WalletHub named Austin, Texas the fourth best city to start a career, following Salt Lake City, Orlando, and Atlanta. Columbia, South Carolina rounded out the top five. Austin ranked first in the nation for quality of life, with Salt Lake City coming in second. Austin was 22nd for professional opportunities.
WalletHub compared “the relative market strength and overall livability of more than 180 U.S. cities” to determine the rankings, designed to help college graduates start their professional careers. The cities were studied on 28 metrics, such as of entry-level jobs, monthly average starting salary, housing affordability, entrepreneur friendliness, and average length of work week.
No other Texas cities ranked in the top 25 places to start a career. Irving was in 28th, Fort Worth was 44th, and Houston was 94th. Houston, however, tied for the number one spot for highest monthly average starting salaries adjusted for the cost of living.