New ranking names Charlotte area's ‘Best Places to Live'
Tega Cay again ranked tops in the Charlotte area in Niche's ranking of the Best Places to Live for 2025. That small city located 21 miles southwest of Charlotte also placed as the best place to live in the state of South Carolina for another year.
Tega Cay received an overall A+ in the ranking, scoring top marks for public schools and being good for families. It earned an A for housing and jobs and A- in crime and safety as well as health and fitness. Its lowest grade was a B- for commute.
READ: 'The highest honor': Monroe police chief retiring after decades with department
Davidson came in at No. 2 on the list — similar to last year. That Lake Norman town made its highest marks in the good for families and jobs categories, earning an A+ in each. Davidson received an A in public schools and health and fitness and an A- in commute. Its lowest score was a B- for cost of living.
Niche released its annual set of Best Places to Live rankings last week. It covers 230 cities and 18,100 locations across the U.S., breaking out separate lists in several categories.
Niche, a research and review site, used factors such as a location's cost of living, quality of public schools, housing trends, diversity, crime rate, employment statistics, access to amenities and commute to compile the rankings. Data came from the U.S. Census Bureau, Bureau of Labor Statistics, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and its own database of resident reviews, among other sources.
See a list of the ranking's top 10 places in the Charlotte area — and their highest and lowest grades — on CBJ's website here.
WATCH | 'The highest honor': Monroe police chief retiring after decades with department
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