Most of us already know that Wisconsin’s cities are great places to live, but now we have even more data to back that up.
Recently, U.S. News & World Report released its list of the “Best Places to Live for Quality of Life in the U.S. in 2023-2024,” and two Wisconsin cities ranked among the top 10. Green Bay, home of the Packers, ranked seventh, and the state’s capital, Madison, earned an impressive third.
Rankings were based on four indices, using data from sources including the U.S. Census Bureau, Federal Bureau of Investigation, U.S. Department of Labor and U.S. News’ internal resources.
Here is a summary of the factors considered in each index:
- Quality of Life Index (36%) ― crime rates per 100,000 people; quality of public education/college readiness; resident wellbeing; average commute time; quality and availability of healthcare; air quality index, and Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) National Risk Index.
- Value Index (23%) ― housing affordability determined by dividing the blended annual housing cost by the blended median annual household income for each metro area, and data on the price parity for goods, housing, utilities and other.
- Desirability Index (22%) ― desirability to live in the area; census data on people moving into and out of the area; weather temperateness, and number of restaurants and drinking establishments per 100,000 people.
- Job Market Index (19%) ― unemployment rate and average annual salary.