Best Places to Live

Money's list of America's best small cities

States

Top 100
Rank	City	Population
8	Columbia	97,500
8	Ellicott City	61,200
29	Gaithersburg	57,900
81	Germantown	59,600
66	Rockville	59,100

Other cities
Rank	City	Population
	Annapolis	36,400
	Arbutus	20,600
	Arnold	24,100
	Aspen Hill	53,600
	Baltimore	631,300
	Bel Air North	29,500
	Bel Air South	46,200
	Bethesda	59,000
	Bowie	53,300
	Calverton	19,600
	Carney	34,700
	Catonsville	41,000
	Clinton	27,900
	Colesville	21,200
	College Park	27,400
	Crofton	20,600
	Dundalk	63,700
	Eldersburg	31,500
	Elkridge	24,600
	Fairland	22,400
	Fort Washington	24,800
	Frederick	58,800
	Greater Upper Marlboro	22,600
	Greenbelt	21,900
	Laurel	21,900
	Lochearn	25,800
	Montgomery Village	40,500
	North Bethesda	40,800
	North Laurel	23,000
	North Potomac	24,300
	Odenton	24,100
	Olney	33,000
	Owings Mills	22,900
	Oxon Hill-Glassmanor	36,200
	Perry Hall	31,200
	Pikesville	30,300
	Potomac	46,600
	Randallstown	32,800
	Reisterstown	24,200
	Severn	39,700
	Severna Park	29,600
	Silver Spring	81,100
	South Gate	29,500
	South Laurel	21,600
	St. Charles	38,900
	Towson	53,300
	Waldorf	26,200
	Wheaton-Glenmont	60,500
	White Oak	21,600
	Woodlawn	37,200

From the August 2008 issue

Best Places Winners

Show: Maryland | Top 10 | All 100

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State

Video

Why Plymouth is No. 1

A sense of home, parks and award-winning schools help put this Minnesota city at the top of Money's Best Places to Live list. Watch
Why Fort Collins is a natural pick

Green-minded residents love this Colorado city, no. 2 on Money's Best Places to Live list, where you can borrow a bike, and enjoy the nearby mountains. Watch
Naperville's family feel

Great schools, a vibrant downtown and low crime help put this small city near Chicago at No. 3 on Money's Best Places to Live list. Watch
Hoboken's great singles scene

For the second year running, Hoboken takes the top spot for the over 30 and single scene, as part of Money's Best Places to Live. Watch
Where to beat the gas crunch

In places like State College, Pa., commutes are short or many residents get to work in ways that dont use a lot of fuel. Watch

Top 3

City	Median income
New Canaan, CT	$231,138
Darien, CT	$218,130
Lake Forest, IL	$212,122

See the rest

City	% single
Hoboken, NJ	57.7%
Cambridge, MA	52.4%
Somerville, MA	51.4%

See the rest

City	Median home price
Nicholasville, KY	$70,000
Watauga, TX	$117,040
Redan, GA	$115,000

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How we picked the Best Places

Using statistics from data provider Onboard Informatics and consultant Bert Sperling of BestPlaces.net, we crunched the numbers in order to zero in on America's best small cities for families. (Last year, we looked at small towns, with populations between 7,500 and 50,000.) More