Dubbed the energy capital of the U.S. and home to one of the largest medical centers in the world, Houston leads the nation in job growth and boasts a cost of living that stands well below the national average.
Industry experts at the local, national and international level all seem to agree- Houston is the place to be.
Many of the following list of business articles and Houston rankings were originally assembled by the Greater Houston Partnership as a testament to Houston's monumental standing in the global landscape.
We have added to the list and linked to the original articles externally. Please take the time to read about why Houston is consistently being named the best U.S. city to live, work and play...or visit our inbound marketing blog to learn more strategies for business growth.
Houston ranked #1
- Mega Market of the Year - Southern Business Development - August 2009
- America's Best Hospitals - Cancer, M.D. Anderson Cancer Center - U.S News - July 2009
- Highest Quality of Life Among Students - Rice University - Princeton Review - HBJ - July 2009
- Best City to Get Ahead - Forbes.com - June 19 2009
- Top Metro in the Nation - Site Selection Magazine - March 2009
- Nominal Job Growth (01/08 to 01/09) - U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics – March 2009
- Nation's Healthiest Housing Market - Builder and Hanley Wood Market Intelligence - February '09
- Largest IT Service Economy - Onforce, Inc. (VoIP Monitor) – December 5, 2008
- Hottest Labor Market - Bizjournals.com – September 8, 2008
- Lowest Cost of Living Among Major Metro Areas - ACCRA Cost of Living Index - 3rd Quarter '08
- Best U.S. City to Earn a Living - Forbes.com - August 18, 2008
- Best City to Buy a Home - Forbes.com - July 14, 2008
- Highest Population Growth in the Nation - U.S. Census Bureau - July 10, 2008
- Best City to Live, Work and Play - Kiplinger's Personal Finance - July 2008
- Top Local Government Green Power Purchaser - Environmental Protection Agency - July 2008
- America's Best Hospitals - Cancer, M.D. Anderson Cancer Center - U.S News - July 2008
- Houston, We Have No Problems - Newsweek - June 30, 2008
- Best City for Recent College Grads - Forbes.com - June 26, 2008
- Best City for Your Job - BusinessWeek - June 12, 2008
- Top U.S. Manufacturing Cities - Manufacturers' News Inc. - May 30, 2008
- Most Accessible City for the Disabled - The National Organization on Disability - February 14, '08
Houston ranked #2
- America's 10 Best Undervalued Places to Live - U.S. News - July 16, 2009
- Best Cities for Jobs - Forbes.com - April 14, 2009
- Number of Fortune 500 Headquarters - Fortune Magazine - April 2009
- Fastest Job Growth (01/08 to 01/09) - U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics - March 4, 2009
- Nation's Top Export Markets - U.S. Department of Commerce - July 14, 2008
Houston ranked #3
- Best Places To Begin A Career - Forbes.com - July 16, 2009
- Metro Monitor - The Brookings Institution - June 2009
- North American Cities of the Future - FDI Magazine - April 2009
- Green Jobs - Global Insight – October 2008
- Best Cities for Young Professionals - Forbes.com - July 09, 2008
- 10 Most Charitable U.S. Cities - Charity Navigator's 2008 Metro Market Charitable Analysis Study
Houston ranked #4
- Best Places to Launch a Business - Fortune Small Business - October 13, 2009
- Best And Worst Cities For High-Paying Jobs - Forbes.com - July 14, 2009
- Best Value in Private Institutions - Rice University - Kiplinger's - February 2009
- Cities Where Your Nest Egg Goes Farthest - Forbes.com - October 2008
- Best Big City for Business - Inc.com - July 2008
- Top Ten Up-and-Coming Tech Cities - Forbes.com - March 10, 2008
- Top 10 Cities for African-Americans to Live - BlackEnterprise.com - September 17, 2007
Houston ranked #5
- Best Heart & Heart Surgery Hospitals - St. Lukes Episcopal - U.S. News - August 28, 2009
- Houston Ranks Fifth for Personal Income - Houston Business Journal - August 17, 2009
- Percentage Share of GDP - New York Times - July 09, 2009
Houston ranked #6
- Where the Jobs Are - Ft. Bend County - CNNMoney.com - July 19, 2009
- Top U.S. Real Estate Investment Markets - Urban Land Institute - January 10, 2008
Houston ranked #7
- America's Most Visited Museums - Houston Museum of Natural Science - ForbesTraveler - March 2009
- Best Cities for Jobs in 2008 - Forbes.com - January 10, 2008
Houston ranked #9
- America's Best Bargain Cities - Forbes.com - May 13, 2009
- World's Best Places For Real Estate Buys - Forbes.com - January 21, 2009
Houston ranked #10
- The World's Most Inventive Cities - BusinessWeek - April 2009
- Top Ten Cities for Hispanics - Hispanic Magazine - August 2008
- Top Ten Cities for Green Technology Innovation - Sustain Lane - March 2007
Houston in the spotlight
- Great Places in America: Neighborhoods - American Planning Association - 2009
- Habitat for the Houston Housing Market - Will Holder - September 6, 2008
- Houston, New York Has a Problem - City Journal - July 16, 2008
- Houston doesn't have a problem - Chicago Tribune - June 23, 2008
- Houston's Pipelines of Prosperity - Washington Post - June 23, 2008
- Strangulation by Decree: The Comeback of “Planning” - TPPF - May 27, 2008
- Lack of zoning has paid off for Houston - Houston Chronicle - May 27, 2008
- Closed case for "open" cities - Orange County Register - May 25, 2008
- Houston gets high marks on housing affordability study - HBJ - March 28, 2008
- Houston land policy fosters homeownership - HBJ - January 18, 2008
- Neither Boom nor Bust - Federal Reserve Bank of Dallas - January 2008
- Regional Perspectives - Rice University, Stephen L. Klineberg - November 2007
- Opportunity Urbanism - Joel Kotkin, Carrol Robinson, Tory Gattis - 2007