With graduation season upon us and employers planning to hire 7.3 percent more graduates from the Class of 2025 than they did from the Class of 2024, the personal-finance website WalletHub has released its report on 2025’s Best & Worst Places to Start a Career, as well as expert commentary.
To help recent graduates launch their careers in the right place, WalletHub compared more than 180 U.S. cities based on 25 key indicators of career-friendliness. The data set ranges from the availability of entry-level jobs to monthly average starting salary to housing affordability.
Best Places to Start a Career
Atlanta, Georgia was the number one city to start a career, followed by Orlando, FL; Tampa, FL; Austin TX; Miami, FL; Charleston, SC: Richmond, VA; Salt Lake City, UT; Columbia, SC and, rounding out the top 10, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.
California’s top-rated city was Sacramento, which came in at number 45.
At the bottom of the rankings were Moreno Valley, California at number 173, followed by Toledo, OH; Newark, NJ; Santa Clarita, CA; Shreveport, LA; Detroit, MI; New York, NY; Oxnard, CA; Bridgeport, CT; and last on the list, the worst place to start a career, was Pearl City, Hawaii, at number 182.
Best vs. Worst
Durham, North Carolina, has the highest monthly average starting salary (adjusted for cost of living), which is 2.9 times higher than in Juneau, Alaska, the city with the lowest.
Columbia, Maryland, has the highest median annual household income (adjusted for cost of living), which is 3.4 times higher than in Detroit, the city with the lowest.
Oxnard, California, has the highest workforce diversity, which is 2.3 times higher than in New Haven, Connecticut, the city with the lowest.
Rapid City, South Dakota, has the lowest unemployment rate, which is 6.3 times lower than in Detroit, the city with the highest.
“Transitioning out of school and into the workforce can be a difficult and stressful process, but certain cities make things a lot easier than others. The best cities for starting a career not only have a lot of job opportunities but also provide substantial income growth potential and satisfying work conditions. It’s also important to consider factors such as how fun a city is to live in or how good of a place it is for raising a family, to ensure life satisfaction outside of your career,” said Chip Lupo, WalletHub Analyst. “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 percent annually. Plus, the median annual household income in Atlanta is already pretty high, at nearly $85,400. In addition, Atlanta has a lot of job opportunities at companies that are rated at least four out of five stars on Glassdoor, along with plentiful entry-level jobs, and residents have a high rate of satisfaction with their jobs.”
To view the full report and your city’s rank, visit: https://wallethub.com/edu/best-worst-cities-to-start-a-career/3626
Expert Commentary
Do you have any tips for turning an entry-level job into a long, successful career?
“I know it sounds old-school, but there’s no substitute for hard work. Co-workers and more importantly bosses always notice when someone is working hard (or not), and will want to work with and promote and network and write letters of recommendation for that person (or not). But it’s not enough to work hard if you don’t have a compass. There are lots of experts out there who think people should know their purpose or ‘True North’ and chart their path toward it from day one, but the truth is most people are still trying to figure out who they are and what is most important to them when they start an entry-level job, and don’t (and perhaps can’t) yet know what their purpose is. So, as I see it, the compass is less about directing someone toward a ‘True North’ and more about keeping their aim more-or-less in a general direction aligned with their values. Along the way, it’s good to be intentional about reassessing what is most important to them, and course-correcting as needed.”
Matthew Joseph, PhD – Associate Professor; Co-Program Director, Counselor Education, Duquesne University
“It’s important to reframe your thinking before landing your first entry-level role post-grad. Ask yourself: what opportunities align with a long-term, progressive career path? I always emphasize to students how critical it is to pursue internships and post-grad roles that genuinely align with their interests-skills can be improved or developed, but you cannot teach someone to be interested or motivated in an area of industry that they’re genuinely not interested in. The more invested you are in a particular role, employer, or industry, the more engaged and forward-thinking you’ll be in that position and beyond. In addition, building relationships with like-minded professionals early in your career is essential. Industry-focused professional associations offer valuable opportunities for connection, mentorship, and insight into job leads – often in ways you may not anticipate. Happenstance plays a significant role in many of our career trajectories. The broader your professional contact network is, the more doors you’ll open.”
John Link, Ed.D. – Associate Dean of Career Development and Field Work Term, Bennington College
What is the biggest career mistake that young people make?
“Not seriously reflecting on their values in work and in life. Many people are interested in or drawn to what some call ‘self-transcendent’ values that benefit society and others, but nonetheless feel like they are supposed (and often feel pressure) to prioritize more ‘self-enhancing’ values such as money, status, and prestige when they select a career path. There isn’t an objective wrong or right set of values per se, but when one strives toward a career that is misaligned with their values, they are likely not to be particularly fulfilled. That is not to say one’s career needs to be the vehicle through which they actualize all of their values; for example, one may choose a career that is intended to pay the bills, while also affording them the time and energy to meaningfully engage in other more self-transcendent life goals related to their families, or communities, or faith. One’s career is just one piece of a larger life puzzle, and sometimes it is a means to the end of actualizing one’s values, and sometimes it just needs to not get too much in the way of that.”
Matthew Joseph, PhD – Associate Professor; Co-Program Director, Counselor Education, Duquesne University
“Perception matters – a first impression can be lasting, and it’s difficult to reverse a negative one. For early-career professionals, understanding and practicing professionalism in the workplace is important. When in doubt, asking questions about expectations, communication styles, and workplace culture shows self-awareness and a willingness to learn.”
John Link, Ed.D. – Associate Dean of Career Development and Field Work Term, Bennington College
Is starting a career in 2025 likely to be more challenging than in previous years? Why?
“This of course depends on the industry, but it’s clear AI is changing the game in many of them … and how AI will change these games is still hard to predict. In my view, the best that a recent graduate or new job seeker can do – independent of what industry they are in – is to be self-reflective about what is most important to them, try to make decisions in accordance with whatever that is, work hard at whatever is it is they are doing, and be open to reassessing as they go. The only constant is change, now more than ever.”
Matthew Joseph, PhD – Associate Professor; Co-Program Director, Counselor Education, Duquesne University
“This year’s job market has been somewhat unpredictable, influenced by shifting economic policies and broader global trends. However, the National Association of Colleges and Employers’ Job Outlook 2025 Spring Update indicates nearly 90 percent of employers plan to increase or maintain hiring levels for the Class of 2025 compared to the Class of 2024. However, several factors may still impact the transition from campus to career in 2025 – including projected job growth in your intended career field, the availability of remote, hybrid, or on-site roles, and your flexibility in relocating for a position.”
John Link, Ed.D. – Associate Dean of Career Development and Field Work Term, Bennington College
