Website Livability.com rolled out its fourth annual list of the Top 100 Best Places to Live in the United States. The company looked at more than 2,000 cities with populations between 20,000 and 350,000, in collaboration with Emsi and The Initiative for Creativity and Innovation in Cities at New York University's School of Professional Studies. Forty data points were used to determine rankings in economics, housing, amenities, infrastructure, demographics, social and civic capital, education and health care, according to Livability.com.
Here, CNBC.com shares the top 10 finalists, in descending order, from Livability's list.
10. Bismarck, North Dakota
"LIV" Score: 667
Population: 66,980
9. Overland Park, Kansas
"LIV" Score: 668
Population: 181,464
8. Madison, Wisconsin
"LIV" Score: 668
Population: 243,122
7. Palo Alto, California
"LIV" Score: 669
Population: 66,478
6. Bellevue, Washington
"LIV" Score: 669
Population: 134,630
5. Charlottesville, Virginia
"LIV" Score: 670
Population: 45,084
4. Olympia, Washington
"LIV" Score: 672
Population: 48,941
3. Ann Arbor, Michigan
"LIV" Score: 674
Population: 116,194
2. Iowa City, Iowa
"LIV" Score: 678
Population: 71,832
1. Rochester, Minnesota
"LIV" Score: 695
Population: 110,275
