Sacramento isn’t a desirable city, US News report says. Where does it rank in California?

Sacramento has taken a plunge from its already modest ranking last year in the U.S. News & World Report list of “Best Places to Live in the U.S.”

This year, Sacramento stands at No. 122, stepping down 24 places from its rank in 2021-2022 at No. 98.

U.S. News uses a weighted ranking, with internal data as well as data from the U.S. Census, FBI and Department of Labor. Factors include a city’s job market, housing affordability and quality of life.

According to U.S. News, Sacramento is 5.6 out of 10 for desirability, 6.2 in job market, 4.7 in housing affordability and 6.6 in quality of life.

San Jose and San Francisco were the top California cities to make the list, placing at No. 5 and No. 10, respectively.

San Juan in Puerto Rico closed out the list at No. 150 while Huntsville, Alabama, topped the list with an 8.5 in housing affordability and 6.8 in quality of life.

In a separate list, Sacramento ranked at No. 13 for the most expensive places to live in the U.S., with Los Angeles leading the herd.

California cities dominated this list with 13 cities out of 25. San Diego made it at No. 3, and Salinas, Santa Barbara, Santa Rosa and Vallejo & Fairfield trailed after at No. 4, 5, 8 and 10, respectively.

Best places to live in California

On the bright side, Sacramento is one of the best places to reside in California, ranking at No. 4 out of 14 cities that made the list.

According to U.S. News, the best places to live in California are:

1. San Jose

2. San Francisco

3. San Diego

4. Sacramento

5. Santa Barbara

6. Los Angeles

7. Santa Rosa

8. Fresno

9. Vallejo & Fairfield

10. Salinas

11. Modesto

12. Bakersfield

13. Visalia

14. Stockton

What do you want to know about life in Sacramento? Ask our California Utility Team your top-of-mind questions in the module below or email utilityteam@sacbee.com.