This Triangle city has one of the best job markets in the US, study says. Here’s why
A Triangle city has one of the top job markets in the country, according to a recent SmartAsset study.
Cary was named No. 3 in the report, which was published May 22. It was the only Triangle city, and the only North Carolina city, to rank in the top 25.
Ahead of Cary in the list were Santa Clara, California, and Bellevue, Washington. The California city took the top spot because of a 53.4% increase in wages over three years. Workers there have an average income of $100,182, SmartAsset found, the highest of any city in the ranking. And Santa Clara residents are spending 34.1% of their income on housing, which is lower than the study-wide median of 40.2%.
SmartAsset evaluated 344 cities across the country with a population of at least 100,000, sourcing data from the U.S. Census Bureau’s American Community Survey for 2022. Six factors were considered: average unemployment rate for 2021, median income to housing payment ratio; commute time; percent of workers working remotely; percent of employed people who have health insurance through work; and growth in median income between 2019 and 2022.
Cary ranks highly for remote work, low unemployment
Cary has an unemployment rate of 1.6%, which was the fourth-lowest rate of all 344 cities considered. It was preceded by Fishers, Indiana (0.8%); Manchester, New Hampshire (1.2%); and Lee’s Summit, Missouri (1.4%).
Work-from-home employees make up 40% of Cary’s working population, the highest of any city in SmartAsset’s report. The No. 2 spot went to Frisco, Texas (38.2%), and No. 3 is Bellevue, Washington, with 36.6%.
Other job market stats for Cary
SmartAsset also provided the following information for the Triangle city:
- Median earnings for workers: $62,929
- Mean monthly housing costs: $1,642
- Annual housing costs as percent of income: 31.3%
- Income growth over three years: 15.5%
- Average commute time: 22.2 minutes
- Percent of employed with health insurance through work: 86.8%
Nine NC cities make the list
While Cary was the only Triangle city in the top 25, it was not the only Triangle city in the list:
- No. 51 Durham: 2.9% unemployment, $45,820 median earnings
- No. 60 Raleigh: 3.2& unemployment, $45,771 median earnings
A few other North Carolina cities were also ranked:
No. 29 Wilmington: 3.4% unemployment, $39,956 median earnings
No. 35 Charlotte: 3.3% unemployment, $46,922 median earnings
No. 92 High Point: 5.5% unemployment, $37,872 median earnings
- No. 149 Greensboro: 3.2% unemployment, $33,116 median earnings
- No. 169 Winston-Salem: 5.8% unemployment, $36,010 median earnings
- No. 267 Fayetteville: 8.4% unemployment, $33,656 median earnings
Cary recognized for livability
It’s not just a top job market that has launched Cary into the spotlight.
In Livability’s 2024 list of the Top 100 Best Places to Live in the U.S., Cary was tied for No. 2 with Columbia, Maryland, behind Carmel, Indiana, The News & Observer previously reported. The study mentioned Cary’s central location, reputation for good public schools, safe streets, bustling arts scene, restaurants, greenways and parks, job market and affordability. Cary’s highest scores were in the health, education and economy categories.
In 2022, SmartAsset named Cary one of the safest places to live in the country, The N&O previously reported. It was the only city not in California or Texas to rank in the top 10.
This story was originally published May 29, 2024 at 8:00 AM with the headline "This Triangle city has one of the best job markets in the US, study says. Here’s why."
