NextChapter

Best all-round cities for remote workers in the Southeast

Reston is the best all-round city for remote workers in the Southeast, with a score of 93 / 100.November 2026 edition. Updated monthly, from open jobs we verified on employer career sites.

Key facts

  • #1 Reston, VA: 93 / 100
  • #2 Atlanta, GA: 87 / 100
  • #3 Raleigh, NC: 84 / 100
  • 33 cities ranked in the Southeast
  • Data as of November 2026
  1. 1Reston VA93 / 100
  2. 2Atlanta GA87 / 100
  3. 3Raleigh NC84 / 100
  4. 4McLean VA80 / 100
  5. 5Chantilly VA70 / 100
  6. 6Alpharetta GA68 / 100
  7. 7Arlington VA68 / 100
  8. 8Miami FL67 / 100
  9. 9Nashville TN66 / 100
  10. 10Alexandria VA65 / 100

What stands out

  • The top ten is tightly packed: Reston leads on 93 / 100, and #10 Alexandria is at 65 / 100.
  • Chantilly reaches #5 on a sample of 553 openings, a smaller market than most of the top ten, so its rank can move more from month to month.
  • Atlanta is the largest market in the top ten, with 5,877 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

    Reston VA

    93 / 100

    Remote share of openings
    12%
    Pay after cost of living
    $158k
    Remote openings
    101

    Hiring most here: ICF International, CACI International, Anduril Industries

    Based on 828 openings.

    Jobs and employers in Reston

  2. 2

    Atlanta GA

    87 / 100

    Remote share of openings
    6%
    Pay after cost of living
    $138k
    Remote openings
    375

    Hiring most here: Emory University, Oxford College of Emory University, Capgemini Invent

    Based on 5,877 openings.

    Jobs and employers in Atlanta

  3. 3

    Raleigh NC

    84 / 100

    Remote share of openings
    9%
    Pay after cost of living
    $133k
    Remote openings
    143

    Hiring most here: First Citizens Bank, Dewberry, MaintainX

    Based on 1,515 openings.

    Jobs and employers in Raleigh

  4. 4

    McLean VA

    80 / 100

    Remote share of openings
    5%
    Pay after cost of living
    $158k
    Remote openings
    62

    Hiring most here: Capital One, The MITRE, Steampunk

    Based on 1,182 openings.

    Jobs and employers in McLean

  5. 5

    Chantilly VA

    70 / 100

    Remote share of openings
    4%
    Pay after cost of living
    $192k
    Remote openings
    24

    Hiring most here: CACI International, Trinzic, Peraton

    Based on 553 openings.

    Jobs and employers in Chantilly

  6. 6

    Alpharetta GA

    68 / 100

    Remote share of openings
    5%
    Pay after cost of living
    $136k
    Remote openings
    31

    Hiring most here: Morgan Stanley, Fiserv, Landis+Gyr

    Based on 614 openings.

    Jobs and employers in Alpharetta

  7. 7

    Arlington VA

    68 / 100

    Remote share of openings
    4%
    Pay after cost of living
    $146k
    Remote openings
    80

    Hiring most here: Amazon, AWS, Bloomberg Industry Group

    Based on 2,079 openings.

    Jobs and employers in Arlington

  8. 8

    Miami FL

    67 / 100

    Remote share of openings
    5%
    Pay after cost of living
    $120k
    Remote openings
    113

    Hiring most here: University Of Miami, Royal Caribbean Cruises, Princess Cruises / Holland America Line

    Based on 2,485 openings.

    Jobs and employers in Miami

  9. 9

    Nashville TN

    66 / 100

    Remote share of openings
    4%
    Pay after cost of living
    $145k
    Remote openings
    69

    Hiring most here: Oracle, Amazon, Vanderbilt University

    Based on 1,737 openings.

  10. 10

    Alexandria VA

    65 / 100

    Remote share of openings
    5%
    Pay after cost of living
    $139k
    Remote openings
    28

    Hiring most here: Kearney, Patent and Trademark Office, Analytic Services (ANSER)

    Based on 618 openings.

    Jobs and employers in Alexandria

  11. 11

    Frankfort KY

    62 / 100

    Remote share of openings
    5%
    Pay after cost of living
    $145k
    Remote openings
    9

    Hiring most here: Oracle, Lumen, Kentucky State University

    Based on 187 openings.

    Jobs and employers in Frankfort

  12. 12

    Richmond VA

    62 / 100

    Remote share of openings
    5%
    Pay after cost of living
    $103k
    Remote openings
    64

    Hiring most here: Mckesson, Capital One, Genworth Financial

    Based on 1,209 openings.

    Jobs and employers in Richmond

  13. 13

    Orlando FL

    61 / 100

    Remote share of openings
    5%
    Pay after cost of living
    $104k
    Remote openings
    68

    Hiring most here: Lockheed Martin, Lockheed Martin Services, Creative Financial Staffing

    Based on 1,343 openings.

    Jobs and employers in Orlando

  14. 14

    Herndon VA

    59 / 100

    Remote share of openings
    3%
    Pay after cost of living
    $161k
    Remote openings
    27

    Hiring most here: Amazon, AWS, Peraton

    Based on 849 openings.

    Jobs and employers in Herndon

  15. 15

    Louisville KY

    59 / 100

    Remote share of openings
    4%
    Pay after cost of living
    $126k
    Remote openings
    93

    Hiring most here: Deloitte, BrightSpring Health Services, Norton Healthcare

    Based on 2,319 openings.

    Jobs and employers in Louisville

  16. 16

    Tampa FL

    58 / 100

    Remote share of openings
    4%
    Pay after cost of living
    $108k
    Remote openings
    82

    Hiring most here: DTCC, Citigroup, University of South Florida

    Based on 1,845 openings.

    Jobs and employers in Tampa

  17. 17

    Charlotte NC

    54 / 100

    Remote share of openings
    3%
    Pay after cost of living
    $131k
    Remote openings
    97

    Hiring most here: Truist Financial, Scout Motors, SMBC Americas

    Based on 3,402 openings.

    Jobs and employers in Charlotte

  18. 18

    Tallahassee FL

    53 / 100

    Remote share of openings
    4%
    Pay after cost of living
    $121k
    Remote openings
    36

    Hiring most here: State of Florida, L3HARRIS Technologies, NextEra Energy

    Based on 840 openings.

    Jobs and employers in Tallahassee

  19. 19

    Durham NC

    48 / 100

    Remote share of openings
    4%
    Pay after cost of living
    $129k
    Remote openings
    29

    Hiring most here: Duke University, Duke Health, GSK

    Based on 804 openings.

    Jobs and employers in Durham

  20. 20

    Huntsville AL

    47 / 100

    Remote share of openings
    1%
    Pay after cost of living
    $164k
    Remote openings
    17

    Hiring most here: Northrop Grumman, L3HARRIS Technologies, Blue Origin

    Based on 1,196 openings.

    Jobs and employers in Huntsville

  21. 21

    Birmingham AL

    43 / 100

    Remote share of openings
    2%
    Pay after cost of living
    $139k
    Remote openings
    15

    Hiring most here: Genuine Parts Company, Uab Medicine Enterprise, Brasfield & Gorrie

    Based on 617 openings.

    Jobs and employers in Birmingham

  22. 22

    Norfolk VA

    36 / 100

    Remote share of openings
    4%
    Pay after cost of living
    $103k
    Remote openings
    14

    Hiring most here: Commonwealth of Virginia, Seacorp, United States Fleet Forces Command

    Based on 342 openings.

    Jobs and employers in Norfolk

  23. 23

    Greensboro NC

    31 / 100

    Remote share of openings
    3%
    Pay after cost of living
    $111k
    Remote openings
    14

    Hiring most here: Cone Health, Kaiser Permanente, Guilford County Schools

    Based on 446 openings.

    Jobs and employers in Greensboro

  24. 24

    Mc Lean VA

    30 / 100

    Remote share of openings
    1%
    Pay after cost of living
    $161k
    Remote openings
    2

    Hiring most here: Capital One, Booz Allen Hamilton, Sunrise Senior Living

    Based on 242 openings.

  25. 25

    Fort Belvoir VA

    28 / 100

    Remote share of openings
    2%
    Pay after cost of living
    $134k
    Remote openings
    3

    Hiring most here: CACI International, Peraton, Teksynap

    Based on 197 openings.

    Jobs and employers in Fort Belvoir

Full ranking

All 33 cities that qualified, with the figure each is ranked on.

RankCityScoreSample
1Reston VA93 / 100828
2Atlanta GA87 / 1005,877
3Raleigh NC84 / 1001,515
4McLean VA80 / 1001,182
5Chantilly VA70 / 100553
6Alpharetta GA68 / 100614
7Arlington VA68 / 1002,079
8Miami FL67 / 1002,485
9Nashville TN66 / 1001,737
10Alexandria VA65 / 100618
11Frankfort KY62 / 100187
12Richmond VA62 / 1001,209
13Orlando FL61 / 1001,343
14Herndon VA59 / 100849
15Louisville KY59 / 1002,319
16Tampa FL58 / 1001,845
17Charlotte NC54 / 1003,402
18Tallahassee FL53 / 100840
19Durham NC48 / 100804
20Huntsville AL47 / 1001,196
21Birmingham AL43 / 100617
22Norfolk VA36 / 100342
23Greensboro NC31 / 100446
24Mc Lean VA30 / 100242
25Fort Belvoir VA28 / 100197
26Fort Lauderdale FL27 / 100624
27Manassas VA26 / 100236
28Jacksonville FL25 / 1001,131
29Virginia Beach VA25 / 100275
30Tysons VA23 / 100191
31Vienna VA19 / 100171
32Springfield VA13 / 100277
33Boca Raton FL11 / 100369

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 southeast?
Reston is the best all-round city for remote workers in the Southeast, with a score of 93 / 100.
How many cities are ranked?
33 cities have at least 100 openings, so the list has 33 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 Southeast,” November 2026 edition. https://launchyournextchapter.com/rankings/best-all-round-cities-for-remote-workers-in-the-southeast

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

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

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