Most Livable Midsize Cities

Midsize cities have a lot to offer homebuyers looking for urban amenities and greater affordability than can be found in the biggest U.S. cities. A new ranking finds the most livable midsize cities in the nation.

The Denver metro had three cities in the top 10, with low unemployment coupled with high potential earnings, though the Denver area has high and rising cost of living. Though, Olathe, Kan., and Rochester, Minn., tied for first place. Olathe has a low poverty rate, the third lowest in the SmartAsset study, and low economic inequality. Rochester has low uninsured and unemployment rates, and the average commute time for residents is 16 minutes.

To rank the best midsize cities in America, we excluded the largest 100 cities in the country, and looked at data for the rest of the cities with populations above 100,000. In total, we examined data on 173 cities. We compared them across eight metrics. Specifically, we looked at the change in median home values, monthly housing costs, income inequality, poverty rate, median household income, unemployment rate, uninsured rate, and average commute time. 

Read more