Posted by Check out the Best Cities to Live in the United States of America in 2023
Will you be dying to move to the other side of the Atlantic? Be careful. A ranking published a few days ago reminds us that the cities where we live best in the United States are not necessarily the ones we think of at first.
San Francisco, Los Angeles, New York… The mere mention of these American metropolises feeds the ambition of expatriation of many young people, many dreaming of settling in the United States. But contrary to appearances, it is not in these cities that we live and work best in the land of Uncle Sam.
The American weekly U.S. News and World Report has just ranked the most interesting cities to settle among the 125 most populous American metropolises. The top 10 best cities to live in USA in 2023 reveals some surprises.
The American newspaper used a methodology based on the indexes of the labour market (unemployment rate – average wage), prices (median annual household income – annual cost of living), quality of life (crime – quality of health – quality of education ion – well-being, travel time), attractiveness, or migration.
These are the top 10 best cities to live in USA;
- Austin, Texas
- Colorado Springs, Colorado
- Denver, Colorado
- Des Moines, Iowa
- Fayetteville, Arkansas
- Portland, Oregon
- Huntsville, Alabama
- Washington, D.C.
- Minneapolis-St. Paul, Minnesota
- Seattle
1. Austin, Texas
On the no. 1 spot on the Top 10 Best Cities to Live in USA (2023) is Austin, Texas with an average of 7.7 out of 10, the metropolis of the southwestern state of Texas is the number one city to settle in. With a population of nearly 2 million and an unemployment rate of around 3.2%, the Texas capital enjoys a strong cultural offering with many festivals, including the South by Southwest, whose reach now far exceeds national borders. Austin, Texas is no doubt the best city to live in America.
The job market is also dynamic, driven in part by the “Silicon Hills”, a tech hub where Google and a few investors are well established. The campus of the University of Texas, one of the largest in the country, has nearly 50,000 students.
2. Colorado Springs, Colorado
With an overall average of 7.6 out of 10, Colorado Springs takes second place in the rankings. The average city in the United States, with a population of just under 700,000, is also Colorado’s second-largest city, behind Denver. Colorado Springs enjoys a relatively low cost of living, combined with low unemployment and many cultural side-by-sides.
3. Denver, Colorado
Colorado is definitely a good place to live as Denver is third on the podium. Colorado’s capital, which has capitalized heavily on the aerospace and defense sectors, is now boosted by the booming recreational marijuana industry. Denver is known to be the epicenter of the green gold rush, and many jobs have been created. The average annual salary is $55,910.
4. Des Moines, Iowa
While the U.S. News and World Report study points out that the state capital of Iowa in the heart of the Mid-West is not particularly popular with tourists, it is a city with an excellent quality of life. The average annual salary is $49,420 and the unemployment rate is 2.9%. Finally, the cost of housing is well below the U.S. national average.
5. Fayetteville, Arkansas
Again, Fayetteville’s name probably doesn’t tell you much. This city of the state of Arkansas and its 500,000 inhabitants is not in the guides of tour operators. Nevertheless, the quality of life and price indices are generally advantageous, and the local economy is driven by large employers including Walmart, Tyson Foods or J.B Hunt Transport, which are headquartered in the state.
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6. Portland, Oregon
Oregon’s largest city is known for its NBA team, the Blazers. While price indices are less advantageous than in the top cities, the attractiveness of this northwestern Us city is undeniable. Nike, headquartered a few miles from the city, and Intel are among the largest employers in the city of 2.3 million people.
7. Huntsville, Alabama
Head south with Huntsville and its 440,000 inhabitants. The attractiveness of the state city of Alabama is not the best, but the cost of living is particularly low. While the average annual salary is around $52,960.
8. Washington, D.C.
The capital of the United States is the largest metropolis of this top 10 with its 6 million inhabitants. As a result, it enjoys a large pool of employment, with skilled positions: the average annual salary explodes to $68,000. The unemployment rate stands at 3.7% of the working population. The only downside is the cost of living, which is well above the national average.
9. Minneapolis-St. Paul, Minnesota
The twin cities of the state of Minnesota benefit from a very dynamic biotech and science sector. The average annual salary of $55,000 allows you to live properly in a city where the cost of living is only slightly higher than the national average.
10. Seattle
The capital of Washington State (population 3.6 million), Seattle enjoys a very advantageous job market, especially in the tech sector, since two of the world’s largest market capitalizations have set up their headquarters there (Microsoft and Amazon ). The cost of living is high, but the average annual salary of $61,000 partly offsets these expenses. it’s little wonder it made it to the Top 10 Best Cities to Live in USA (2023).
Note that San Francisco emerges in 20th place, not least because of its exorbitant cost of living. This is also the case for the cities of Los Angeles (101st) and New York (96th) or Chicago (87th), whose prohibitive prices cause them to fall in this ranking.
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