Accolades & Rankings

We certainly understand why working and living in Northeast Indiana can benefit your business and life, but it’s not just our belief, the experts think so too. 

Below is a list of accolades and rankings from national publications on our business climate, quality of life, and education.

Take Their Word for It

Business and Economy

2021

• Fort Wayne ranked among the top cities where young residents are buying homes by SmartAsset.com.

2020

• SmartAsset recognized Fort Wayne as one of the top 25 most livable cities nationwide and in the top 10 for most affordable cities for early retirement.
• Indiana ranks in the Top 10 Best States business tax environment by the Tax Foundation for its 2021 list.
• Resonance Consultancy named Fort Wayne No. 19 in its ranking of America's Best Small Cities.
• Fourth Economy community index ranked Steuben County No. 7 on its list of the Top Ten Small Counties List for 2021.
• Fort Wayne ranked in the list of Top 10 Cities for First-Time Homebuyers by SmartAsset.com.
• Area Development named Indiana No. 7 on its list of the Top States for Doing Business.
• Fort Wayne among 'Best of the Midwest' for startups by Midwest Startups. 
• Parkview Health was named one of the nation's top hospital systems by Fortune.
• Fort Wayne included among ‘Best-Run Cities’ by WalletHub.com.
• Indiana ranked once again as one of the 'Best States for Business' by Chief Executive Magazine.
• Fort Wayne was named the Wall Street Journal's list of the top hottest job markets. 
• The Brookings Institution’s 2020 “Metro Monitor” report puts the Fort Wayne metro area in 4th place among mid-size cities for productivity, 7th for prosperity, and 8th for the standard of living, based on indicators like annual wages and what types of jobs are available.

2019

• Machinery buyer and seller Kempler Industries compiled a list of the top U.S. cities for manufacturing and Fort Wayne ranked No. 2.
• Indiana ranked sixth nationwide in a study of states most attractive to the aerospace and defense industries, according to consulting firm PwC.

2018

• Forbes ranked Indiana No. 11 on its list of the Best States for Business list. 
• Tax Foundation ranked Indiana No. 2 on it's Property Tax Index Ranking list.
• CNBC ranked Indiana No. 2 in a list of the top states for infrastructure.
• Chief Executive magazine ranks Indiana fifth best state for business.
• The Washington D.C.-based Tax Foundation's 2019 State Business Tax Climate Index ranks Indiana 10th for its overall tax climate and number one in the Midwest. 
• Several Northeast Indiana communities appeared on Site Selector Magazine's list of the Top Micropolitans by Number of Projects.

2017

• Forbes ranked Indiana No. 10 on its list of the Top 10 Best States for Business.
• The Tax Foundation’s 2018 State Business Tax Climate Index ranked Indiana No. 9 for its overall tax climate, and tops in the Midwest.
• WalletHub ranked Fort Wayne No. 9 on its ranking of the best-run cities in the country.
• Indiana is ranked No. 7 by Small Business & Entrepreneurship Council on a list of entrepreneur-friendly states.
• Indiana is ranked No. 1 for best state government in the nation by U.S. News and World Report. 
• Fort Wayne is ranked No. 15 in Business Insider's list of the 20 best US cities for finding a job in 2017.

2016

• Indiana is ranked in the top 10 on a list of states with the most competitive tax codes. The Tax Foundation's State Business Tax Climate Index ranks Indiana 8th for its overall tax climate. 
• According to the Indiana Economic Development Corporation, Indiana earned triple-A credit ratings from Standard & Poor’s, Fitch, and Moody’s.
• Indiana ranked first in the Midwest and fifth in the nation for doing business by Chief Executive magazine.
• Fort Wayne named one of America's Hottest Real Estate Markets by Realtor.com.
• Fort Wayne ranks No. 1 for “Growing Strong Clusters” according to a Harvard University report analyzed by the Community Research Insitute at Purdue University Fort Wayne.

2015

• Indiana was ranked first in the nation for our affordable cost of doing business by CNBC.com.
• Indiana was ranked second in the United States for our pro-business regulatory environment by Forbes. 
• The Pollina Corporate Top 10 Pro-Business States study ranked Indiana third in the nation as the best place to do business.
• The State Business Tax Climate Index by the Tax Foundation ranked Indiana eighth-best in the country, up from tenth in 2014. Indiana remains the top state in the Midwest for business-tax competitiveness.
• A Brookings Institution study ranked Indiana fourth in the nation for its concentration of jobs in advanced industries. Tech-related industries employ more than 11 percent of the state’s workforce.
• The City of Bluffton, located in Wells County, was named No. 1 in NerdWallet’s list of the Best Places to Start a Business. Bluffton was also named Indiana’s first “Gigabit City” thanks to its universally available internet speeds of up to one hundred times faster than a typical residential broadband connection.

2014

• According to the Indiana Economic Development Corporation, Indiana was only one of 11 states that have triple-A credit ratings from Standard & Poor’s, Fitch, and Moody’s.
• Area Development magazine ranked Indiana best in the Midwest and No. 7 overall in its Top States for Doing Business survey.
• According to  Business Facilities’ State Rankings Report, Indiana’s business climate ranked best in the Midwest and No. 5 in the nation.
• The Pollina Corporate Top 10 Pro-Business States study ranked Indiana first in the Midwest and seventh  the nation as the best place to do business.
• Chief Executive magazine’s annual Best and Worst States survey ranked Indiana first in the Midwest and sixth in the nation.
• Forbes’ Best States for Business and Careers Index ranked Indiana No. 3 in regulatory environment.
• According to Area Development magazine, Indiana ranked No. 7 in a list of the Top States for Doing Business.
  • The magazine also ranked Indiana as:
    • No. 1 in skilled labor availability
    • No. 2 in water availability and cost
    • No. 3 in distribution and supply-chain hubs
    • No. 4 in rail and highway access
    • No. 5 in corporate-tax environment
    • No. 6 in cooperative government, and
    • No. 7 in labor climate.
• Business Facilities’ State Rankings Report named Indiana as the state with the best business climate in the Midwest and No. 5 nationally. Indiana is ranked among the top 10 in six categories, including best business climate and automotive-manufacturing strength.
• Pollina Corporate Top 10 Pro-Business States ranked Indiana as the best place to do business in the Midwest and No. 7 nationwide.
• Chief Executive ranked Indiana the sixth-best state for doing business and the best place to do business in the Midwest for the fourth consecutive year.
• The National Association of Manufacturers ranked Indiana No. 1 in highest shares of manufacturing employment.
• Site Selection magazine named Indiana its No. 1 pick in the Midwest for the best overall business climate, according to a survey of site consultants.
• The Fiscal Times ranked Indiana among the Top 10 Best States for Taxes.
• State Business Tax Climate Index by the Tax Foundation ranked Indiana among the top 10 states in the nation.

Earlier

• Pollina Corporate Top 10 Pro-Business States ranked Indiana as the best place to do business in the Midwest and the seventh-best nationwide. (2013)
• Chief Executive ranked Indiana the fifth-best state for doing business for the second year in a row and the best place to do business in the Midwest for the third consecutive year. (2013)
• Area Development magazine named Indiana as one of the top 19 states leading the U.S. manufacturing resurgence. The magazine ranked Indiana as No. 1 in manufacturing share of nonfarm employment, No. 2 in manufacturing share of GSP, and No. 7 in manufacturing jobs overall. (2013)
• Pollina Corporate Top 10 Pro-Business States ranked Indiana as the best place to do business in the Midwest and the fifth-best nationwide. The Pollina Report also said “Rising from No. 23 in 2010, Indiana at No. 5 for 2012 has become a pro-business powerhouse and will certainly dominate the northern states if it continues to build on its success.” (2012)
• Chief Executive ranked Indiana the fifth-best state for business. (2012)

Living Here and Quality of Life

2020

• CBNC listed Fort Wayne as No. 2 on its list of the 15 best U.S. cities to work from home—depending on your current situation and job needs.
• Fort Wayne is ranked No. 74 for hottest job markets by the Wall Street Journal.
• Fort Wayne ranked in Business Insider's list of the top 15 hottest real estate markets. 

2019

• Fort Wayne's Parkview Field, home of the TinCaps, was listed as No. 6 on Sports Business Journal's list of the top minor league baseball parks. 
• Fort Wayne was listed on Realtor.com's list of the Top 20 Performing Markets in August 2019.
• Auburn was ranked in Top 25 Cities for Young Families in Indiana.
• Realtor named Fort Wayne as America's Hottest—and Most Unexpected—Real Estate Market in July 2019.
• Fort Wayne named on Livability’s list of the 2019 Top 100 Best Places to Live.
• Thrillist named Fort Wayne as one of the Best Cities for Creative Professionals Right Now. 
• Realtor.com named Decatur, Ind. as one of the "Top 10 Affordable Small Towns Where You'd Actually Want to Live." 
• Warsaw and Winona Lake is ranked one of the most charming small towns in America by Travel Channel.
• Fort Wayne ranked No. 10 on a list of "The 10 Safest, Most Affordable Metros You'll Want to Live In" by Realtor.com.

2018

• BadCredit.org named Fort Wayne No. 2 on a list of the 15 cities with a low cost of living and high quality of life.
• Fort Wayne was ranked the #13 Best City for Veterans to Live in 2018 by Veterans United. 
• According to a new analysis from GoBankingRates, Fort Wayne is ranked No. 1 on its list of the most affordable places to retire. 
• The Alliance of Indiana Rural Water says Fort Wayne City Utilities has the best tasting water in the State.
• Reader's Digest named Fort Wayne on its list "These Are the 15 Best Places to Move to in the U.S. (Before They Get Too Crowded).”
• Liveability ranked Fort Wayne No. 3 on its list of the 7 Best Cities for Millennials Who Love Libraries.  
• Fort Wayne ranked the best city to live in Indiana on BusinessInsider.com's list of "The Best Place to Live in Every US State".
• Fort Wayne ranked No. 40 by U.S. News & World Report on its list of the 125 Best Places to Live in the USA.
• Fort Wayne ranked No. 1 by U.S. News & World Report on its list of the 25 Best Affordable Places to Live in the U.S. in 2018.

2017

• Fort Wayne ranked No. 5 on Romper's list of the "Top 10 Most Affordable US Cities For Millennial Parents To Raise Their Families".
• In an article by Food and Wine, Fort Wayne is named "An Unexpected Hipster Hotspot."
• Fort Wayne is ranked No. 7 on Business Insiders list of 10 U.S. Cities that Make it Easier to Get Rich.
• Fort Wayne is ranked No. 4 on Buzzfeed's list of the "10 Underrated Cities That Hipsters Are About To Ruin."
• Two-EE's Winery voted No. 1 tasting room in USA Today's 10 Best list.
• Fort Wayne is ranked No. 5 on Smart Asset's List of The Best Cities for Golfers to Live In.
• Ligonier is ranked No. 1 in SafeWise's list of the Top 20 Safest Cities in Indiana.
• Niche ranks Fort Wayne at No. 1 in its 2017 ranking of American cities with the lowest cost-of-living.
• Shipshewana is ranked No. 5 on USA Today's 10 Best Midwestern Small Town List.
• Fort Wayne is ranked The Best City to Raise a Family by SmartAssets.com. 
• Downtown Fort Wayne's Coney Island was named No. 8 on Insider's list of the 25 Best Hot Dogs in America. 

2016

• Fort Wayne is ranked No. 1 in lowest cost of living in the United States by Business Insider. 
• Aol.com Finance ranked Fort Wayne No. 8 on a list of the nation's Top 15 Best Places to Live If You're Trying to Save Money.
• Shipshewana was named in Country Living's list of "40 American Towns You Haven't Heard of But Should Visit ASAP."
• Smart Asset named Parkview Field one of the Top 10 Minor League baseball cities.
• InsuranceProviders.com rated Fort Wayne the fifth-safest city in the United States.
• Travelocity named Fort Wayne No. 4 on a list of best cities to visit with kids. 

2015

• Fort Wayne had its biggest year yet with the city earning top accolades, including:
  • No. 34 in Vocativ’s list of the Best Cities for People 35 and under
  • No. 8 in Thrillist list of Cheapest Big Cities in America
  • No. 6 in Liveability’s list of Best Affordable Places to Live
  • Lawnstarter’s Quality of Life in America’s Largest Cities list
  • Wallethub’s Most Caring Cities in America
  • No. 7 in CreditKarma’s Top 10 Most Affordable Cities for Millennials to Buy a Home
  • Wallethub’s Top 10 Best-Run Cities in America
  • No. 5 in CBS News’ Top 9 Best Up-and-Coming Towns for College Grads
  • No. 11 in Wallethub’s Top 15 Best Cities to Start a Business
  • One of AARP’s Easiest Cities to Get Around
  • Street & Smith's Sports Business Journal Best Cities for Minor League Sports.
• Plus, Fort Wayne’s own Parkview Field was named the No. 1 best minor league baseball stadium by Stadium Journey and was No. 9 on Stadium Journey’s Top 10 Best Stadium Experiences of 2015.

2014

• Fort Wayne was named No. 9 in Nerdwallet’s Top 10 Cities for Quality of Life.
• Fort Wayne was listed No.11 on Forbes’s Opportunity Cities: Places It May Be Easier to Make Your Mark.
• Decatur, in DeKalb County, was named No. 3 in Save Wise’s Top 50 Safest Cities in Indiana. Five other cities in our region were also named in this list.

Earlier

• The Fort Wayne Children’s Zoo was named No. 5 in Parents magazine’s list of the Top 10 Best Zoos for Kids.
• Family Tree named the Allen County Public Library’s Genealogy Center as one of the top genealogy libraries.
• Business Week named Fort Wayne as one of the best places to raise children.
• The City of Fort Wayne was a three-time winner of the All-America City award given by the National League of Cities.