NextChapter

Best all-round cities for remote workers in the Midwest

Eden Prairie is the best all-round city for remote workers in the Midwest, with a score of 95 / 100.November 2026 edition. Updated monthly, from open jobs we verified on employer career sites.

Key facts

  • #1 Eden Prairie, MN: 95 / 100
  • #2 Des Moines, IA: 90 / 100
  • #3 Chicago, IL: 85 / 100
  • 20 cities ranked in the Midwest
  • Data as of November 2026
  1. 1Eden Prairie MN95 / 100
  2. 2Des Moines IA90 / 100
  3. 3Chicago IL85 / 100
  4. 4Ann Arbor MI83 / 100
  5. 5Minneapolis MN71 / 100
  6. 6Indianapolis IN59 / 100
  7. 7Columbus OH58 / 100
  8. 8Madison WI57 / 100
  9. 9Milwaukee WI55 / 100
  10. 10Kansas City MO51 / 100

What stands out

  • The lead is wide: Eden Prairie (95 / 100) is well clear of Kansas City at #10 (51 / 100).
  • Ann Arbor reaches #4 on a sample of 362 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

    95 / 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

    Des Moines IA

    90 / 100

    Remote share of openings
    17%
    Pay after cost of living
    $147k
    Remote openings
    68

    Hiring most here: Principal Financial Group, OpenLoop, Olsson

    Based on 394 openings.

    Jobs and employers in Des Moines

  3. 3

    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

  4. 4

    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

  5. 5

    Minneapolis MN

    71 / 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

  6. 6

    Indianapolis IN

    59 / 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

  7. 7

    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

  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

    Milwaukee WI

    55 / 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

  10. 10

    Kansas City MO

    51 / 100

    Remote share of openings
    5%
    Pay after cost of living
    $125k
    Remote openings
    44

    Hiring most here: JE Dunn Construction, Catalent Pharma Solutions, Commerce Bank

    Based on 916 openings.

    Jobs and employers in Kansas City

  11. 11

    Detroit MI

    47 / 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

  12. 12

    St. Louis MO

    42 / 100

    Remote share of openings
    6%
    Pay after cost of living
    $109k
    Remote openings
    38

    Hiring most here: Stifel Charitable, BJC HealthCare, Kforce

    Based on 596 openings.

    Jobs and employers in St. Louis

  13. 13

    Springfield IL

    31 / 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

  14. 14

    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

  15. 15

    Cincinnati OH

    30 / 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

  16. 16

    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

  17. 17

    Omaha NE

    25 / 100

    Remote share of openings
    3%
    Pay after cost of living
    $122k
    Remote openings
    17

    Hiring most here: Conagra Brands, Valmont, First National Bank of Omaha

    Based on 577 openings.

    Jobs and employers in Omaha

  18. 18

    Dayton OH

    25 / 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

  19. 19

    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

  20. 20

    Cleveland OH

    14 / 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 20 cities that qualified, with the figure each is ranked on.

RankCityScoreSample
1Eden Prairie MN95 / 100363
2Des Moines IA90 / 100394
3Chicago IL85 / 1008,033
4Ann Arbor MI83 / 100362
5Minneapolis MN71 / 1001,313
6Indianapolis IN59 / 1001,496
7Columbus OH58 / 1002,024
8Madison WI57 / 100526
9Milwaukee WI55 / 100909
10Kansas City MO51 / 100916
11Detroit MI47 / 100786
12St. Louis MO42 / 100596
13Springfield IL31 / 100323
14Schaumburg IL31 / 100242
15Cincinnati OH30 / 1001,451
16St. Paul MN28 / 100232
17Omaha NE25 / 100577
18Dayton OH25 / 100446
19Mundelein IL24 / 100255
20Cleveland OH14 / 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 midwest?
Eden Prairie is the best all-round city for remote workers in the Midwest, with a score of 95 / 100.
How many cities are ranked?
20 cities have at least 100 openings, so the list has 20 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 Midwest,” November 2026 edition. https://launchyournextchapter.com/rankings/best-all-round-cities-for-remote-workers-in-the-midwest

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

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

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