This NJ City Is Among The Country's Best Places To Live: U.S. News

NEW JERSEY — Which New Jersey city is one of the best places to live in the United States, according to U.S. News & World Report? The same place that the publication has ranked at the nation's 20th most dangerous place and 24th most expensive place, naturally.

Trenton earned a spot as one of the nation's Best Places to Live, U.S. News & World Report said with the release of the 2022-2023 ranking Tuesday. The state capital doesn't tend to get much love on lists like these, but U.S. News & World Report claims that Trenton has earned a top spot.

The city ranks 89th in the publication's rankings, marking the Garden State's only entry on the list of 150 top places to live.

Around the nation, Huntsville, Alabama, moved up two spots to top this year’s list, knocking out Boulder, Colorado, as the best place to live in the United States. New in the Top 10 is San Jose, California, which moved up from No. 36 last year. This year, the 10 best places to live in the country are:

1. Huntsville, Alabama (No. 3 last year)
2. Colorado Springs, Colorado (No. 6 last year)
3. Green Bay, Wisconsin (No. 21 last year)
4. Boulder, Colorado (No. 1 last year)
5. San Jose, California (No. 36 last year)
6. Raleigh-Durham, North Carolina (No. 2 last year)
7. Fayetteville, Arkansas (No. 4 last year)
8. Portland, Maine (No. 8 last year)
9. Sarasota, Florida (No. 9 last year)
10. San Francisco, California (No. 15 last year)

The new list ranks the nation's 150 most populous metropolitan areas based on affordability, desirability and quality of life. This year, U.S. News also added air quality as a factor, as Americans increasingly consider environmental factors before making a major move.

"Much of the shakeup we see at the top of this year’s ranking is a result of changing
preferences," said Devon Thorsby, real estate editor at U.S. News. "People moving
across the country today are putting more emphasis on affordability and quality of
life than on the job market, which in many ways takes a back seat as remote work
options have become more standard."

The methodology factors in the job market, value, quality of life, desirability and net migration ratings. Any true determination of "best places to live" is subjective and should factor in how residents feel about their city of town.

A major reason why Trenton stands alone on the list is that U.S. News & World Report only considers the 150 most populous metropolitan areas in the country. The Garden State has larger metro areas than Trenton — a city of about 90,000. But the U.S. Census Bureau groups them with cities in other states.

For instance, New York's metropolitan area includes Newark and Jersey City, while Philadelphia's also has Camden. (For what it's worth, Philadelphia and New York City rank 99th and 120th on the U.S. list, respectively.)

But U.S. News & World Report touts Trenton for several reasons: "The diverse, scenic Trenton metro area mixes the old and new," the website says. "With a history that predates the founding of the U.S., New Jersey’s capital city was the location of Revolutionary War battles and is home to a number of museums. Yet, it still has a variety of modern attractions and entertainment, and its proximity to the Delaware River means locals can participate in aquatic sports and enjoy an assortment of wildlife."