4 Montana Cities Are ‘Best’ (Just Ignore Expensive Homes)
It's probably no surprise that these four Montana communities just made the latest "Best Small Cities to Live In" list for 2024.
They have it all, from good schools to quality of life and overall economic health.
Please ignore the scores for "affordable housing" as you read.
Where are Montana's "Best Small Cities to Live In?"
Every year, the number crunchers at WalletHub release a list of the "Best Small Cities to Live In", and usually a few of our Montana cities made the list.
And why not, considering the number of people who wanted to move here after the pandemic?
This year, Bozeman leads the pack, scoring in the 99th percentile while all the scores are totaled for a 69.18, good enough for #9 on the Top 10 list, the best finish of any small city in the West.
Helena was in the 72nd percentile, with a score of 61.37. Missoula was in the 71st percentile with a score of of 61.29, which is really good considering over 1300 cities were analyzed.
Great Falls was back in the pack, scoring 57.18, landing in the 45th percentile.
RELATED: Some Good Montana Housing News for a Change
Diving deeper into the numbers
Bozeman is booming, proof of its 10th-place ranking for "economic health". Quality of life was 39th. Missoula was 56th in that category, getting hit on "safety" after finishing #1152 on the list. Helena didn't stand out in any single category but had middle-of-the-pack scores for economic health, and education.
The rankings flip if you insist on "affordability"
Okay, you had to ask. Where did the four stand regarding "affordability" for things like housing and the cost of living?
Great Falls was the winner among Montana cities here, ranking 499th on the entire list. Helena was #688.
Having a hard time making Missoula ends meet? No wonder, the Garden City is 968th.
And Bozeman might have been beaming in all but this category, finishing a dismal 1139 of the 1300-plus cities on "affordability." In fact, it is the only small city in the Top 20 with a four-digit finish.
Montana Town Names That Celebrate How Big and Awesome It Is
Gallery Credit: Ashley