Best US Cities for Firefighters
Top US cities for Firefighters ranked by estimated median salary, with cost-of-living-adjusted earning power.
| # | City | Estimated salary | Cost mult. | vs national |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Honolulu, HI | $69,800 | 1.30× | +$17,800 |
| 2 | San Francisco, CA | $68,400 | 1.45× | +$16,400 |
| 3 | San Diego, CA | $66,200 | 1.21× | +$14,200 |
| 4 | Oakland, CA | $64,700 | 1.35× | +$12,700 |
| 5 | New York City, NY | $63,600 | 1.32× | +$11,600 |
| 6 | Irvine, CA | $62,900 | 1.30× | +$10,900 |
| 7 | Anchorage, AK | $62,900 | 1.20× | +$10,900 |
| 8 | Riverside, CA | $61,700 | 1.10× | +$9,700 |
| 9 | Chula Vista, CA | $61,000 | 1.15× | +$9,000 |
| 10 | Los Angeles, CA | $60,000 | 1.22× | +$8,000 |
| # | City | Salary | Hourly |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Honolulu, HI | $69,800 | $34/hr |
| 2 | San Francisco, CA | $68,400 | $33/hr |
| 3 | San Diego, CA | $66,200 | $32/hr |
| 4 | Oakland, CA | $64,700 | $31/hr |
| 5 | New York City, NY | $63,600 | $31/hr |
| 6 | Irvine, CA | $62,900 | $30/hr |
| 7 | Anchorage, AK | $62,900 | $30/hr |
| 8 | Riverside, CA | $61,700 | $30/hr |
| 9 | Chula Vista, CA | $61,000 | $29/hr |
| 10 | Los Angeles, CA | $60,000 | $29/hr |
| 11 | Boston, MA | $60,000 | $29/hr |
| 12 | Yonkers, NY | $59,300 | $29/hr |
| 13 | Sacramento, CA | $58,900 | $28/hr |
| 14 | Seattle, WA | $58,600 | $28/hr |
| 15 | Long Beach, CA | $58,600 | $28/hr |
| 16 | Anaheim, CA | $58,600 | $28/hr |
| 17 | Scottsdale, AZ | $58,600 | $28/hr |
| 18 | Virginia Beach, VA | $57,700 | $28/hr |
| 19 | Aurora, CO | $57,000 | $27/hr |
| 20 | Chandler, AZ | $56,700 | $27/hr |
| 21 | Miami, FL | $56,400 | $27/hr |
| 22 | Charleston, SC | $55,900 | $27/hr |
| 23 | Portland, OR | $55,600 | $27/hr |
| 24 | Newark, NJ | $55,600 | $27/hr |
| 25 | Orlando, FL | $55,500 | $27/hr |
| 26 | Raleigh, NC | $55,100 | $26/hr |
| 27 | St. Paul, MN | $55,100 | $26/hr |
| 28 | Chesapeake, VA | $55,100 | $26/hr |
| 29 | North Las Vegas, NV | $55,100 | $26/hr |
| 30 | San Antonio, TX | $54,900 | $26/hr |
| 31 | Denver, CO | $54,900 | $26/hr |
| 32 | Colorado Springs, CO | $54,700 | $26/hr |
| 33 | Madison, WI | $54,700 | $26/hr |
| 34 | Norfolk, VA | $54,400 | $26/hr |
| 35 | El Paso, TX | $54,100 | $26/hr |
| 36 | Jacksonville, FL | $54,000 | $26/hr |
| 37 | Mesa, AZ | $54,000 | $26/hr |
| 38 | Chicago, IL | $53,800 | $26/hr |
| 39 | Austin, TX | $53,800 | $26/hr |
| 40 | Baltimore, MD | $53,800 | $26/hr |
| 41 | Stockton, CA | $53,800 | $26/hr |
| 42 | Hialeah, FL | $53,800 | $26/hr |
| 43 | Frisco, TX | $53,800 | $26/hr |
| 44 | Fort Worth, TX | $53,500 | $26/hr |
| 45 | Las Vegas, NV | $53,500 | $26/hr |
| 46 | Tucson, AZ | $53,500 | $26/hr |
| 47 | Minneapolis, MN | $53,500 | $26/hr |
| 48 | Plano, TX | $53,500 | $26/hr |
| 49 | Tallahassee, FL | $53,200 | $26/hr |
| 50 | Albuquerque, NM | $52,800 | $25/hr |
| 51 | Phoenix, AZ | $52,700 | $25/hr |
| 52 | Philadelphia, PA | $52,700 | $25/hr |
| 53 | Atlanta, GA | $52,700 | $25/hr |
| 54 | Tampa, FL | $52,700 | $25/hr |
| 55 | Henderson, NV | $52,700 | $25/hr |
| 56 | Reno, NV | $52,700 | $25/hr |
| 57 | Gilbert, AZ | $52,700 | $25/hr |
| 58 | Salt Lake City, UT | $52,700 | $25/hr |
| 59 | Wilmington, DE | $52,000 | $25/hr |
| 60 | Corpus Christi, TX | $52,000 | $25/hr |
| 61 | Boise, ID | $52,000 | $25/hr |
| 62 | Fresno, CA | $52,000 | $25/hr |
| 63 | Worcester, MA | $52,000 | $25/hr |
| 64 | Dallas, TX | $51,600 | $25/hr |
| 65 | Nashville, TN | $51,600 | $25/hr |
| 66 | Bakersfield, CA | $51,600 | $25/hr |
| 67 | St. Petersburg, FL | $51,600 | $25/hr |
| 68 | Charlotte, NC | $50,900 | $24/hr |
| 69 | Oklahoma City, OK | $50,900 | $24/hr |
| 70 | Lincoln, NE | $50,900 | $24/hr |
| 71 | Houston, TX | $50,500 | $24/hr |
| 72 | Glendale, AZ | $50,500 | $24/hr |
| 73 | Garland, TX | $50,500 | $24/hr |
| 74 | Spokane, WA | $50,500 | $24/hr |
| 75 | Pittsburgh, PA | $50,200 | $24/hr |
| 76 | Arlington, TX | $50,200 | $24/hr |
| 77 | Milwaukee, WI | $49,800 | $24/hr |
| 78 | New Orleans, LA | $49,800 | $24/hr |
| 79 | Grand Rapids, MI | $49,500 | $24/hr |
| 80 | Columbus, OH | $49,100 | $24/hr |
| 81 | Detroit, MI | $49,100 | $24/hr |
| 82 | Cincinnati, OH | $49,100 | $24/hr |
| 83 | Kansas City, MO | $49,100 | $24/hr |
| 84 | Lexington, KY | $49,100 | $24/hr |
| 85 | Buffalo, NY | $49,100 | $24/hr |
| 86 | Greensboro, NC | $49,100 | $24/hr |
| 87 | Knoxville, TN | $49,100 | $24/hr |
| 88 | Cleveland, OH | $48,700 | $23/hr |
| 89 | St. Louis, MO | $48,700 | $23/hr |
| 90 | Winston-Salem, NC | $48,700 | $23/hr |
| 91 | Indianapolis, IN | $48,400 | $23/hr |
| 92 | Louisville, KY | $48,400 | $23/hr |
| 93 | Omaha, NE | $48,400 | $23/hr |
| 94 | Memphis, TN | $48,000 | $23/hr |
| 95 | Birmingham, AL | $47,600 | $23/hr |
| 96 | Toledo, OH | $47,600 | $23/hr |
| 97 | Lubbock, TX | $47,600 | $23/hr |
| 98 | Wichita, KS | $46,900 | $23/hr |
| 99 | Fort Wayne, IN | $46,900 | $23/hr |
| 100 | Mobile, AL | $46,900 | $23/hr |
Does location actually decide Firefighter pay?
This is a career where location is not negotiable — the work has to be done on site. That makes the 49% gap across these metros consequential in a way it is not for desk-based occupations: capturing the top of this list means moving to it.
Worth checking before you plan around these numbers: Firefighter needs EMT certification and state firefighter certification typically required, and reciprocity between states varies from automatic to nonexistent. The higher-paying metro is only worth what you can actually earn there after re-credentialing.
Highest-paying is not the same as best-off
The number that ranks these metros is not the number you live on. In Honolulu, $69,800 against $2,100/month rent leaves roughly $44,600 a year after housing. In Mobile, $46,900 against $850 leaves about $36,700. The top still wins after rent, but by $7,900 rather than the $22,900 the headline suggests.
Why these metros and not others
The metros at the top are not simply the expensive ones; they are where the hiring is. Honolulu (U.S. Pacific Fleet/Joint Base Pearl Harbor-Hickam, Queen's Health Systems); San Francisco (Salesforce, Google); San Diego (US Navy, Qualcomm). Depth of demand for public safety work is what lifts pay above the local baseline, and it is why two equally costly cities can pay this role differently.
Salaries are modelled from BLS national medians adjusted for local price level at a wage elasticity below 1 — pay rises with local costs but not proportionally. See our methodology.