How the Best Places to Live in the U.S. in 2018 Measure Up
Moving to a new home is no easy feat, especially when you've decided to put down roots in an entirely different part of the country. Now you're not only considering the type of house or apartment you want, but you're also weighing whether you'll be able to afford the area, send your kids to good schools, get to work easily and a number of other major factors.
Whether you're presented with the opportunity to relocate to a new city for work or you simply want a change of scenery, it's imperative to do your research first to determine if your general needs will be met, you'll be able to live comfortably and you'll be able to feel at home in the community.
[See: The 25 Best Places to Live in the U.S. in 2018.]
The U.S. News Best Places to Live ranking helps you view the most important aspects to consider for living in any of the 125 most populous metro areas in the U.S., from New York City to Anchorage, Alaska. Factoring in details including job market, crime, population growth due to net migration, cost of living and access to quality health care, we compiled the most important information to determine which places offer the most for most people. (For more information on how we calculate Best Places to Live, visit the 2018 Best Places to Live Methodology.)
Austin, Texas, ranks No. 1 for the second year in a row. Known as a hot spot for the tech industry, Austin attracts young professionals with its reputation as a city teeming with diverse cultural opportunities and draws visitors throughout the year with music, film and arts festivals.
Here are the top 10 Best Places to Live:
1. Austin
3. Denver
10. Seattle
While the third annual Best Places to Live ranking not only reflects the continued status of well-recognized places like Austin, Denver and Fayetteville -- which ranks in the top five on the list for the third year in a row alongside much larger counterparts -- the list also welcomes 25 new places. In fact, 2018 is the first year the 125 most populous metro areas in the U.S., rather than only the 100 most populous, are considered.
The 25 new additions to the list are, of course, smaller metro areas than the likes of Dallas-Fort Worth and Seattle, but their inclusion shows how smaller places can compete with the country's largest cities when it comes to offering job opportunities and a well-rounded community for residents.
Huntsville makes its first appearance on the Best Places to Live list at No. 7. The local job market remains stable with NASA and the U.S. Army serving as the metro area's largest employers. Not only is the median individual annual salary, $52,960, above the national median of $49,630, but the typical household income also goes further in Huntsville -- residents spend just 22.56 percent of their income on housing expenses.
[See: The 25 Best Affordable Places to Live in the U.S. in 2018.]
Of course, with an additional 25 metro areas to consider, some major metro areas fell out of the top 100 list. Los Angeles takes the No. 101 spot, Miami ranks No. 110 and New Orleans is No. 111, after ranking 88, 92 and 95, respectively, in 2017.
A metro area's population growth -- reflecting where people are choosing to move over a five-year period -- plays a key role in the rankings and was at least partially responsible for significant changes in the rank for places from the 2017 list to this year.
One reason Los Angeles dropped to No. 101 is that the second-largest metro area in the country grew by only 0.2 percent between 2012 and 2016 due to net migration. Los Angeles nearly breaking even isn't quite as dire as those metro areas that saw population losses between 2012 and 2016, like Chicago (No. 87 in Best Places to Live), which saw a decrease of nearly 2.2 percent, but it's a far cry from the booming populations due to net migration enjoyed in other places. Myrtle Beach, South Carolina (No. 74 in Best Places to Live), for example, saw more than 15 percent population growth due to net migration during the five-year period. The average growth due to net migration for the 125 largest metro areas in the U.S. between 2012 and 2016 was 2.3 percent.
Affordability is another issue many of the largest metro areas face. While some of the richest people in the world may live in New York (No. 96 in Best Places to Live), LA and Miami, they're also home to large sections of the population that regularly struggle to afford rent or mortgage payments. The median cost of living in all three metros is more than 35 percent of their annual household income, compared to Des Moines, where the median income is smaller but residents spend just 23.5 percent of their income on housing costs.
But as years pass, companies and individuals move, local governments strive to improve the reputation of the area and housing markets shift -- and the rankings reflect those changes. Portland jumped from No. 32 in 2017 to No. 6 this year, as a result of the fact that it is the second-most desirable place to live in the U.S. in 2018, based on a series of Google Consumer Surveys commissioned by U.S. News that asked 2,500 respondents which place they would like to live in most.
Portland also grew in population by about 4.74 percent due to net migration between 2012 and 2016. Similarly, Phoenix went from No. 44 in 2017 to No. 19 this year, primarily based on the 6 percent population growth due to net migration between 2012 and 2016.
[Read: Why the Best Places to Live May Be in Middle America.]
Any place on the list you call home may get a little extra leeway in your mind once you consider yourself a local. The daily bumper-to-bumper traffic may be a struggle that unites residents, or the fact that it's a relatively unknown place that keeps flocks of tourists away. But when it comes to moving to a new part of the country for the first time, you want to be aware of the hurdles you may face. Consider all the factors to make the most informed decision possible for your next big move.
