These Are The Best States To Make A Living

Making a good living is tough these days. But precisely how tough it is may depend on where you live.

Earning a decent wage, staying ahead of inflation and coping with taxes are some of the challenges American workers face. If they can succeed at all of this and actually enjoy their jobs, it would be a nice bonus. So MoneyRates.com has identified the 10 states where employees may be most likely to accomplish these things.

For the third consecutive year, MoneyRates.com has conducted a study of the best and worst states for making a living. Using average wage and unemployment data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics, cost of living figures from C2ER (formerly ACCRA) and state tax information from Tax-Rates.org, MoneyRates.com calculated an average income figure for each state that includes adjustments for taxes, inflation and the chances of finding a job in that state.

Then, these figures were furthered adjusted according to each state's Workplace Environment rankings from the Gallup-Healthways Well-Being Index poll. These factors provide both a quantitative and qualitative basis for the rankings that follow.

1. Washington

The state of Washington starts workers out on the right foot with an average wage of more than $50,000 a year -- one of the highest in the nation. That high pay is more than enough to overcome a cost of living that is slightly above average, and workers get to keep more of that pay because Washington does not have a state income tax.

To cap it all off, Washington residents gave their work environments an above-average ranking in the Gallup-Healthways poll.

2. Virginia

Virginia's strengths include a high average income, a low cost of living and low unemployment.

This has been a consistently winning combination for the state: Virginia has ranked in the top five states for making a living in each of the three years MoneyRates.com has done this study. It even ranked No. 1 in the 2012 study.

3. Colorado

A relatively high average income and moderate inflation are enough to help Colorado do well on quantitative factors, and having the third-best ranking for work environment gives them an extra boost.

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