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Ranked · Best value · United States

Best value cities in the US

Cities of 25,000+ residents, scored with the “Best value” weighting the live tool uses, heaviest on cost of living index, median home price, 2-bedroom rent, median household income. Scores are relative to this set; open the tool to change the weights and re-rank.

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Top 10 · computed ranking

  1. 1.Sioux Falls, SD201k residents

    79/100

    cost of living index: 85 · median home price: $292,400 · median household income: $75,970

  2. 2.El Paso, TX680k residents

    74/100

    cost of living index: 82 · median home price: $184,500 · median household income: $59,745

  3. 3.Laredo, TX258k residents

    74/100

    cost of living index: 82 · median home price: $193,500 · median household income: $63,915

  4. 4.Amarillo, TX202k residents

    74/100

    cost of living index: 83 · median home price: $196,900 · median household income: $65,912

  5. 5.Brownsville, TX189k residents

    74/100

    cost of living index: 78 · median home price: $139,900 · median household income: $52,130

  6. 6.McAllen, TX145k residents

    74/100

    cost of living index: 83 · median home price: $190,400 · median household income: $61,579

  7. 7.Lincoln, NE295k residents

    73/100

    cost of living index: 84 · median home price: $264,000 · median household income: $71,867

  8. 8.Lubbock, TX265k residents

    73/100

    cost of living index: 85 · median home price: $212,400 · median household income: $60,895

  9. 9.Clarksville, TN176k residents

    73/100

    cost of living index: 86 · median home price: $263,600 · median household income: $69,303

  10. 10.Killeen, TX158k residents

    73/100

    cost of living index: 84 · median home price: $215,400 · median household income: $60,977

Methodology: each city is scored 0–100 by min–max normalizing every weighted facet across this candidate set (direction-aware), identical math to the tool's “Best fit” tab. A different weighting produces a different order, which is the point: this is a starting shortlist, not a verdict.

Questions & answers
Which city is the best value in the US?
Sioux Falls, SD ranks first with a fit score of 79/100, followed by El Paso (74) and Laredo (74), using the "Best value" weighting.
How is this ranking calculated?
Each of the 10 candidate cities (25,000+ residents) is scored 0 to 100 by min-max normalizing the weighted facets, heaviest on cost of living index, median home price, 2-bedroom rent, median household income, across this set. Change the weights in the live tool and the order changes with them.