We sourced our core cost of living data from the Council for Community and Economic Research’s Cost of Living Index (COLI). The COLI is updated quarterly, using data collected at the local level for over 60 goods and services. Learn more about
COLI research methodology.
Population data is sourced from the U.S. Census. The average salaries and housing prices were compiled from
TownCharts.
We sourced weather data from various resources, including but not limited to the
National Centers for Environmental Information and
The Weather ChannelData for each city’s average commute time was pulled from the U.S. Census,
Data USA and
MarketWatch.
We compiled hospital data from
Healthgrades, and sales tax data was sourced from the
Tax Foundation.
Various sources were used to collect culture and entertainment data, including but not limited to
The Trust for Public Land, Wikipedia,
USA Zoos,
ultimaterollercoaster.com,
Indie on the Move, and
publiclibraries.comLivability score provided by
Areavibes. The Livability Score is a score out of 100 that was designed to help evaluate the quality of an area. The score analyzes dozens of data points across seven key categories: amenities, cost of living, crime, employment, housing, schools, and user ratings.