Chicagoland is home to one of the top 10 best cities to live, according to a new report.
Naperville earned the No. 2 spot on Niche’s 2018 list of Best Cities to Live in America. Surpassed only by Ann Arbor, Michigan, Naperville ranks as the second-best city to live in 2018 and the best city to raise a family.
Niche generates several annual lists, such as Best Cities to Live in America and Cities with the Best Public Schools in America. Rankings are based on data from the U.S. Census Bureau, the FBI, the Bureau of Labor Statistics and Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
For its list of Best Cities to Live in America, Niche analyzed 228 cities and more than 15,000 towns, assessing the overall quality of an area. Leading components that factored into a city’s overall score include location, crime rates, housing trends, employment statistics and access to amenities.
Reviews by residents in a given city were also taken into consideration.
Naperville’s overall grade was an A+, with individual grades for the following categories:
- Public schools: A+
- Health and fitness: A+
- Outdoor activities: A
- Diversity: A
- Housing: A-
- Jobs: A-
- Commute: B+
- Nightlife: B+
- Crime and safety: B+
- Weather: C+
- Cost of living: C+
The top 10 cities on Niche’s Best Cities to Live list include:
| Rank | City |
| 1 | Ann Arbor, MI |
| 2 | Naperville, IL |
| 3 | Berkeley, CA |
| 4 | Plano, TX |
| 5 | Arlington, VA |
| 6 | Cambridge, MA |
| 7 | The Woodlands, TX |
| 8 | Overland Park, KS |
| 9 | Richardson, TX |
| 10 | Irvine, CA |