Austin is garnering some flattery for a fact locals embrace: It’s one of the best cities to settle down in in the country.

Wesbsite Niche.com’s new ranking of the best U.S. cities to live in puts the Austin metro area at the No. 25 spot with an overall grade of A. Nearby Round Rock scored the No. 29 spot on the list of best cities to live in in the U.S., also with an overall A grade.

“Living in Austin offers residents an urban-suburban-mix feel and most residents rent their homes,” Niche.com notes. “In Austin, there are a lot of bars, restaurants, coffee shops, and parks. Many families and young professionals live in Austin and residents tend to lean liberal. The public schools in Austin are highly rated.”

Additionally, on the list of the 200 best places to live, featuring suburbs and neighborhoods, Austin’s Old Enfield community lands at No. 169.

This year, Niche combed through data for 228 cities, as well as 18,515 towns and neighborhoods, to develop its annual rankings. Niche relies on data from sources like the U.S. Census Bureau and FBI, along with residents’ ratings.

Niche specializes in supplying data, reviews, and ratings of schools, colleges, and universities in the U.S.

“Whether our users are young professionals, parents with young kids, or retirees, Niche’s … rankings serve as an excellent starting point for considering a move,” says Luke Skurman, founder and CEO of Niche.

“The pandemic triggered a new set of possibilities. Suddenly, many individuals and families found themselves more mobile than ever before, and in the past two years, they have continued to think hard about where they really want to live,” Skurman adds. “Families wondering about an area’s school district, a major part of many relocation decisions, can also use our comprehensive school profiles and rankings to get a sense of what their child’s future school might be like.”

Aside from its ranking among the best cities in which to live, Austin scores the No. 19 spot on Niche’s list of the best cities for young professionals and is No. 34 for the best cities to raise a family.

Round Rock placed No. 18 on the list of the best cities to buy a house in America, No. 19 for the best cities to raise a family, and ranked No. 25 on the list of cities with the best public schools in America.

The Houston suburb of The Woodlands tops Niche.com’s ranking of the best cities to live in in the U.S., coming in at No. 1, repeating its ranking from 2021.

On the list of the best cities to live, The Woodlands is followed by:

• Cambridge, Massachusetts, No. 2.
• Naperville, Illinois, No. 3.
• Arlington, Virginia, No. 4.
• Overland Park, Kansas, No. 5.

Houston proper grabs the No. 71 spot.

What follows is a breakdown of other communities in Texas that earned places in Niche’s ranking of the best cities to live.

Dallas-Fort Worth

• Plano, No. 9
• Richardson, No. 12
• Irving, No. 40
• Denton, No. 56
• Dallas, No. 80
• Arlington, No. 89
• Fort Worth, No. 135

San Antonio metro area

• San Antonio, No. 101

Elsewhere in Texas

• College Station, No. 27
• Lubbock, No. 72
• Tyler, No. 94
• Wichita Falls, No. 98
• El Paso, No. 100
• McAllen, No. 102
• Abilene, No. 112
• Amarillo, No. 122
• Waco, No. 130
• Corpus Christi, No. 132
• Midland, No. 158
• Beaumont, No. 170
• Killeen, No. 189
• Brownsville, No. 193

Other Texas suburbs and neighborhoods making the top 200 for best places to live are:

• Cottonwood Creek South Richardson, No. 5. (Cottonwood Creek South also is the highest-ranked place in Texas — No. 108 — on the list of the best places to raise a family).
• Height Parks (Richardson), No. 81.
• Canyon Creek South (Richardson), No. 99.
• Coppell (Dallas-Fort Worth), No. 102.

Other notable Texas rankings:

• Plano ranks fifth among the best cities to buy a house, and Richardson takes the No. 9 spot.
• Plano ranks ninth on the list of the cities with the best public schools.
• Arlington (No. 11) and Irving (No. 12) are the top-ranked Texas cities on the list of the most diverse cities.
• Austin is the top-ranked Texas city (No. 19) on the list of the best cities for young professionals, with Plano five places behind at No. 24.
• Richardson, ranked fifth nationally, is the best Texas city for retirees.
• At No. 42 nationally, Plano is the healthiest city in Texas, followed by Richardson at No. 43.