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Zero To Mastery manually analyzed 344 US cities to find the best places to start an entry-level tech career. The results contradict almost everything people assume about tech job markets — from which states actually lead on opportunity, to how much competition varies by city, to how little a six-figure Silicon Valley salary can leave you with after rent. Huntsville, Alabama ranked #1 for take-home pay, Washington DC dominated entry-level cybersecurity, and New York ranked 215th despite having the most total jobs of any city analyzed.

FRONT ST. WEST, Toronto, June 17, 2026 /PRNewswire-±¬ÁϹ«Éçapp/ -- Zero To Mastery, a tech training platform with over one million students, has published original research analyzing 344 US cities to identify the best locations for entry-level tech professionals.

The study was conducted entirely manually without AI, using LinkedIn job listings, US Census population data and BestPlaces.net cost of living scores. It reveals that the most talked-about tech hubs in America are among the worst places to actually start a career.

The full study is available at:

Key findings from the research:

• Huntsville, Alabama ranked as the top city for take-home pay and job competition. A Junior Software Engineer there earns $93,155 and keeps $55,555 after rent — compared to $3,838 left over on a $111,034 salary in Santa Clara, California
• New York City has the most total entry-level tech jobs of any city analyzed (397 verified roles), yet ranks 215th on the overall list when job competition and cost of living are factored in. One Junior Software Engineer listing in Huntsville had 52 applicants over 6 months. A similar role in San Francisco had 100 applicants in 3 days. A New York listing received 31 applications in just 41 minutes
• Of 344 cities analyzed, only 38 scored high enough to be worth relocating to — just 11% — spanning 20 states
• Alabama ranks as the 2nd best state by average ZTM score. Colorado has more qualifying cities than any other state
• Washington DC has more verified entry-level cybersecurity roles than New York, Denver, and Boston combined, driven almost entirely by the NSA and federal agencies

Methodology

The research team manually searched LinkedIn for entry-level, onsite job listings across five roles — Software Engineering, Web Development, Cybersecurity, Data Analysis and UI/UX Design — in all 344 US cities with a population of 100,000 or more. Results were then cross-referenced against population data and BestPlaces.net cost of living scores to calculate a proprietary ZTM Best City Score, weighted 60% on jobs per capita and 40% on affordability. Data was collected in May 2026.

"We expected the usual suspects to dominate," said Daniel Daines-Hutt, Head of Content at Zero To Mastery. "What we found was that the cities most people dream of moving to for a tech career are often the worst places to actually start one. A city like Huntsville doesn't just edge out Silicon Valley on affordability — it wins on job competition, take-home pay and career trajectory all at once. That really surprised us."

The full dataset covering all 344 cities, including job counts across all five roles, cost of living scores, and take-home pay calculations, is available at:

About Zero To Mastery

Zero To Mastery is a tech education platform with over one million students worldwide, offering courses in software engineering, web development, cybersecurity, data science, and more. The platform publishes monthly research on the tech job market through its Tech Job Market Monthly newsletter.

Media Contact

Daniel Daines-Hutt, Zero To Mastery, 64 0274233277, [email protected],

SOURCE Zero To Mastery