Top 8 Cities Where Pay Goes Furthest

If you want to stretch your paycheck further, you may be better off putting down roots in a midsize city rather than a large one, even if the jobs you could get in a major metropolis may pay more. That's the finding of Glassdoor, which compared median base salary to median home value (often much higher in bigger cities) to figure out the top 25 cities where residents can get the most bang for their earned bucks. Here are the top eight:

1. Detroit, Mich.; 50% (cost-of-living ratio); $61,500 (median base salary); $123,100 (median home value)
2. Memphis, Tenn.; 46%; $52,000; $112,100
3. Pittsburgh, Pa.; 45%; $56,896; $126,700
4. Cleveland, Ohio; 44%; $55,000; $125,500
5. Indianapolis, Ind.; 43%; $56,000; $130,200
6. St. Louis, Mo.; 40%; $56,896; $141,900
7. Cincinnati, Ohio; 40%; $57,179; $143,400
8. Birmingham, Ala.; 40%; $50,800; $128,000

Check out other cities in the Glassdoor ranking. (If you choose to live in a big city instead, here are some top picks.)