Boise loves absolutely nothing if not being listed on every top 10 list it can. Here we're attempting the near-impossible: a comprehensive index of every top-10 list appearance Boise's ever made. Please help us round this out. And, if you're an editor of a publication (no matter how minor or obscure), please add us to your top 10 list!
The nation has discovered what Boiseans have known for years: the City of Trees is a great place to live, work, and build a successful business venture. Here are some samples of the talk about Boise:
2013
Men's Health Magazine, December 2012 -- No. 1 Best Cities for Men 2013
2012
Livability.com, October 2012 -- No. 4 of Top 10 Downtowns in America
CNN Money, October 2012 -- No. 6 Most Inventive State
Outside Magazine, September 2012 -- No. 3 Best River Town in America
Forbes, April 2012 -- No. 2 Best City for Raising a Family
The Atlantic, March 2012 -- No. 6 America's Hottest Music City
KPMG Report, March 2012 -- No. 3 Lowest Cost of Business in Pacific Northwest
Brookings Institute, March 2012 -- Top 20 Fastest Recovering Cities
Sunset Magazine, February 2012 -- Fittest Towns of the West
CNN Money, February 2012 -- Top 10 Turnaround Towns
Women's Health/Men's Health, January 2012 -- No. 5 Healthiest City
2011
The Fiscal Times, November 2011 -- Ten Best Places to Find A Job
CNN Travel, November 2011 -- Best College Football Stadiums
SportingNews.com, October 2011 -- No. 62 Best Sports Cities
Men's Health, October 2011 -- No. 13 America's Luckiest Cities
Allstate Insurance Company, September 2011 -- No. 2 Safest City for Driving in America
Urban Land Institute, September 2011 -- No. 8 Top 25 Metro Areas Gaining Kids
CNN Money, September 2011 -- 25 Best Places to Retire
CBS Market Watch, August 2011 -- No. 8 10 Best Places to live in the U.S.
RelocateAmerica, August 2011 -- No. 8 Top Ten Places to Live
USA Today, August 2011 -- 10 Great Places for Paddling in the City
MSN, August 2011 -- Great Cities for Cycling
Triathlete, August 2011 -- Best Places to Live 2011
The Daily Beast, July 2011 -- No. 10 Top Twenty Longest Living Cities
U.S. Chamber of Commerce, June 2011 -- No. 7 Long-Term Job Growth Rate
U.S. Chamber of Commerce, June 2011 -- No. 9 Top Entrepreneurship & Innovation
Moody's Analytics, April 2011 -- No. 17 of 384 Cities for Vitality
Men's Health, March 2011 -- No. 20 Most Socially Networked City
U-Haul International, Inc., February 2011 -- No. 2 Top Growth Towns for Families
2010
Women's Health Magazine, December 2010 -- No. 7 Best Places for Women
Yahoo! Finance, September 2010 -- No. 6 Best Place to Retire
Outside Magazine, August 2010 -- Best Town in the Western U.S.: "Boise, to put it mildly, has been on a roll. Government, education, and health care remain core industries, but dozens of high-tech startups have moved to town, joining behemoths like Hewlett-Packard and Micron Technology. And while its population has more than doubled in the past 30 years and jaded locals bemoan the sprawl, Boise has managed its growth impressively well: The city is home to nearly 2,000 acres of parks and a 25-mile greenbelt. The outlying areas feel a bit bland, but the older neighborhoods have that Boulder vibe—cruiser bikes, farmers' markets, and prayer flags—only with reasonably priced homes."
Forbes.com, June 2010 -- No. 16 Most Innovative City
Life Magazine, June 2010 -- No. 8 Most Underrated City in the West
Forbes Magazine, May 2010 -- No. 9 Best Places for Business and Careers:
Sunset Magazine, February 2010 In the West: 20 Towns of the Future
2009
Market Watch, December 2009 -- #6 Best U.S. Cities for Business
Brookings, June 2009 -- Bootstrapping High Tech: Evidence from three Emerging High Technology Metropolitan Areas: "Idaho may be an unlikely state for high-technology development but it largest metropolitan area, Boise, has developed an entrepreneurial and innovative technology community." Boise is remarkable. Christopher Leinberger
Brookings Institute Scholar, April 2009 -- Best Downtown in the Rocky Mountain West
Smithsonian.com, March 2009 -- Boise, Idaho: Big Skies and Colorful Characters, "Boise is still so young and new- changing almost every day- and I don't think it's an overstatement to suggest that our town represents everything that remains great about America: potential youth natural beauty, quality of life."
MSNBC.com, March 2009 -- No. 8 Best Mid-size Metropolitan Area
Bizjournal.com, February 2009 -- No. 5 Best Places to Start a Small Business
Landscape & Hardscape Construction, February 2009 -- Redevelopment and Renewal, firm transforms cities by design: " Private development doesn't do this on its own" (public infrastructure) "to remake a city."
2008
National League of Cities, November 2008 -- Award for Municipal Excellence
Business Week Magazine, November 2008 -- "Best Places to Raise Your Kids 2009"
Food and Wine Magazine, November 2008 -- "Across the U.S., restaurateurs are opening ever-more-casual places. I've seen it in New York, Chicago, San Francisco…and now Boise, Idaho."
American Planning Association, October 2008 -- "North End" Top 10 Neighborhoods in the Country
Rock & Ice Magazine, September 2008 -- No. 2, "Best Places to Go Bouldering"
Sperlings, August 2008 -- No. Most Secure U.S. Place
Kiplinger.com, July 2008 -- Rocky Mountain High Tech, Employers know they'll find a high proportion of college graduates here (37%) compared with the national average of 37%) and new hires will find affordable housing… (t)he area also cradles smaller technology and e-commerce forms, which come to make the most of low business costs - about a third less than in California or Washington.
Southwest Airlines Spirit Magazine, July 2008 -- "...But Idaho's capital alone offers many jewels for adventurous travelers."
Brookings Institute Economic Vitality Report, June 2008 -- No. 1 Economic Vitality Among U.S. Metro Areas
MSNBC, June 2008 -- No. 2 Top 10 Best Places to Live in the U.S.
Boston Globe, June 2008 -- "Best Urban Parks," Boise River Greenbelt: "...this riverfront park was reclaimed in the 1960s and transformed into a haven for outdoor lovers, with 25 miles of pathways geared to walkers, runners, skaters, bikers."
Kiplinger.com, May 2008 -- No. 4 Best Cities to Live, Work, and Play
Brookings Institution, May 2008 -- No. 5 Lowest Carbon Footprint
Forbes Magazine, March 2008 -- No. 13 Best Places for Business and Careers
Forbes, March 2008 -- Boise is No. 9 for business careers. Of cities in the top 10, only Boise and Raleigh N.C. have been the most consistent top performers in recent years.
CNN Money.com, 2008 -- Top 100 best places to live and launch, Boise #19
American Planning Association, 2008 -- Boise's North End: "Top 10 Great Neighborhoods for 2008"
U.S. Department of Transportation, 2008 -- Boise State University: "Best Workplace for Commuters"
| List | Place | Date | Publication |
| Best Cities for Raising a Family | 2 | 4/4/2012 | Forbes |
| Best Town In the West | 1 | 7/29/2010 | Outside |
