The Best Counties to Live In

Hunterdon County, located in west-central New Jersey along the Pennsylvania border, ranks among the best places to live in part because of its healthy population. Life expectancy at birth in the county is 83.4 years, more than three years longer than the national average.

Across broad populations, higher educational attainment is tied to improved health outcomes. In Hunterdon County, 52.7% of the 25 and older population have a bachelor’s degree or higher, compared to 32.1% of adults nationwide.

Situated just north of Denver, Broomfield County, like many of the best counties to live in, is within close proximity to a major city — and it is also one of many of the best places to live located in Colorado. Colorado has one of the healthiest populations of any state, and in Broomfield, life expectancy at birth is about 83 years — four years longer than the national average.

Healthier behaviors and better health outcomes are more common in well-educated populations, and in Broomfield, 55.7% of adults have a bachelor’s degree or higher, compared to 32.1% of adults nationwide. Relative financial stability is also more common in healthier populations, and the county’s poverty rate of 5.6% is less than half the 13.4% national poverty rate.

Eagle County, Colorado, is located west of Denver in the Rocky Mountains and encompasses the Vail Ski Resort. One of the healthiest places in the United States, life expectancy at birth in the county is about 90 years — over a decade longer than the national average.

The county’s rank as one of the best to live in is also the result of the relatively small share of the population living below the poverty line. The local poverty rate of 8.0% is well below the comparable 13.4% national poverty rate.

Summit County, Utah, located in the northern part of the state along the Wyoming border, includes the resort town of Park City. A well-educated area, an estimated 55% of adults in the county have a bachelor’s degree or higher, compared to just 32.1% of the 25 and older U.S. population.

Like many parts of the country with similarly high educational attainment rates, Summit County residents are considerably less likely than most Americans to live below the poverty line. The local poverty rate of 5.6% is less than half the comparable 13.4% national poverty rate.

Alexandria is an independent city in Virginia, located just across the Potomac River from the southernmost part of Washington D.C. One of the best educated parts of the country, Alexandria has a bachelor’s degree attainment rate of 63.1% — nearly twice the national rate of 32.1%.

High educational attainment as well as access to employment opportunities in and around the nation’s capital contribute to the area’s higher than average incomes and the reduced likelihood of poverty. Most Alexandria households earn over $100,900 a year, and just 10.3% of the population live below the poverty line. Nationwide, the typical household makes $62,843 annually, and 13.4% of the population live below the poverty line.