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The Dirty Little Secret Behind America’s ‘Best Cities’

The Dirty Little Secret Behind America’s ‘Best Cities’

Newly released 2020 Census data give us a better sense of where Americans think the best places to live are. Cities such as Phoenix, Dallas, Houston and Las Vegas continue to be popular, maintaining the strong population growth that’s defined them for the last half-century. Others, such as Buffalo and Cincinnati, have reversed decades-long declines in population, leading to proud claims of urban revival. Still more, such as Detroit and St. Louis, continued to lose people as they have for the last 70 years.

What’s also clear from the data, though, is that population growth may no longer be the best way to measure the health of U.S. cities. What look like the “best places to live” may not, in fact, be the best places to live. 

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Jessica Karl is a social media editor for Bloomberg Opinion. She previously interned for CNN Opinion and Nylon magazine.

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