Atlanta, Charlotte, Raleigh and Nashville named in the Top 100 Cities in the Resonance / Ipsos “World’s Best Cities” 2024 Report
By Mark A. Leon
Resonance and Ipsos have released their annual survey of the World’s Best Cities. These are the top 100 best of the best in the world. There are a number of key metrics in the methodology, but ultimately, the cities are ranked by 3 major buckets, livability, lovability and prosperity. This year, 4 of our Southeasts most beloved cities made the Top 100: Atlanta, Raleigh, Atlanta and Nashville. Read below on why each was selected and click the link below for the full downloadable report.
Other notable U.S. states that ranked high include: #3 New York City, New York, #12 San Francisco, California, #14 Los Angeles, California, #17 Chicago, Illinois, #19 Seattle, Washington, #21 Boston, Massachusetts, #23 Miami, Florida, #29 Las Vegas, Nevada.
#31 – Atlanta, Georgia
Ambitious and dripping with history, ATL is creating its future mid-flight.
- POPULATION: METRO: 6,095,000
- HIGHLIGHTED RANKINGS: #8 Convention Center / #10 Airport Connectivity
Long a progressive beacon in Georgia, Atlanta and its rich legacy of American civil rights—the city is the birthplace of Martin Luther King Jr.—is pulling in talent, with almost a quarter of a million relocating here over the past two years. Even more are mulling their options—attracted by the city’s #17 spot in our Price-to-Income Ratio subcategory and some of the highest new-grad salaries in the U.S. Good thing the city—ranking #18 on the planet for Fortune 500 companies and #27 for Business Ecosystem—is planning for the influx.
Bold new projects pepper downtown, like the 50-acre Gulch redevelopment called Centennial Yards, featuring 12 million square feet of residential, retail and office space and 1,500 hotel rooms. Just east, along Peachtree, Mitchell and Broad streets, as well as Martin Luther King Jr. Drive, dozens of historic buildings are being revived with a focus on public spaces and walkability. Even Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport (from which 80% of the U.S. population resides within a two-hour flight) is renovating, despite already ranking #10 on the planet in our Airport Connectivity subcategory. Its ATLNext project is pumping US$6 billion into modernization.
#64 – Nashville, Tennessee
The hospitality and revelry that defined Nashville for decades has finally returned.
- POPULATION: METRO: 1,991,000
- HIGHLIGHTED RANKINGS: #22 Culture / #28 Unemployment Rate
The home base for artists like Jack White, Kings of Leon and the Black Keys (and holding an impressive #53 spot in our Nightlife subcategory), Nashville is firing on all cylinders with events like the CMA Fest and Bonnaroo, as well as new shows and attractions. The buzziest is the duet between the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and the historic Ryman Auditorium that created the Rock Hall at the Ryman exhibit celebrating one of America’s most revered stages, with stories about Elvis Presley, James Brown, Dolly Parton, the Foo Fighters and dozens more. The four-year-old National Museum of African American Music—a vital center to educate the world, preserve a legacy and celebrate African Americans in creating the American soundtrack—is yet another reason why Nashville ranks #22 for Culture. Massive developments like the new home of the Nashville SC Major League Soccer team in Wedgewood-Houston—a 30,500-seat soccer-only facility—join the city-building ambition behind the opening of more than a dozen hotels over the next two years and a major expansion of the city’s airport. Nashville is also a health-care innovation hub, home to more than 500 companies, including 17 publicly listed ones—a major reason why Oracle left Austin for Nashville in 2024 after only four years in the Texas city.
#79 – Charlotte, North Carolina
Affluent, easy to love and bursting with southern charm.
- POPULATION: METRO: 2,669,000
- HIGHLIGHTED RANKINGS: #24 Fortune 500 / #24 Airport Connectivity
America’s Old South is up to new tricks in Charlotte, a global banking powerhouse (the second-most important in the U.S. after New York) and ranked #24 globally in our Fortune 500 subcategory. All that productivity comes with relative housing affordability, and combined with a Top 25 globally connected airport, it’s no wonder the city finished #60 in our overall Prosperity index. Charlotte is building on the good thing it has going: the already walkable downtown recently extended its east-to-west hybrid streetcar system that runs an impressive four miles over 17 stops. The city is continuing to invest in massive projects like the medical school campus and an innovation district called The Pearl—26 acres in Midtown that will help position Charlotte as a destination for research and innovation and create thousands of jobs this decade alone. But with 1,000 apartments, a hotel, restaurants and bars, the project will be a destination, too. As will a former Sears department store that reopened in 2022 as the Visual and Performing Arts Center, a new home to dozens of galleries, studios, theaters and classrooms.
#95 – Raleigh, North Carolina
A booming economy and a global intellect position this Carolina powerhouse for the future.
- POPULATION: METRO: 1,421,000
- HIGHLIGHTED RANKINGS: #6 Educational Attainment / #15 Google Trends
Raleigh, the City of Oaks, is part of North Carolina’s Research Triangle, one of America’s largest and most successful research parks—think high- tech and biotech, along with advanced textile development. The city also boasts three major research universities, which supply a pipeline of young, cheap and brilliant talent that ranks Raleigh #6 for Educational Attainment globally. Is it any wonder, then, that Apple recently announced plans for a $1-billion, 281-acre Raleigh campus with up to 3,000 employees for later this decade? New arrivals are increasingly drawn to the city for its affordable housing (although ascendant with a median average now of $434,741, according to Point2), and Raleigh currently ranks #75 in our Price-to- Income Ratio subcategory. With all the potential residents pouring into town to try before they buy, exciting hotel openings are plentiful, from long- stay-focused Tempo by Hilton Raleigh Downtown to the new Kimpton opening in late 2025. Placemaking matters here, too. The one-acre North Carolina Freedom Park just opened in the heart of downtown, honoring the African American struggle for liberty. Raleigh’s already improving Tree Cover ranking (#50) will keep climbing as a result.
Stay connected and subscribe to Charleston Daily.
Charleston Daily
Charleston Daily is a concept in community. Its mission is to promote, assist, and celebrate in everything Charleston, South Carolina. By partnering with businesses, community leaders, volunteers and events, we are spreading the love that is Charleston. As this city continues to grow and prosper, we want to help spread the message to all about how wonderful this community is. Charleston is about the people, community, water, land, history, heritage and the true southern warmth it brings with each and every day.