The Minnesota South metro area has plenty to celebrate this fall. WalletHub's recent 2025 ranking of America's best small cities includes eight Minnesota communities, with several located right in our own backyard.
Among the more than 1,300 cities evaluated nationwide, our South metro cities earned impressive placements that showcase what makes this region so special.
WalletHub analyzed more than 1,300 U.S. cities with populations between 25,000 and 100,000, evaluating them across 45 key indicators of livability. The comprehensive study examined five major categories: Affordability, Economic Health, Education & Health, Quality of Life, and Safety. Each city received both an overall ranking and individual category scores, providing a detailed picture of their strengths.
The South Metro Standouts: Rankings and Strengths
Woodbury - Top Tier Excellence
While technically in the East metro, Woodbury represents one of Minnesota's highest-performing cities in the national rankings. The city demonstrates particularly strong performance across multiple categories, reflecting its well-rounded appeal to residents.
Prior Lake - A Well-Balanced Community
Prior Lake brings its own unique appeal with waterfront living on Upper and Lower Prior Lakes. Among Minnesota's top-ranked small cities, Prior Lake stands out for balancing quality of life with economic opportunity. The city offers recreational activities year-round while maintaining strong community connections and quality amenities that attract families and professionals alike.
Lakeville - Leading the South Metro
Lakeville ranks among Minnesota's highest-performing small cities in the national study. This growing suburb has built a reputation for excellent schools, abundant parks, and a thriving business community. Its strong showing across multiple categories reflects the city's careful balance of residential charm and economic opportunity, particularly in education, health, and safety metrics.
Shakopee - Economic Growth with Small-City Charm
Shakopee has transformed dramatically in recent years, becoming a destination city with Valleyfair and Canterbury Park while maintaining its historic downtown charm. The city's economic growth hasn't come at the expense of its small-city feel, as reflected in its balanced performance across WalletHub's categories.
Savage - Quality of Life Focus
Savage offers an ideal location along the Minnesota River valley with access to extensive trail systems. The community has focused on sustainable development and quality of life improvements that clearly resonate with residents, particularly strong in recreation and outdoor amenities.
Understanding the Rankings
WalletHub's methodology evaluated cities across five weighted categories, each worth 20 points:
Affordability: Including housing costs, homeownership rates, and cost of living
Economic Health: Covering job growth, unemployment rates, income growth, and median credit scores
Education & Health: Evaluating school systems, graduation rates, healthcare access, and public health indicators
Quality of Life: Measuring commute times, restaurants and amenities per capita, recreation facilities, and work-life balance
Safety: Assessing violent crime rates, property crime rates, and traffic safety
The South metro cities performed particularly well in education, health, and safety categories—factors that matter most to families and long-term residents. These cities also showed strong economic health indicators, reflecting robust local economies and job markets.
What Makes These Cities Special
Several factors unite these South metro communities in their success. Small-city life offers advantages like more space, fewer degrees of separation, and shorter commutes. Our South metro cities deliver these benefits while remaining close enough to Minneapolis-St. Paul to access big-city amenities when needed.
According to WalletHub, nearly half of Americans (47%) prefer suburban living, compared to just 24% for urban areas. The South metro cities exemplify why suburban small cities are so appealing—they offer the perfect blend of community connection, economic opportunity, quality education, and recreational options without the challenges that come with big-city living.
A Regional Success Story
Having 5 South metro cities recognized on a national stage speaks volumes about what we've built here. These aren't just bedroom communities—they're thriving cities with their own identities, economic bases, and quality of life advantages. The presence of multiple Minnesota cities in the top tier of this national ranking demonstrates the strength of our entire region.
Whether you're considering a move to the area or already call one of these cities home, this recognition confirms what many of us already knew: the South metro is a pretty great place to live. As the Twin Cities metro continues to grow, these communities demonstrate that you don't have to sacrifice quality of life for opportunity—you can have both.
The recognition is particularly meaningful given the study's comprehensive scope. With over 1,300 cities evaluated and 45 different metrics analyzed, earning a spot in the top percentiles represents genuine excellence in community development, governance, and quality of life.
The complete WalletHub rankings and detailed category scores are available at WalletHub.com, where you can explore how individual cities scored across various metrics and see the full methodology.