Salaries and Congregational Location Using the Geo Index Listing

Part of Congregational Salary Program

By Jan Gartner

Adjusting Wages for Location

UUA Recommended Salary Ranges are adjusted to reflect prevailing wage rates in communities where UU congregations are located. We use Economic Research Institute (ERI) wage data to assign a Geo Index to each congregation.

Find your congregation on the Geo Index Listing above.

If your Geo Index has changed from the 2025-2026 listing, consider a 2-year plan to move into the new range.

Geo Indices Defined

  • Geo Index 1: Average wages in the community below 91 percent of the US average
  • Geo Index 2: Average wages between 91 and 96.9 percent of US average
  • Geo Index 3: Average wages between 97 and 102.9 percent of US average
  • Geo Index 4: Average wages between 103 and 108.9 percent of US average
  • Geo Index 5: Average wages between 109 and 114.9 percent of US average
  • Geo Index 6: Average wages between 115 and 120.9 percent of US average
  • Geo Index 7: Average wages between 121 and 126.9 percent of US average
  • Geo Index 8: Average wages equal to 127 percent or more of US average

Remote Staff

Some organizations pay all staff based on the location of the onsite workplace, even if they work from home and live far from their employers. Others others pay based on the employee’s home location. We do not make a particular recommendation, but please be clear with job applicants about your approach ahead of time. Be sure to consult legal and/or tax professionals when hiring an employee to work from another jurisdiction as you will likely need to meet the employment-related obligations of that location.

Cost of Living

The cost of living figure provided for each location shows how expensive it is to live there, relative to the U.S. average. We do not incorporate the cost of living into our Recommended Salary Ranges. However, you may find that you need to take the cost of living into consideration in setting pay, especially in high cost-of-living areas if seeking to draw applicants from other areas.

The cost of living shows how expensive it is to live in a location, based on the prices of goods (including housing) and services. So that your leaders (as well as applicants to positions in your area) are aware, we include each location’s cost of living, as reported by the Economic Research Institute, on our Geo Index Listing.

The cost of wages and cost of living in a given location usually trend in the same direction, but can differ greatly in terms of degree. For instance, in some coastal cities, wages are somewhat above the U.S. average while the cost of living is dramatically above average.

We do not explicitly incorporate the cost of living into our recommendations, and we don’t necessarily expect you to adjust for it. However, congregations in areas with a particularly high cost of living relative to their cost of wages should be prepared to increase salaries and/or moving expenses to ensure the competitiveness of their position openings and affordability for their staff, especially for those relocating from lower-cost areas. Likewise, professionals seeking to relocate should be aware of cost the of living in their potential new location compared to their current area.