A perennial growth metro similar to Tampa-St. Pete, Houston in 2023 continued its aggressive expansion movement, continuing to create jobs and attract businesses. It earned a few new titles, including the No. 1 Best Place for Foreign Business, No. 9 Best City in America and the No. 22 Best City to Start a Small Business, according to the Greater Houston Partnership. 

And if identifying “satellite” communities of major metros is a top goal of many people scouting for new places to live, Houston wins again: Cinco Ranch, a suburb of Houston, landed in the top 10 as one of the best places to live in the U.S., according to Niche, a Pittsburgh-based real estate research firm that tracks consumer migration to new locales and their priorities and motivators in doing so.