Rio Rancho once again named one of the best places to live in America

For the second straight year, Livability.com has named Rio Rancho as one of the top 100 places to live in America.

In 2023, the City of Vision was ranked as the 86th best Quality of Life LivScore.

This year, Rio Rancho is 81st with a LivScore of 714, which was curated by Livability and Applied Geographic Solutions based on about 100 data points measuring eight broad categories:

• Economy, including data points like unemployment rate, employment opportunity index and income relative change.

• Housing and cost of living, including data points like: tax rates, home and rental affordability indexes and income inequality index.

• Amenities, including data points like cultural amenities (museums, arts, etc.); leisure amenities (parks, golf, sports venues, etc.); shopping/retail/nightlife indexes.

• Transportation, including data points like walkability, median commute time and average vehicles per household.

• Environment, including data points like population density, air quality and various natural disaster risks.

• Safety, including data points like various crime rates.

• Education, including data points like school quality and educational attainment.

• Health, including data points like life expectancy and doctor and hospital access.

“Rio Rancho, about a half hour from Albuquerque, is one of the fastest-growing cities in New Mexico,” the report said. “With nearly 300 days of sunshine, a striking landscape, numerous parks and lots of trails for hiking and biking, Rio Rancho is an ideal destination for those who love to spend most of their time outdoors. And with its affordable housing, good health care and job opportunities, Rio Rancho offers residents a high quality of life. It’s also a great place for families thanks to good schools and a low crime rate.”

Based on a proprietary algorithm weighting each of the categories, more than 2,000 cities that fit the population constraint (75,000-500,000) were assigned a LivScore. Rio Rancho and Santa Fe (98th, with a LivScore of 694) were the only cities in New Mexico to make the top 100 list.

Rio Rancho was listed as the 19th best place to live in the Southwest and the 18th best place to live with a population between 100,000-149,000.

“Beneath the cerulean skies of New Mexico, Rio Rancho epitomizes the Land of Enchantment,” the report said. “Stunning desert landscapes, affordable housing, excellent schools and endless outdoor activities (thanks to year-round sunshine!) cultivate a strong sense of community.”