Wayne Marr points us to a study ranking universities in the US by total compensation package (on average across departments), adjusted by cost of living. The highest paying institution, in cost of living adjusted terms, is SUNY Buffalo at $113,200. At the bottom are CUNY Purchase and CUNY NY City Tech on $18,600 and $18,700 respectively. Scott Beaulier previously lauded the cost of living adjusted salaries at Mercer.
Of course, though, the whole comparison is rot if most of the cost of living differences are because folks have bid up scarce property to reflect amenity value differences across cities. Your New York City cost-of-living adjusted salary will be less than $19K if you place zero value on the amenities available in New York as compared to those available in Buffalo. Otherwise, wouldn't the best measure of amenity values be the amount folks are willing to pay to live in a place?
