The Municipal Top 10: Best places to live for quality of life
Quality of life is subjective, but most people would probably measure it by indicators like good health, educational opportunities, recreational options, low crime and proximity to family and friends.
Those factors and a few others were the basis for a U.S. News and World Report index that determined the 25 Best Places to Live for Quality of Life in the U.S. in 2024.
The online magazine determined how satisfied residents in large metro areas across the country are in their current city by surveying them and figuring weighted averages in the indexes of affordability, happiness, desirability, retiree taxes, job market and health care quality.
The percentage weighting for each index was based on answers to a 2023 public survey in which people from across the country voted for what they believed was the most important factor to consider when choosing where to live.
Even though the energy and opportunities of New York City and the colleges and climate of Manchester, New Hampshire, helped them both make the list, the Top 10 Best Places to Live for Quality of Life in the U.S. in 2024 had quality of life scores that slightly outranked them.
Big-city amenities combined with historic interest, outdoor recreational opportunities and modern innovation made several of them stand out from their municipal peers.
The Top 10 Places to Live for Quality of Life in the U.S. are:
- Ann Arbor, Michigan
- Boulder, Colorado
- Madison, Wisconsin
- San Jose, California
- Portland, Maine
- Boston, Massachusets
- Green Bay, Wisconsin
- Hartford, Connecticut
- Rochester, New York
- Trenton, New Jersey
