Top 10 Small U.S. Cities

Top 10 Small U.S. Cities
for Starting a Career After College 20261. Cambridge, MA
2. Springfield, IL
3. Ann Arbor, MI
4. Santa Clara, CA
5. Stamford, CT
6. Kirkland, WA
7. Peoria, IL
8. Boulder, CO
9. Columbia, MO
10. Richardson, TX Springfield, IL climbed four places to second, powered by a strong increase in degree attainment (up seven percentage points to 37%) and one of the highest graduate job shares across all 30 cities analyzed at 8%. Furthermore, leisure establishments surged by 25 per 100,000 residents, and coworking infrastructure expanded to five spaces per 100,000 residents. So, with price levels 7% below the national average, Springfield pairs solid earning potential (roughly $68,500 median income) with some of the most affordable living costs in the dataset.

 

However, Peoria, IL is the breakout story of this year's analysis after climbing 12 places to seventh. Here, youth unemployment collapsed to just 2.3%, degree attainment surged 13 percentage points to 36% and median income rose to about $67,000. Moreover, greater Peoria's Economic Development Council reported that more than 200 new jobs were created in advanced manufacturing and clean energy in 2025, alongside the arrival of electric bus manufacturer Damera Corporation, which committed its first U.S. assembly plant to the region. And, with price levels 9% below the national average, Peoria's economic gains stretch further than they do in almost any other ranked city.m.facebook.com/story .php?story_fbid=pfbi d02t5Zt8tZAQegrg6doo AP24sVV1hxpnVxa