SoCal Among Country's Best Places To Live, According To New U.S. News Ranking

LOS ANGELES, CA — The multi-county Los Angeles metro area is among the 2023-2024 Best Places to Live in the country, according to a ranking released Tuesday by U.S. News and World Report. It's one of four areas in Southern California that made the cut.

The new list evaluates the 150 largest U.S. metropolitan areas based on value, competitiveness of the job market and quality of life.

The Los Angeles metro area, which includes Orange County and the Inland Empire, ranked toward the bottom of the list, coming in at 139th. That's down 11 positions compared to last year's ranking. The high cost of housing is one of the reasons for the region's low ranking. The cost of housing in Southern California was ranked among the country's worst values.

Bakersfield came in second to last, at 149th, down two positions from last year.

The two other Southern California metros saw their rankings increase compared to last year. San Diego, at 93rd, is up 14 positions. Santa Barbara, at 124th, is up two positions.

The other California metro areas ranked by U.S. News are San Jose (No. 13), San Francisco (No. 45), Santa Rosa (No. 125), Sacramento (No. 127), Vallejo & Fairfield (No. 142), Salinas (No. 143), Modesto (No. 145), Fresno (No. 146), Visalia (No. 147) and Stockton (No. 148).

For the first time this year, U.S. News added methodology to measure a place’s strengths and weaknesses. The desirability index takes into consideration the number of days a year the temperature remains between 33 and 89 degrees Fahrenheit. It also measures an establishment-to-population ratio, which assesses the number of restaurants, bars and activities per 1,000 people.

Also this year, U.S. News moved its net migration category to the desirability index. The value index, which previously focused only on housing affordability, now includes price parity — a U.S. Census data point on the general cost of goods within an area.

“This year’s rankings are a reflection of the current economic, social and natural factors that impact a place’s livability for its residents,” Devon Thorsby, real estate editor at U.S. News, said in a news release.

“People are considering more than housing when they look at an area’s affordability — they want to know how much goods cost in that area,” Thorsby said. “The ever-present risk for severe weather and a community’s ability to recover — coupled with the area’s opportunities for social activities — are also taken into account when evaluating a best place to live.”

This year, Green Bay, Wisconsin, moved up two positions in the ranking to No. 1, due to its strong value and quality of life scores. Huntsville, Alabama, moved down to No. 2. At No.8, Charlotte, North Carolina, moved up 20 spots, and No. 6 Naples, Florida, re-entered the Top 10 after falling off last year.

Some places saw double-digit drops and fell out of the top 50. Dallas-Fort Worth, Texas, fell a steep 81 spots this year, coming in at 113 from 32, with lower scores across the index.

Seattle, Washington, saw an increase in its job market score, but declines in its quality of life, desirability and value scores resulted in a 45-spot drop in this year's ranking. Consequently, Seattle came in at No. 81, down from No. 36 last year. Kalamazoo, Michigan, saw a sharp drop, falling 40 spots from No. 50 to No. 90. While it only slightly decreased in value, it scored on the moderate/lower end of desirability and job market.

U.S. News based its ranking on data from the National Weather Service, Federal Emergency Management Agency, the Census Bureau, the FBI, the Labor Bureau, Sharecare, and its own rankings on the nation’s best high schools and best hospitals.