA
Bridgeport, CT
Pearl City, HI
Really? New York City, arguably the greatest city in the world, comes in fourth-to-last? Yeah, O.K.
Also, whatever other shortcomings it might have, starting one’s working life in Hawaii likely has a lot of outside-the-methodology benefits that don’t show up on a list like this.
It’s not where you start; it’s where you finish
In fairness, I don’t think a lot of young people will look at a list like this and say: “O.K., Tampa ranked third on this list, I think I’ll move there.”
People start their careers in particular cities for a lot of reasons that have nothing to do with data-infused analysis.
I’d venture to say most wind up working near where they grew up, or where they went to school, or maybe because friends or family or love interests are located nearby.
Often if they do move to a new city, it’s because they already have a job offer, or because they want to work in an industry that has an outsized presence there.
But here’s the fun truth you can share with the younger people you mentor: We’re a very mobile society, and likely only to become more so.
Thus, even folks like me who unwittingly started out in cities that didn’t rank very high on a list like this can (as I did) wind up living and working in quite a few geographic areas.
Eventually, maybe they figure out where they’d like to stick around.
Still, don’t sleep on Atlanta if you’re just starting out, or if you’re advising someone who is.
Heck, when I was in my early 20s and just starting out, all they might have needed to tell me was that it’s ranked as the “best city for singles.”
Speaking of which: If anyone complies a list like, “Best Cities for Happily Married Middle-Aged Gen X Dads Who’s Always Looking for Another Family Adventure,” be sure to let me know.
7 other things worth mentioning
Amid the horror, stories are emerging about rescues of stranded and missing people from the Texas floods. Among them, a Coast Guardsman called out by name by the secretary of homeland security, who was on his first mission and helped save 165 victims. “This is what it’s all about, right? Like, this is why we do the job,” said Scott Ruskan, 26, a New Jersey native and former KPMG accountant who enlisted in the Coast Guard in 2021 and reported to Corpus Christi, Texas last November. (The New York Post)
An active shooter armed with tactical gear and a rifle opened fire upon Border Patrol agents as they arrived at a Border Patrol annex facility in McAllen, Texas. Agents and local police returned fire and killed the gunman. No federal agents were hit, but one McAllen police officer was struck. Law enforcement sources say the officer is in stable condition. (AP)
Opinion (by a former police commander): The Trump administration should prohibit the wearing of masks by ICE agents and require them to properly identify themselves. Should a pool of judges issue anonymous verdicts? Should legislators pass bills by secret ballot? The answers are obvious. Wearing a badge is thought to require, and should require, more bravery than serving on a state assembly. Our police should be the (literal) face of the nation’s courage, unafraid to show the public who they are. (The Atlantic)
President Trump's Justice Department and FBI have concluded they have no evidence that convicted sex offender and disgraced financier Jeffrey Epstein blackmailed powerful figures, kept a "client list" or was murdered, according to a memo detailing the findings obtained by Axios. As social media influencers and activists, Kash Patel (now the FBI's director) and Dan Bongino (now deputy director) were among those in MAGA world who questioned the official version of how Epstein died. When Elon Musk had a falling out with Trump last month, Musk accused the president of being "in the Epstein files." (Axios)
The government plans to dump millions of sterile flies on Texas in the hopes that they'll kill off a species of New World Screwworm known for laying its flesh-eating larvae in the wounds of warm-blooded animals. The flies — which are endemic to Cuba, Haiti, the Dominican Republic and some South American countries — were thought to have been wiped out in the U.S. as far back as 1966. (The Independent)
Think Work-Life Balance Is Overrated? You’re Hired! Employers are getting brutally honest with applicants, warning them of long hours and few boundaries; ‘Companies are in control again.’ (WSJ)
An Australian woman accused of killing three relatives with a meal of death cap mushrooms baked in a Beef Wellington lunch, has been found guilty of three counts of murder and the attempted murder of the lone survivor. Erin Patterson's defense lawyers had argued the deaths were a “terrible accident” that occurred when she tried to improve the taste of the meal, and that she repeatedly lied to police out of panic when she realized she may have added foraged mushrooms to the mix. (CNN)
Thanks for reading. Photo by Kyle Sudu on Unsplash. I wrote about some of this before at Inc.com. See you in the comments.
The floods in Texas are heartbreaking. Water has no forgiveness.
The best place to start a career is where you can get a job in the field you want to work in. Will be interesting to see how far the work-life balances swings to the other side. I think whatever generation is entering the work force (I have lost track) is on for a big dose of reality.
Interesting g about the sterile flies - can they come up with a way to make barkless dogs?
As for ICE people wearing masks, maybe we need to look at the reason they feel the need to do so. Perhaps the overly aggressive methods they use are doing no one any favours. And I agree with Darrell, as a female of any age, My doors and locked and my windows are closed until the person properly identifies themselves, and even then it will be in a populated area.
ICE agents wear masks to protect themselves and their families. Attacks on them are up 700% and it doesn't help that democrat leadership is fueling the flames by telling people to get violent against them. I don't get it. Obama deported 3-4 million illegal immigrants. He was known as the "Deporter in Chief" yet it all floated under the radar because it was the "chosen one" doing the deporting. Our country is safer and the lies being told about American citizens being deported are not helping the situation. The misinformation being deliberately spread by democrat leadership and the MSM will get people killed.