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Rankings

Greater Des Moines (DSM) is experiencing a wave of momentum. National publications are recognizing that momentum in the form of top rankings.

Most Recent DSM USA Rankings

#1 Best Place to Live in Iowa for Young Adults — SoFi, 2025
#3 Most Affordable City to Live in the U.S. — Extra Space Storage, 2025
#3 Best Mid-Sized City in the U.S. — Extra Space Storage, 2025
#5 Best Cultural Festival (World Food & Music Festival) — USA TODAY, 2025
#3 Most Livable City in the U.S. — Reader's Digest, 2025 
#1 Metro for Gen Z Homebuyers — Core Logic, 2025
#3 Most Livable City in the U.S. — Visual Capitalist, 2025 
Top 10 Mid-Sized Metro for Best Business Climate — Business Facilities Magazine, 2024
#3 Most Livable Metro — RentCafe, 2024 & Des Moines Register 
#10 Best Place for Business and Careers — Forbes, 2024
#8 Best City for Financial Independence — chooseFi, 2024
#8 Most Affordable U.S. Metro Area — Clever Real Estate, 2024
#4 Most Neighborly City in America — Neighbor.com, 2024
#7 Safest City to Live in the U.S. — U.S. News & World Report, 2024
#10 Best Metro for Millennials — CommercialCafe, 2024
Top 10 Cleanest City in America — Lawnstarter, 2024
Top 20 Best Place to Start a Small Business in a High-Growth Sector —The Credit Review, 2024
#2 Best Place for Young Professionals — Forbes, 2024
#6 Fastest-Growing Hiring Market for New College Graduates —CNBC, 2024
Top 10 Best City for Work/Life Balance and Mental Health — CoworkingCafe, 2024
#4 Best U.S. City for Young Adults — Homebuyer.com, 2024
#8 Top Place to Start a Small Business — LendingTree, 2023
#6 Best Place to Live for Families — U.S. News & World Report, 2023
Top 20 Most Neighborly City in the U.S. — Neighbor, 2023
Top 25 Up-and-Coming Tech Market  — CBRE, 2023 
Top 10 Fastest-Growing Mid-Sized Metro — Site Selection Group, 2023
Top Five Small City for Young Graduates — Pheabs, 2023
Top 12 Best Mid-Size City in the U.S. — Extra Space Storage, 2023
#3 Best Market for Recent College Graduates — Zillow, 2023 
# 1 Best Midsized Metros for Millennials  — CommercialCafe, 2023
#7 Lowest Cost of Living in the U.S. — Apartment List, 2023
Top 10 City for a Minimalist Lifestyle — RentCafe, 2023
#9 Top Metro for Number Economic Development Projects (among metros with a population of 200,000 to 1 million) — Site Selection Magazine, 2023 
#4 Most Arts-Vibrant Mid-Sized Community — SMU DataArts, 2022 
Top 10 Most Neighborly City in America — Neighbor Blog, 2022
Top 10 Best Affordable City for Gen Z Renters — GoBankingRates, 2022 
Top 25 Up-and-Coming Tech Market — CBRE, 2022 
Top 20 Tech City for IT Jobs — CompTIA, 2022 
One of Five Cool Places in America Where You Can Still Buy a Home for Less Than $200,000 — MarketWatch, 2022 
Top 10 Best State Capital to Live In — SmartAsset, 2022 
#7 Most Affordable Housing Market — GoodHire, 2022
#6 Top Metro for Number Economic Development Projects (among metros with a population of 200,000 to 1 million) — Site Selection Magazine, 2022
Top 10 Place Where It’s Easiest to Save for Your First Home — Money, 2022
One of 50 Cities Worth Exploring in 2022 — Travel Pulse, 2022
Best Mid-Size Town in the Midwest — Midwest Living, 2022