Chicago suburb named best city to live in America for third straight year

NAPERVILLE, Ill. - A west suburb of Chicago has once again been named the best city to live in America, marking its third consecutive year at the top of Niche’s annual rankings.

Local perspective:

Niche’s 2026 Best Places to Live in America report ranks Naperville, Illinois, as the No. 1 city in the country among communities with populations over 100,000. The suburb continues to score highly in categories such as school quality, job opportunities and overall livability.

Another Chicago suburb, Clarendon Hills, also made the list, ranking No. 5 among the best places to live nationwide. That category includes smaller communities like neighborhoods, suburbs and towns.

What they're saying:

"People are increasingly looking for neighborhoods that offer both access to diverse career opportunities and a strong sense of community," Allison Shrivastava, an economist at Niche, said in a press release. "These smaller, walkable communities provide the mix of amenities and livability that families and young professionals both value."

Big picture view:

While Illinois continues to stand out at the top of the list, California led the nation with 16 cities in the top 100, followed by Texas with 14.

States like North Carolina, Florida and Colorado are also seeing growth as more people relocate.

Dig deeper:

To create its rankings, Niche looked at more than 230 cities and 18,000 places across the country, using millions of resident reviews and data from sources like the U.S. Census Bureau, Bureau of Labor Statistics and the CDC.

The analysis took into account factors such as safety, diversity, walkability, housing market health and school performance.

What you can do:

To search for your community and explore rankings, visit Niche’s website.