Ranking Among the Best

Cedar Rapids ranked the #1 Best Place in America for Children five years in a row (2015 - 2019) and remains in the top three for 2020

Cedar Rapids has consistently ranked as a top place in the country to raise children in an annual study conducted by SmartAsset.com. They compared the 200 largest U.S. metro areas across several metrics, including percentage of the population who are children, housing costs as a percentage of income, concentration of children’s entertainment establishments, high school graduation rate, daily average air pollution, child poverty rate, percentage of children without health insurance, and violent crime rate. In 2020, Cedar Rapids took the number three spot, ranking well across all categories, including high marks for low housing costs as a percentage of income, and low percentages of children without health insurance.

Cedar Rapids ranks 14th Best Run City in America in 2020

Managing the City of Cedar Rapids efficiently and effectively is a top priority of Cedar Rapids city leaders. Our residents deserve the best possible services and amenities, while also ensuring financial stability. But it can be difficult to know how your city compares to others, especially if you have been here for several years. This study by WalletHub helps make this assessment by comparing the operating efficiency of 150 of the largest U.S. cities to reveal which among them are managed best. The data determines how well city officials manage and spend public funds by comparing the quality of services residents receive against the city’s total budget. The “Quality of Services” score is made up of 38 metrics grouped into six service categories, which is then measured against the city’s percapita budget.

Cedar Rapids is proud to be ranked among the top U.S. cities in this study for the past three years, even moving up in the rankings in 2020.

Cedar Rapids ranked the #2 Best City to Start from Scratch in 2020

Do you know someone who needs a fresh start? Cedar Rapids is one of the best places in the country to start over, according to a study by Zippia.com. Whether you are already here or looking to move to a new place, Cedar Rapids offers affordability, great job prospects, and promising social opportunities — the perfect place for a fresh start.

Cedar Rapids ranks #34 of Cities with the Most Affordable Homes in the U.S. for 2020

The study found that 96 percent of homes are affordable for the average household living here. - Lendedu

2020 Most Caring City in Iowa

If you live here, you don’t need a national study to tell you Cedar Rapids residents take care of each other. But it’s still gratifying to see our city’s compassionate and helpful nature confirmed when we were officially named the most caring city in Iowa. According to the data science and research team at Insurify, Cedar Rapids has the highest share of individuals working in altruistic fields statewide, including social work, healthcare, counseling, firefighting, teaching, and more. These are citizens who devote their lives to others, making Cedar Rapids a better place to live for all of us.

Named #16 Most Livable Mid-Sized Cities 2019

- SmartAsset

Cedar Rapids made Money’s list of Top 100 Best Places to Live 2019

Cedar Rapids was named #2 on the list of the Ten Best Home Base Cities for Road Trippers

- Livability

Cedar Rapids Named #2 Most Recession-Resistant City 2020

To find the most recession-resistant cities in the U.S., financial technology company, SmartAsset, examined nine metrics across three overarching categories: employment, housing, and social assistance. Cedar Rapids ranked sixth-highest in the employment category, twelfth-highest in the housing category, and tenth-highest in the social assistance category. Cedar Rapids had top-ten rates out of all 264 cities in the study for five individual metrics across the three main categories examined: two in employment, one in housing, and two in social assistance. Cedar Rapids has the sixth-lowest unemployment rate in the study and ranks thirdbest for change in unemployment rate during the Great Recession. The study’s data showed Cedar Rapids with the third-lowest housing cost as a percentage of income, at just above 18 percent. All these and more show a positive outlook for our city’s economic position.

Cedar Rapids is #8 in the ranking of Top 10 Cities for Living the American Dream

- SmartAsset

Cedar Rapids is one of the best places to relocate

People seeking a tight-knit community centered around residents should consider Cedar Rapids, according to a 2020 Livability.com article, 6 Reasons to Leave the Big City — and Where to Live Instead.

“Cedar Rapids has made a name for itself as a place that celebrates international culture as the city is home to a large population of people who have descended from immigrants from today’s Czech and Slovak Republics and also is home to America’s first mosque, the Mother Mosque of America. In normal times, McGrath Amphitheatre and Veterans Memorial Stadium bring residents together for festivals and concerts.” (Livability.com, 2020)

Business Insider named Cedar Rapids #16 in the Top American Cities to Live in after the Pandemic

The pandemic has caused many people to rethink how and where they want to live, work, and enjoy their time. As priorities have shifted and working remotely has become more common, many Americans are thinking about moving to less densely populated places. Business Insider recently published this ranking of the best U.S. cities to live in after the coronavirus, using several metrics, including economy, population, unemployment rate, housing affordability, education, commute time, and cost-of-living.

Cedar Rapids was named the Technology Community of the Year (Large) by the Technology Association of Iowa

Cedar Rapids was named #4 on the list of Best American Cities to Work in Tech 2019

- SmartAsset

Cedar Rapids scored a perfect 100 on the Municipal Equality Index Scorecard in 2020 for the fifth consecutive year

The Human Rights Campaign’s Municipal Equality Index (MEI) examines how inclusive municipal laws, policies, and services are for LGBTQ people who live and work there. Cities are rated based on non-discrimination laws, the municipality as an employer, municipal services, law enforcement, and the city leadership’s public position on equality. The index rated 506 cities across the United States based on 44 criteria. The full report and scorecards for cities nationwide can be found at hrc.org/mei.

Cedar Rapids ranked #13 Best City to Buy a House in America 2020

This ranking by Niche.com determined the best cities to buy a house based on home values, property taxes, ownership rates, housing costs, and real estate trends data from the U.S. Census, FBI, and other data sources.

Cedar Rapids earned a Certified 4-STAR Community designation from the STAR Communities organization for comprehensive sustainability efforts.

STAR Communities is the leading, national framework for measuring and designating community performance.

Draft concept for a future elevated 8th Avenue Bridge

Cedar Rapids was named a ‘Mini Megacity to Watch’ 2020

Construction Dive magazine featured Cedar Rapids as part of their series looking at the most up-andcoming U.S. markets for commercial construction.

Here’s what they wrote about Cedar Rapids in their feature article:

“From medical marijuana manufacturing to flood protection and infrastructure upgrades, a range of diverse projects is fueling a massive uptick in construction activity in and around Iowa’s secondlargest city.

In recent years, 125 projects valued at $1 million or more have been started or completed in Cedar Rapids, and in 2019 alone, the metro area saw $623 million in construction starts, according to Dodge Data & Analytics.”