Best places to live in Tennessee
3 Tennessee metros scored on the default family weighting — schools and safety heaviest, then affordability, climate, college pipeline and jobs. Change the weights on the ranking engine to see your own order.
Who lives in Tennessee
Population-weighted racial and ethnic composition across the 3 tracked Tennessee metros, from Census ACS table B03002.
- White (non-Hispanic)
- 73.5%
- Hispanic or Latino
- 8.3%
- Black (non-Hispanic)
- 11.3%
- Asian (non-Hispanic)
- 2.4%
- Other or two or more
- 4.5%
Diversity index 53/100 — how evenly the population is spread across these groups. It is descriptive, not a judgement: weight it up, down or to zero on the ranking engine.
| # | Metro | Score | US rank | Typical home | Schools | Safety | Climate | Diversity |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Nashville | 53.4 | #42 of 103 | $449k | 46 | 12 | 29° / 89° | 62 |
| 2 | Knoxville | 47.4 | #66 of 103 | $363k | 18 | 12 | 30° / 87° | 36 |
| 3 | Chattanooga | 44.0 | #80 of 103 | $319k | 20 | 12 | 31° / 89° | 51 |
Figures are compiled estimates. Methodology and sources.