When trying to find a place to settle down and raise a family there are a lot of criteria that people consider. Not everyone has the same needs for raising a family so it can be subjective as the "best" or "worst" places to raise a family. WalletHub has recently released their list of the "Best and Worst" places to raise a family in the country and two Montana cities made the list, just barely missing out on the top 50.

Big Cities and Small Cities are Included in the List

What's interesting, to me, about this study is that population isn't one of the metrics used to determine the results. There are big cities included in this study too. According to WalletHub the top 5 best cities to raise a family are Fremont, CA, Overland Park, KS, Irvine, CA, Plano, TX, and South Burlington, VT.

Two Montana Cities Make 'Best Place' to Raise Family List

The key metrics they used to determine the rankings are "Family Fun", "Health and Safety", "Education & Child Care", "Affordability", and "Socio-economics". Montana only had two cities that made the list, out of 180, but our two rankings are in the top third of the list for best places to live. Billings and Missoula have made the list. Billings came in at number 52 and Missoula came in at number 54. Maybe Billings and Missoula are more alike than people think.  They both had close total scores, but there are a couple metrics where they differ.

The Scores are Closer Thank You May Think

Billings, Montana scored highest in the "Affordability" category with a 28, cracking the top 30. Missoula, Montana scored highest in the "Education & Childcare" breaking the top 20 with a 17. Both Billings and Missoula earned their lowest scores in the same category "Health and Safety" with a 151 and 112 respectively. Montana cities aren't as safe as some people think.

Montana Cities High, but Not the Top of the List

When lists come out like this, it is good to see Montana rank, but not too high. There is a long list of places that people can choose before they get to Montana.

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