Showing Strength in Economic Development & City Ranking

We celebrate every regional and city ranking we receive because we’ve worked hard to achieve that level of excellence and because they provide easy evidence as to why even more businesses and people should call Northern Kentucky home.

In collaboration with REDI Cincinnati, BE NKY Growth Partnership earned recognition among the 20 top local and regional economic development organizations in the U.S. with a 2022 Mac Conway Award for Excellence in Economic Development from Site Selection magazine. This marks the eighth-consecutive year the Cincinnati region has received the Mac Conway Award.

Northern Kentucky comprises seven of the 16 counties that make up the Greater Cincinnati region, with five counties in Southwest Ohio and four in Southeast Indiana. Kentucky counties contribute extensively to the region’s overall strength in both business climate and livability and benefit greatly from our proximity to world-class offerings of the City of Cincinnati. Regional and city ranking superlatives demonstrate it clearly year after year. Cincinnati ranked #7 in Clever Real Estate’s Best of 2022 City Rankings, coming in higher than both Cleveland and Columbus.

Top 5 Metro & City Ranking Achievements

Here’s a sample of the many instances where the Cincinnati region reached the top one to five spots on metro and city ranking lists over recent years.

Business Climate & Infrastructure

#2

BEST REGIONAL AIRPORT IN NORTH AMERICA

– Skytrax World Airport Survey, 2023

#3

TOP METROS IN FIBER DISTRIBUTION

– Duke Energy, 2021

#3

US METRO FOR SUSTAINABILITY

– Site Selection Magazine, 2022

#5

MARKET RIPE FOR FUTURE TECH GROWTH

– Zillow, 2020

#10

MOST ECONOMICALLY DIVERSE MSA IN UNITED STATES

– Chmura Economics & Analytics, JobsEQ, 2022

Workforce & Entrepreneurship

#1

BEST CITY IN THE NATION FOR COLLEGE GRADS

– SmartAsset, 2022

#1

BEST AIRPORT IN NORTH AMERICA SERVING 2-5 MILLION PASSENGERS

– Skytrax World Airport Survey, 2021

#2

CITY TO WORK FROM HOME

– Apartment Guide, 2021

#4

PLACE TO LAUNCH YOUR CAREER

– LinkedIn, 2020

#4

MOST UNTAPPED CITY FOR STARTUPS

– Fundera, 2019

Livability & Affordability

#1

CITY WHERE YOUR DOLLAR STRETCHES THE FURTHEST

– Policy Genius, 2018

#1

LOWEST COST OF LIVING, MAJOR METROS

– Bureau of Economic Analysis, 2019

#1

BEST CHILDREN’S HOSPITAL IN THE U.S.

– U.S. News., 2023-2024

#4

BEST CITY FOR FIRST-TIME HOMEBUYERS

– Lending Tree, 2019

#5

BEST U.S. CITY FOR HYBRID WORKERS

– CommercialSearch, 2023

Culture & Recreation

#1

ZOO IN THE NATION

– USA Today, 2022 and 2021

#2

BEST BEER CITY IN U.S.

– Real Estate Witch, 2023

#2

BEST BOTANICAL GARDENS IN THE NATION (CINCINNATI ZOO & BOTANICAL GARDENS)

– USA Today, 2022

#4

CITY FOR BEST PARKS IN THE COUNTRY

– The Trust for Public Land, 2022

#4

BEST CITY FOR RECREATION

– WalletHub, 2021