Money magazine best places to live
1. Raleigh, NC
Affordability: 7/10
Diversity: 5/10
Job market: 8/10
Safety: 9/10
Wellness: 7/10
Highlights: NC State football games, Carolina Hurricanes hockey games, North Carolina Museum of Art
The top spot on our list goes to Raleigh, North Carolina. As one of the anchors of the Research Triangle, the city continues to attract young employees and major companies to plant roots in The Tar Heel State. Last year, Apple announced plans for a new East Coast campus in the area, which will create at least 3,000 new jobs — and more reasons for more people to want to move here. Outside of the office and the research laboratory, Raleigh is quickly climbing the cultural ranks as a place to eat, drink and enjoy the outdoors, with a mild climate that gives residents ample time to disconnect. Plus, Raleigh offers what many cities struggle to deliver: low crime rates.
2. Charleston, SC
Affordability: 6/10
Diversity: N/A
Job market: 9/10
Safety: 7/10
Wellness: 8/10
Highlights: South Carolina Aquarium, Folly Beach, Charleston City Market
If you’re enjoying the freedom to work from home, why not enjoy the charm of Charleston? According to a 2021 LinkedIn survey, the city is becoming a remote work hotspot. You might need some discipline to stay productive, however, as it boasts lots of reasons to put off that next project: rooftop bars, decadent Lowcountry cuisine and nearby beaches all within a short drive from historic downtown. If you don’t want to work from home, Charleston still has you covered with opportunities in healthcare, manufacturing (Boeing, Volvo and Mercedes all have large operations here) and tourism.
3. Austin, TX
Affordability: 6/10
Diversity: 6/10
Job market: 9/10
Safety: 6/10
Wellness: 9/10
Highlights: UT Austin, Texas Capitol building, Rainey Street
Will Austin ever slip from our best places to live? With affordability becoming more of an issue, it could — but for now, the capital of the Lone Star State continues to attract major employers to set up shop or expand their footprints here, and new residents along with them. Throughout the pandemic, more than 150 companies announced plans to relocate operations to Austin or add more jobs to existing offices. Whether you’re moving here to work for Apple, Dell, Tesla or another major tech name, you’ll have plenty of reasons to play, too: From early morning bike rides (Bicycling magazine named the city one of the top 20 most bike-friendly in the country) to late-night jam sessions on Sixth Street, Austin offers a mile-long list of reasons to forget about work.
4. Oklahoma City, OK
Affordability: 8/10
Diversity: 8/10
Job market: 10/10
Safety: 7/10
Wellness: 5/10
Highlights: National Cowboy & Western Heritage Museum, Oklahoma City Zoo, Myriad Botanical Gardens
OKC is so much more than OK. With an unemployment rate below 2 percent (as of November 2021) and major employers like Integris Health, Hobby Lobby, Boeing and Paycom, Oklahoma City has been attracting droves of new residents. That pace isn’t slowing down, either: By 2040, the metro area is on track to exceed two million residents. The city gets around 235 sunny days a year, and you can enjoy that weather on land via 10 interconnected trails or on water with 30 nearby lakes and kayaking and whitewater rafting opportunities. All that fun doesn’t come at a big cost, either: The median price of a home in Oklahoma City was $235,000 as of November 2021, according to data from Redfin.
5. Tampa, FL
Affordability: 7/10
Diversity: 6/10
Job market: 8/10
Safety: 7/10
Wellness: 7/10
Highlights: Tampa Bay Rays baseball games, Busch Gardens, Adventure Island
What Florida doesn’t have — a state income tax — is one of the many upsides of a move to the Sunshine State. Young job seekers are also flocking to the state, specifically to Tampa, for what the area does have: an affordable cost of living; nearly 80 colleges, universities and technical schools in the Tampa Bay area; and high-profile companies like Raymond James, Citigroup and USAA. You might also opt for the chance to work from home if you’re thinking about this location. The area is just behind Charleston on LinkedIn’s ranking of remote-friendly big cities. When you aren’t working, you’ll find a friendly and diverse city, with employees of more than 130 nationalities and a perfect score from the Human Rights Campaign’s Municipal Equality Index, which ranks cities on how welcoming they are to the LGBTQ+ community.
6. Boise, ID
Affordability: 5/10
Diversity: N/A
Job market: 10/10
Safety: 8/10
Wellness: 7/10
Highlights: Boise River Greenbelt, Discovery Center of Idaho, Capital City Public Market
Boise welcomed lots of new residents throughout the pandemic, but the city didn’t just start becoming desirable in the last couple of years. It’s always offered a high quality of life, with more than 200 sunny days each year and the backdrop of the scenic Boise Mountains. Micron, HP and Albertsons are a few of the major employers in the area, and Boise is fast becoming a talked-about destination for start-ups and tech companies. One challenge the city faces: Its promise of “low cost of living” is quickly fading, as demand continues to fuel a shortage of options for homebuyers.
7. Providence, RI
Affordability: 7/10
Diversity: N/A
Job market: 7/10
Safety: 7/10
Wellness: 8/10
Highlights: Museum of Natural History and Planetarium, Providence Performing Arts Center, Narragansett Beach
As gas prices continue to rise, you might just want to drive to Providence and forget your keys: The city has the highest walkability score of the destinations on our list this year. In addition to saving money on gas, you might save on a home, too. The median home price in Providence as of November 2021 stood below the national average, at $345,000, according to Redfin. In the high-priced Northeast (the median home price in Boston is more than double what it is here), Providence is a gem. This small-state city is poised to become an even bigger draw if plans for a new downtown riverwalk become reality.
8. Minneapolis, MN
Affordability: 6/10
Diversity: 7/10
Job market: 9/10
Safety: 4/10
Wellness: 9/10
Highlights: The Mall of America, Minnehaha Falls, Nickelodeon Universe
Don’t let frigid temperatures scare you off: Minneapolis in summer can more than make up for your willingness to brave the winter cold. The city ranks third on the Trust for Public Land’s ParkScore list, which identifies the top U.S. destinations for convenient access to green space. The No. 2 city on the list? St. Paul, which also puts you in proximity to the more than 1,000 healthcare companies in the region. No matter where you wind up living in the Twin Cities, you might choose to explore the area without a car, as Minneapolis has the highest bike score of the cities on our list this year.
9. Cincinnati, OH
Affordability: 9/10
Diversity: 4/10
Job market: 8/10
Safety: 6/10
Wellness: 8/10
Highlights: Coney Island Park, Skyline Chili, Cincinnati Bengals football games
With a median home price of $220,000 (as of November 2021 Redfin reporting) and one of the top wellness rankings on our list, there’s a lot to like about Cincinnati. There are also a lot of employers to choose from if you’re thinking about a new job: P&G, Fifth Third Bank and Kroger are all headquartered here. With Xavier University, Miami University and the University of Cincinnati, the city also buzzes with a youthful academic energy. It isn’t on one of the coasts, but it still boasts waterfront real estate along the Ohio River. Plus, with major MLB and NFL franchises in town, you’ll have reasons to cheer all year long.
10. Jacksonville, FL
Affordability: 8/10
Diversity: 6/10
Job market: 8/10
Safety: 5/10
Wellness: 8/10
Highlights: Little Talbot Island State Park, Timucuan Ecological and Historic Preserve, Jacksonville Jaguars football games
Fidelity Investments, Aetna, Johnson & Johnson and Mayo Clinic are a few of the brands that make up the thriving business community in Jacksonville. That community is faring relatively well, too, as the city’s unemployment is at a low 3.3 percent (as of November 2021). This is a city steeped in nature, with more than 80,000 acres of marshes, wetlands and woods. This is also one of the best cities on our list for your wallet, with a lower cost of living and a median home price of $275,000 as of November 2021, according to Redfin. In recent years, new housing developments have helped offer the influx of residents additional options, and there are big plans in the works for the city’s future, including a $1.1 billion proposal to reshape the downtown riverfront.
11. Columbus, OH
Affordability: 8/10
Diversity: 5/10
Job market: 8/10
Safety: 6/10
Wellness: 7/10
Highlights: Ohio State sporting events, the original Jeni’s Splendid Ice Cream, the North Market
If you look up in Columbus, chances are you’ll see a construction crane or a brand-new building: The capital of Ohio has been on a tear in development to welcome everyone who’s decided to relocate here. Those new arrivals are coming for more than Ohio State football (although that’s a big part of life); they’re finding job opportunities in computing, biomedical services, finance and e-commerce, as well as proximity to the Scioto Mile, a 175-acre, eight-park network connecting downtown Columbus to the Scioto River, and attracting bikers, kayakers and paddle boarders.
12. Kansas City, MO
Affordability: 8/10
Diversity: 5/10
Job market: 8/10
Safety: 5/10
Wellness: 7/10
Highlights: The National WWI Museum and Memorial, Country Club Plaza, Kemper Museum of Contemporary Art
Living in Kansas City means saving with some very affordable housing costs. In fact, rent on a one-bedroom here actually declined by 4 percent in the last year, according to rental site Zumper. That doesn’t mean sacrificing the perks of a big city, however. The Royals and the Chiefs each hoisted championship trophies in recent years, and Kansas City’s jazz circuit — with more than 40 nightclubs — offers opportunities to enjoy the soul of the city. If you aren’t working from home, you’re in luck: KC is home to many leading companies, including Garmin, H&R Block and Hallmark, and the city’s unemployment rate is under 3 percent (as of November 2021).