NextChapter

Best all-round cities for remote workers in the Great Lakes

Eden Prairie is the best all-round city for remote workers in the Great Lakes, with a score of 96 / 100.November 2026 edition. Updated monthly, from open jobs we verified on employer career sites.

Key facts

  • #1 Eden Prairie, MN: 96 / 100
  • #2 Chicago, IL: 85 / 100
  • #3 Ann Arbor, MI: 83 / 100
  • 16 cities ranked in the Great Lakes
  • Data as of November 2026
  1. 1Eden Prairie MN96 / 100
  2. 2Chicago IL85 / 100
  3. 3Ann Arbor MI83 / 100
  4. 4Minneapolis MN70 / 100
  5. 5Indianapolis IN60 / 100
  6. 6Columbus OH58 / 100
  7. 7Milwaukee WI57 / 100
  8. 8Madison WI57 / 100
  9. 9Detroit MI49 / 100
  10. 10Springfield IL33 / 100

What stands out

  • The lead is wide: Eden Prairie (96 / 100) is well clear of Springfield at #10 (33 / 100).
  • Springfield reaches #10 on a sample of 323 openings, a smaller market than most of the top ten, so its rank can move more from month to month.
  • Chicago is the largest market in the top ten, with 8,033 openings behind its figure.
  • Cities with fewer than 100 openings are not ranked, and small differences between neighbouring ranks are not meaningful.

Why this ranking matters

What it shows

Remote work is attached to a city by the employer's base. This list weighs how many openings are remote, how many there are and what the pay is worth locally, to show which cities hire remotely in volume.

How to use it

If you want a remote role, the top cities show where the employers are. You can live elsewhere and still apply to them as a remote candidate.

The top 25

  1. 1

    Eden Prairie MN

    96 / 100

    Remote share of openings
    45%
    Pay after cost of living
    $141k
    Remote openings
    162

    Hiring most here: Unitedhealth Group, LHC Group, Illinois Tool Works

    Based on 363 openings.

    Jobs and employers in Eden Prairie

  2. 2

    Chicago IL

    85 / 100

    Remote share of openings
    6%
    Pay after cost of living
    $135k
    Remote openings
    516

    Hiring most here: Publicis Groupe, Confidential, Mars

    Based on 8,033 openings.

    Jobs and employers in Chicago

  3. 3

    Ann Arbor MI

    83 / 100

    Remote share of openings
    12%
    Pay after cost of living
    $159k
    Remote openings
    45

    Hiring most here: May Mobility, Torc Robotics, Thomson Reuters

    Based on 362 openings.

    Jobs and employers in Ann Arbor

  4. 4

    Minneapolis MN

    70 / 100

    Remote share of openings
    7%
    Pay after cost of living
    $124k
    Remote openings
    97

    Hiring most here: Mortenson, Ameriprise Certificate, U.S. Bank

    Based on 1,313 openings.

    Jobs and employers in Minneapolis

  5. 5

    Indianapolis IN

    60 / 100

    Remote share of openings
    4%
    Pay after cost of living
    $132k
    Remote openings
    64

    Hiring most here: Eli Lilly and Company, State of Indiana, Masco

    Based on 1,496 openings.

    Jobs and employers in Indianapolis

  6. 6

    Columbus OH

    58 / 100

    Remote share of openings
    6%
    Pay after cost of living
    $120k
    Remote openings
    118

    Hiring most here: State of Ohio, Nationwide, American Electric Power

    Based on 2,024 openings.

    Jobs and employers in Columbus

  7. 7

    Milwaukee WI

    57 / 100

    Remote share of openings
    6%
    Pay after cost of living
    $122k
    Remote openings
    56

    Hiring most here: Michels, Rockwell Automation, Molson Coors Beverage

    Based on 909 openings.

    Jobs and employers in Milwaukee

  8. 8

    Madison WI

    57 / 100

    Remote share of openings
    9%
    Pay after cost of living
    $112k
    Remote openings
    46

    Hiring most here: Universities of Wisconsin [UW_Madison], Creative Financial Staffing, Catalent Pharma Solutions

    Based on 526 openings.

    Jobs and employers in Madison

  9. 9

    Detroit MI

    49 / 100

    Remote share of openings
    5%
    Pay after cost of living
    $126k
    Remote openings
    37

    Hiring most here: Wayne State University, Henry Ford Health System, Accident Fund

    Based on 786 openings.

    Jobs and employers in Detroit

  10. 10

    Springfield IL

    33 / 100

    Remote share of openings
    3%
    Pay after cost of living
    $125k
    Remote openings
    11

    Hiring most here: State of Illinois, Army National Guard Units, Hshs Medical Group

    Based on 323 openings.

    Jobs and employers in Springfield

  11. 11

    Schaumburg IL

    31 / 100

    Remote share of openings
    5%
    Pay after cost of living
    $110k
    Remote openings
    13

    Hiring most here: Motorola Solutions, Fictiv, Zurich

    Based on 242 openings.

    Jobs and employers in Schaumburg

  12. 12

    St. Paul MN

    28 / 100

    Remote share of openings
    3%
    Pay after cost of living
    $123k
    Remote openings
    8

    Hiring most here: George Konik Associates, Thomson Reuters, Mortenson

    Based on 232 openings.

    Jobs and employers in St. Paul

  13. 13

    Cincinnati OH

    28 / 100

    Remote share of openings
    3%
    Pay after cost of living
    $115k
    Remote openings
    44

    Hiring most here: Medpace Holdings, Procter & Gamble, Western & Southern Financial Group

    Based on 1,451 openings.

    Jobs and employers in Cincinnati

  14. 14

    Dayton OH

    26 / 100

    Remote share of openings
    2%
    Pay after cost of living
    $131k
    Remote openings
    8

    Hiring most here: University of Dayton, Modern Technology Solutions, Odyssey Systems Consulting

    Based on 446 openings.

    Jobs and employers in Dayton

  15. 15

    Mundelein IL

    24 / 100

    Remote share of openings
    1%
    Pay after cost of living
    $134k
    Remote openings
    3

    Hiring most here: Coda Search│Staffing

    Based on 255 openings.

    Jobs and employers in Mundelein

  16. 16

    Cleveland OH

    15 / 100

    Remote share of openings
    3%
    Pay after cost of living
    $108k
    Remote openings
    27

    Hiring most here: Flexjet, Sherwin Williams, KeyBank

    Based on 917 openings.

    Jobs and employers in Cleveland

Full ranking

All 16 cities that qualified, with the figure each is ranked on.

RankCityScoreSample
1Eden Prairie MN96 / 100363
2Chicago IL85 / 1008,033
3Ann Arbor MI83 / 100362
4Minneapolis MN70 / 1001,313
5Indianapolis IN60 / 1001,496
6Columbus OH58 / 1002,024
7Milwaukee WI57 / 100909
8Madison WI57 / 100526
9Detroit MI49 / 100786
10Springfield IL33 / 100323
11Schaumburg IL31 / 100242
12St. Paul MN28 / 100232
13Cincinnati OH28 / 1001,451
14Dayton OH26 / 100446
15Mundelein IL24 / 100255
16Cleveland OH15 / 100917

How this ranking works

A city's score is the weighted average of its percentile rank on each measure among the ranked cities (100 is first, 0 is last): remote share of openings 40%, pay after cost of living 30%, remote openings 30%.

A score of 100 would mean first on every measure and 50 is the middle of the pack. The measures and weights are fixed in advance and shown here; they are a judgment about what matters to this reader, so use the single-measure rankings when one thing matters most.

Only cities with enough openings and pay data are ranked.

A city where one employer posts more than 50% of its openings is not ranked, so a single company cannot decide a city's score.

Sample bar: cities with fewer than 100 openings are not ranked.

Sources: NextChapter job data: open professional roles and posted pay; Bureau of Economic Analysis regional price parities 2024. Data as of November 2026.

Our job data covers professional roles on the career sites of employers we track, so figures describe that market, not every job. Spot an error? Tell us.

Questions

Which city ranks first: best all-round cities for remote workers in the great lakes?
Eden Prairie is the best all-round city for remote workers in the Great Lakes, with a score of 96 / 100.
How many cities are ranked?
16 cities have at least 100 openings, so the list has 16 entries.
How is the ranking calculated?
A city's score is the weighted average of its percentile rank on each measure among the ranked cities (100 is first, 0 is last): remote share of openings 40%, pay after cost of living 30%, remote openings 30%. A score of 100 would mean first on every measure and 50 is the middle of the pack. The measures and weights are fixed in advance and shown here; they are a judgment about what matters to this reader, so use the single-measure rankings when one thing matters most. Only cities with enough openings and pay data are ranked. A city where one employer posts more than 50% of its openings is not ranked, so a single company cannot decide a city's score.
How often is it updated?
Every month. This is the November 2026 edition. Older editions stay on this site at their own dated addresses.

More rankings

Cite this ranking

NextChapter, “Best all-round cities for remote workers in the Great Lakes,” November 2026 edition. https://launchyournextchapter.com/rankings/best-all-round-cities-for-remote-workers-in-the-great-lakes

Link to it: <a href="https://launchyournextchapter.com/rankings/best-all-round-cities-for-remote-workers-in-the-great-lakes">Best all-round cities for remote workers in the Great Lakes (NextChapter, November 2026)</a>

Download the data: CSV · JSON. Free to use with a link back.

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