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Home > Best Places to Live in the US in 2022

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Our Rankings,by the Numbers
From superb suburbs to quaint small towns, our 35th annual list highlights the places where job growth is rising, home prices are affordable, and the quality of life shines.
By Samantha Sharf, Aly J. Yale, Daniel Bortz, Leslie Cook, Julia Glum, Mallika Mitra and Ana Lucía Murillo
Best Places 2021 #1-5
Best Places 2021 #6-16
Best Places 2021 #17-27
Best Places 2021 #28-38
Best Places 2021 #39-50
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Where is the best place to relocate in the US?
What's the best state to move to 2022?
Which US city has the best quality of life?
Where is the best place to move to start over?

For the last nine years, Livability editors and data scientists have combined our great love of cities and data to create our annual ranking of the Top 100 Best Places to Live in America.

Every year, the list changes: we conduct exclusive studies and surveys, adjust our algorithm and add new variables and data points. But one thing remains constant: We always start with the data. This year, we examined more than 2,300 cities based on more than 50 data points that are grouped into eight categories, measuring a city’s economic stability, housing, amenities, infrastructure, demographics, social and civic capital and health care. This is how we calculate each city’s LivScore.

Our Rankings,by the Numbers

>2,000 cities researched
>50 data points
8 categories
Focus on mid-sized cities

Next, we craft the rankings. This year, we started with the age-old question: Why should someone want to live here?

Yes, these are all statistically great places to live, but would you actually want to live here? What are the ways in which each of these cities is creating an environment that is accommodating for remote workers? Where can you spend a Saturday afternoon or meet your friends for happy hour after a long day? How is this city different from other places?

Since March 2020, more than 42% of the U.S. population has either moved or considered moving. As home prices hit historical highs and inflation continues to rise, it is more important than ever that we create homes in places that are both affordable and functional for a diverse and growing population. Affordability is a core value for Livability, so we look for places that are growing wages and home values while maintaining an affordable cost of living.

This year, we focused on mid-sized cities (generally defined as 500,000 population or smaller) that are attracting big waves of young people. We also added more weight to some of our measures of diversity and inclusion in order to reflect what millennials are looking for in the cities they choose to call home. If you want to learn more about how this list came together, please check out our methodology page and ranking criteria.

At Livability.com, we are passionate about finding the good and praising it, and each of these cities has something special to offer its residents. If you’re a young person looking for a fresh start, sick of living paycheck to paycheck due to insane rent prices and want to find a community that will welcome you with open arms, this list is for you.

These 100 cities are welcoming, affordable and offer the space and opportunity to grow, both professionally and personally.

The only thing missing? You.

List Edited by Cara Sanders, Managing Editor & Director of Digital Marketing
Contributing Writers: Brittany Anas, Dmytryk Carreno, Lindsey Hyde and Cindy Sanders

From superb suburbs to quaint small towns, our 35th annual list highlights the places where job growth is rising, home prices are affordable, and the quality of life shines.

By Samantha Sharf, Aly J. Yale, Daniel Bortz, Leslie Cook, Julia Glum, Mallika Mitra and Ana Lucía Murillo

Best Places 2021 #1-5

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Best Places 2021 #6-16

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Best Places 2021 #17-27

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Best Places 2021 #28-38

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Best Places 2021 #39-50

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Where is the best place to relocate in the US?

Its 2022 ranking for the best places to live looked at five metrics: job market, value, quality of life, desirability, and net migration. The best place to live in America is Huntsville, Alabama, followed by Colorado Springs, Colorado.

What's the best state to move to 2022?

The top state is Massachusetts, which ranked first in the nation for education and health, fourth for safety, sixth for quality of life, and 10th for its economy. It did rank a low 44th out of 50 states for affordability, but its overall score was enough to eke out a win over the closely-second next state.