10 Top Small Cities in the U.S.

Nearly half of Americans prefer towns or rural areas compared to denser urban areas, according to a 2020 Gallup survey. Even those who do want to live in cities prefer smaller ones, pushing SmartAsset to analyze nearly 300 cities to identify the most livable small cities for 2021. Small cities are defined as cities with populations between 60,000 to 100,000. SmartAsset reviewed the concentration of entertainment establishments, restaurants, bars, healthcare, income inequality, affordability, and more. The midwest was found to have the most small cities on the list, with eight out of the top 10 being in this region.

Key Findings
Midwest ranks at the top. Eight out of the top 10 cities in this study are located in Midwestern states, with two in Missouri, two in Wisconsin, two in Indiana and two in Iowa. All eight of these cities rank within the top 70 (out of a total 291) for strong home affordability and within the top 60 of all cities for their low Dec. 2020 unemployment rate. The other two spots in the top 10 are claimed by cities in New York and Texas.

Unemployment tracks nationally. In December 2020, the national unemployment rate was 6.7%. That’s the exact same as the average unemployment rate in the small cities we analyzed for this survey, so living in a small city doesn’t appear to be a major factor when it comes to the availability of work. The lowest unemployment rate we found was 2.1% in Ames, Iowa.

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