5 North Carolina Cities Ranked As The Most Livable But It’s Not The Ones You’d Expect
There are so many wonderful places to call home in North Carolina. From major cities like Charlotte and Raleigh. To the Triad, Asheville, Wilmington, and everything in between. Want to live in a small town or a suburb? There is one close enough to the city amenities you need but with that small-town feel you love. So I pretty much assumed when I came across a list of the best places to live in the country that somewhere in NC had to be on the list right? Right, five North Carolina cities were included on the list which rated the most livable cities. Can you guess which ones it was? Perhaps not the ones you expect. And by that, I mean that both Charlotte and Raleigh were not included on this list. But there’s a simple reason why.
The list was created by a company called “Livability”. They do their list a little differently and only include cities with a population between 75,000 and 500,000 people. So the major cities are nowhere to be found on this list. They curated the cities “based on nearly 100 data points and an algorithm taking into account measures of a city’s economy, housing and cost of living, amenities, transportation, environment, safety, education, and health.” To learn more check out the Livability Top 100 Methodology. But back to North Carolina.
The 5 North Carolina Cities That Are The Most Livable Are:
- Asheville, NC
- Cary, NC
- Concord, NC
- Durham, NC
- Winston-Salem, NC
The population is what knocked both Charlotte and Raleigh off the list. These are pretty populous midsize cities, both Durham and Cary in the Triangle area. Concord gives you a close proximity to Charlotte, but with plenty to offer on it’s own as well. Asheville is a mountain paradise, though it does come with a more expensive price tag than other areas of the state. And honestly, while I’ve visited for events a few times, I don’t know much about Winston-Salem, but the Triad is a popular place to live.
Our South Carolina neighbors only scored one city, Charleston, on the most livable cities list. A start contrast from the five North Carolina cities received the honor of being named most livable. You can read more about the cities on this list and see the full list from Livability here.
You Aren't A True North Carolinian Until You've Done These 9 Things
Seen The Wild Horses At The Outer Banks
There are multiple places on the Outer Banks of North Carolina where you can see the wild Colonial Spanish Mustang Horses that call the barrier islands home. This includes Corolla, Shackleford Banks, and Ocracoke Island. The horses have resided on the North Carolina shore for over 500 years. There are guided tours that will take you close to these magnificent creatures. But always remember they are wild animals and not domesticated like the horses you typically encounter. That being said, it’s a breathtaking experience to witness these animals running at the edge of the ocean.
