The Milken Institute’s Best-Performing Cities index tracks the economic performance of approximately 400 US metropolitan statistical areas (MSA). It uses an outcomes-based set of metrics—including job creation, wage gains, and high-tech GDP growth—to evaluate the performance of these cities relative to one another.

Cities drive economic growth nationwide. They are the primary locations where businesses create new jobs and workers earn higher wages, keeping the United States competitive in the global economy. However, metro areas are also incredibly diverse. Each has unique characteristics generated through a combination of investment and policy choices that influence the community’s economic outcomes.

Read the Best Performing Cities 2021 Executive Summary.

Find Your City

Tier 1 Large and Small Metros Concentrated in Several Regions
Metropolitan Statistical Areas (MSAs) and Metropolitan Divisions by 2021 Rank