CHARLOTTE, N.C. — A new study from U.S. News & World Report ranks Charlotte fifth out of 150 major cities for the best place to live in the United States.
The 2024-2025 Best Places to Live rankings measure a variety of indicators, including value, job market, quality of life and desirability. Charlotte's overall score in the ranking is 6.8 out of 10 for these indicators.
"Although its economy and rapid development make Charlotte a thoroughly 21st-century metro area, Southern charm is still very much alive, and making friends with neighbors isn’t the Sisyphean task it can be in other large cities," the report states.
Charlotte's strong "economic identity," diversity and cleanliness are features that the study points out as contributing to the city's rapid growth and high ranking.
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Although the real estate market has recently appreciated, the median home price in Charlotte is $359,446, offering "relative affordability" to the city's residents. Rent prices are also within the range of the national average.
As for the other rankings, Naples, Florida came in first place, followed by Boise, Idaho and Colorado Springs, Colorado.
Greenville, South Carolina, is ranked fourth and Raleigh, North Carolina is just behind Charlotte, in sixth place.