Austin is the best place to live in the country: U.S. News

We’re not huge fans of these “Best City” lists, especially in some of their more ridiculous permutations (“Best Cities for Millennials Who Own Labradoodles” anyone? Okay, we made that one up, but you get idea).

However, since we got wind of of this one From the Desk of Austin Mayor Steve Adler, and since it’s by a reasonably reputable news organization, we are going to make an exception and fill you in on it.

For the second year in a row, U.S. News ranked Austin No. 1 in its annual list of the country’s Best Places to Live. According to a Tuesday press release, rankings were determined partly by a public survey of thousands of people across the United States to determine what they consider important in a home town. “The methodology also factors in data from the United States Census Bureau, the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Bureau of Labor Statistics, as well as U.S. News rankings of the Best High Schools and Best Hospitals,” according to the release.

According to the publication’s article, it then ranked the country’s 125 largest metropolitan areas “based on affordability, job prospects and quality of life.” The description of Austin focuses on its “music, outdoor spaces and cultural institutions,” although it mentions that (surprise!) musicians might find it difficult to afford living here and name-checks Fun Fun Fun Fest, which, under new ownership, likely doesn’t exist anymore and has been replaced by Sound on Sound, which doesn’t take place in Austin. Nice try, though.

Based on five factors highlighted in the study’s methodology—desirability, value, job market, quality of life, and net migration, Austin scored an overall 7.7 out of 10.

The top 10 list is below, and the full list is on the U.S. News site.

1. Austin, TX

2. Colorado Springs, CO

3. Denver, CO

4. Des Moines, IA

5. Fayetteville, AR

6. Portland, OR

7. Huntsville, AL

8. Washington, DC

9. Minneapolis, MN

10. Seattle, WAS

For his part, Adler issued a statement that “we’ve known Austin to be the best place to live in America long before we started getting on any of these lists” and acknowledged that “we’ll be a truly special place when we become the first boomtown to crack the code on managing rapid growth to preserve what made the city special to begin with.” Let’s hope so—we’d hate to be usurped by Des Moines.