If you are moving alone without children, put Iowa, Ohio, and Michigan on your list—in that order—because $60,000–$65,000 is above each state's current single‑adult living‑wage estimate.
“I am a European nurse moving to the US on an EB-3 visa through an agency. I need to give my agency three states I am willing to move to. Since I will be making a new graduate salary of $60k-$65k a year, which non-Southern states have a cost of living that makes this salary manageable?”
Summary
As a single adult, you have a real gross‑income cushion: roughly $14,086–$21,326 above the three state estimates. The hard part is not finding an affordable state; it is making sure the exact city, household, contract deductions, and required worksite wage still fit.
For one adult with no children, all three choices are viable; rank them by price level and the size of your cushion over MIT's current living-wage estimate.
Iowa is the strongest cost-first choice. Its 2024 was 87.762, meaning the statewide price level was about 12.2% below the national level, while MIT's February 2026 required pre-tax income for one adult with no children was $44,273. A $60,000–$65,000 salary is $15,727–$20,727 above that estimate.
Ohio is the strongest budget-margin choice. Its 2024 was 92.774, and MIT's required pre-tax income for one adult with no children was $43,674—the lowest of these three. Your salary is $16,326–$21,326 above that estimate, although the exact city and local deductions still matter.
Michigan remains workable but ranks third because its 2024 was 96.217. MIT estimated $45,914 of required pre-tax income for one adult with no children, leaving a $14,086–$19,086 gross-income margin on your stated salary.
Household fork: a one-income, child-free couple is borderline at $60,000–$65,000, while a single parent with one child falls short in all three states; a working partner's income should be added to the household comparison.
Read the full explanationHide the full explanation
Watch out for
Next steps
These steps turn the state shortlist into a safe placement decision without treating the agency's preliminary salary as the final legal wage.
Now
Send Iowa, Ohio, and Michigan in that order
List 1) Iowa, 2) Ohio, and 3) Michigan. All three are Census Midwest states, not Southern states; the ranking uses 2024 BEA-sourced price levels and MIT budgets updated February 15, 2026.
Requirements
Before accepting a city
Get the exact placement terms in writing
Use the guaranteed base pay—not hoped-for overtime—to build the budget. Compare the exact city with the relevant metropolitan price level and actual rent; the state averages alone do not resolve those costs.
Requirements
Before the petition and again before work starts
Match the offer to the DOL prevailing wage
Apply 20 CFR 656.10(c)(1) at https://www.ecfr.gov/current/title-20/chapter-V/part-656/subpart-C/section-656.10: the offered wage and starting wage must each equal or exceed the applicable . If $60,000–$65,000 is below that determination, the employer must use the higher required wage.
Requirements
Before the employer files Form I-140
Confirm the Schedule A evidence route
Use the three-way alternative stated in USCIS Policy Manual Volume 6, Part E, Chapter 7 at https://www.uscis.gov/policy-manual/volume-6-part-e-chapter-7. One listed route supports the nurse evidence requirement; USCIS does not say you need all three.
Requirements
Before seeking immigrant admission to work as a nurse
Finish health-care-worker certification
Obtain the separate required by the USCIS rule published at https://www.uscis.gov/working-in-the-united-states/temporary-workers/health-care-worker-certification; without it, a covered health-care worker is inadmissible.
Requirements
Legal sources
The recommendation combines U.S. Census and BEA/FRED price data, MIT's 2026 household budgets, and the controlling USCIS and Department of Labor rules.
U.S. Census Regions and Divisions
The Census Bureau places Iowa, Michigan, and Ohio in the Midwest rather than the South.
Region 2
Region 2: Midwest Division 3: East North Central Michigan (26) Ohio (39) Division 4: West North Central Iowa (19)
BEA Regional Price Parities
BEA explains how to read each state/metropolitan price index against a national level of 100.
Regional price parities measure the differences in price levels across states for a given year and are expressed as a percentage of the overall national price level.
FRED IARPPALL (BEA source)
The BEA-sourced series gives Iowa's latest statewide all-items price index.
2024 observation
Observations 2024: 87.762 Updated: Feb 20, 2026 2:20 PM CST
FRED OHRPPALL (BEA source)
The BEA-sourced series gives Ohio's latest statewide all-items price index.
2024 observation
Observations 2024: 92.774 Updated: Feb 20, 2026 2:19 PM CST
FRED MIRPPALL (BEA source)
The BEA-sourced series gives Michigan's latest statewide all-items price index.
2024 observation
Observations 2024: 96.217 Updated: Feb 20, 2026 2:19 PM CST
MIT Living Wage Calculator — Iowa
MIT's February 2026 model puts a single Iowa adult's required income well below the proposed salary; the same page supplies the household-size branches used above.
1 adult, 0 children
Living Wage: $21.29 Required annual income before taxes: $44,273 The living wage shown is the hourly rate that an individual in a household must earn to support themselves and/or their family, working full-time or 2080 hours per year. The data on this page was last updated on February 15, 2026.
MIT Living Wage Calculator — Ohio
MIT's February 2026 model puts a single Ohio adult's required income well below the proposed salary; the same page supplies the household-size branches used above.
1 adult, 0 children
The living wage shown is the hourly rate that an individual in a household must earn to support themselves and/or their family, working full-time or 2080 hours per year. The data on this page was last updated on February 15, 2026. 1 ADULT, 0 Children Living Wage: $21.00 Required annual income before taxes: $43,674
MIT Living Wage Calculator — Michigan
MIT's February 2026 model puts a single Michigan adult's required income below the proposed salary; the same page supplies the household-size branches used above.
1 adult, 0 children
The living wage shown is the hourly rate that an individual in a household must earn to support themselves and/or their family, working full-time or 2080 hours per year. The data on this page was last updated on February 15, 2026. 1 ADULT, 0 Children Living Wage: $22.07 Required annual income before taxes: $45,914
20 CFR 656.10(c)(1)
The employer's actual offered and starting wage cannot be below the applicable DOL prevailing wage.
(c)(1)
The offered wage equals or exceeds the prevailing wage determined pursuant to § 656.40 and § 656.41, and the wage the employer will pay to the alien to begin work will equal or exceed the prevailing wage that is applicable at the time the alien begins work or from the time the alien is admitted to take up the certified employment;
20 CFR 656.40
Identifies DOL’s prevailing wage determination framework that underlies the wage floor referenced in 20 CFR 656.10.
§ 656.40 Determination of prevailing wage for labor certification purposes.
USCIS Policy Manual Vol. 6, Part E, Ch. 7
USCIS requires permanent full-time employment and permits three alternative evidence routes for a Schedule A registered nurse.
Background; F.1 Group I Occupations
An employer must offer full-time permanent employment to a beneficiary. For Group I, registered nurse occupations, the employer must submit evidence to establish that the beneficiary currently has (and had at the time of filing): A full, unrestricted permanent license to practice nursing in the state of intended employment; A certificate from TruMerit (formerly the Commission on Graduates of Foreign Nursing Schools or CGFNS) or an equivalent credentialing organization; or Evidence that the beneficiary has passed the National Council Licensure Examination for Registered Nurses (NCLEX-RN) as of the date of filing.
INA 212(a)(5)(C); USCIS Health Care Worker Certification
A foreign nurse needs separate federal health‑care‑worker certification for admission to perform nursing work.
Aliens seeking admission as a nonimmigrant or immigrant primarily to perform labor as a health care worker, other than as a physician, are not admissible to the United States unless they present certification from a USCIS-approved credentialing organization verifying that they have met the minimum requirements for education, training, licensure, experience, and English proficiency in their field.
These are the official rules and published data as shown on the cited dates; immigration, wage, licensing, and cost data change.
This is general information about official processes, not legal advice, and SettleKit is not a law firm.
Related answers
Join the SettleKit newsletter
We research the hard parts of settling in the US and write articles you will not find anywhere else. Subscribe to get each new article by email.