Report: Austin falls from top 10 of 'best places to live' rankings

AUSTIN (KXAN) — According to the latest U.S. News and World Report rankings, Austin isn't nearly as good of a place to live as it was last year.

While it's still at the top of the Texas list in the rankings, Austin took a tumble in the national rankings, falling out of the top 10 to No. 13. Austin's ranking fell eight spots from No. 5 last year, and even before that it dropped two spots from No. 3 in 2020.

Austin had been in the top five of the rankings for six consecutive years until now.

U.S. News said the housing market and cost of living were the biggest reason for the drop on its list.

"The rising cost of living has taken its toll on many who would like to live in the Austin metro area, and as such it has become less desirable, as reflected in the survey asking U.S. residents where they would prefer to live," the report said.

The median home price U.S. News reports is just above $500,000 at $504,273, well above the national average of $365,000.

The report points out Austin's events like ACL Fest and SXSW and cultural vibe as positives and factored those into its rankings, along with the city's growth.

"Austin has plenty to offer, and the metro area is seeing continued long-term population growth due to net migration," the report said.

Texas rankings, according to U.S. News and World Report

Austin remains the No. 1 city in Texas in the 2022-2023 report. The Dallas-Fort Worth metroplex was ranked No. 32 with Houston and San Antonio coming in at No. 58 and No. 83 respectively.

Killeen and Beaumont were ranked just outside of the top 100 at No. 108 and No. 109.

Four other Texas cities were included in the report's top 150 — El Paso at No. 124, Corpus Christi at No. 133, Brownsville at No. 134 and McAllen at No. 138.