Colorado Springs ranked 2nd in the nation for military veterans and their families to call home by Livability.com. The rankings were based on quality of life attributes that appeal to veterans, such as modern climate, low cost of living, unemployment rate and outdoor recreational opportunities. Officials said they also gave additional consideration to places with military institutions and VA hospitals. (11/11)

Colorado Springs ranked 5th Great City for Young Adults by Kiplinger. The best cities needed to offer acombination of employment opportunities, social activities and be affordable. (10/11)

Colorado Springs ranked 7th on Builder Magazine’s Top 20 list of healthiest markets projection for 2012.

Colorado ranked 3rd in the nation in concentration of high-tech workers according to TechAmerica Foundation. The report details national and state trends in high-tech employment, wages, and other key economic factors. (10/11)

Garden of the Gods, located on the westside of Colorado Springs, ranked 2nd Great Public Space by American Planning Association. The program celebrates places of exemplary character, quality, and planning. Places are selected annually and represent the gold standard in terms of having a true sense of place, cultural and historical interest, community involvement, and a vision for tomorrow. (10/11)

Colorado Springs ranked 9th for recovery in the currently economic downturn according to Brookings Institute. The ranking was based on a combination of a well-educated workforce and industries that have not been hit as hard by the recession. (09/11)

Colorado Springs ranked 11th Best Drivers Report by Allstate. The report ranks America's 200 largest cities in terms of car collision frequency to identify which cities have the safest drivers. (09/11)

Colorado Springs ranked 4th Best Value City by Kiplinger's Personal Finance. Value was defined as low living costs, strong economies and great amenities. (07/11)

Colorado Springs ranked 15th Best City for Families according to Parenting.com. The top places to live were based on the quality of schools, affordable homes, low crime rates, jobs, and parkland. (07/11)

Colorado continues to have the lowest percentage of obese adults at 19.8 percent according to Trustfor America’s Health. (07/11)

Colorado ranked 5th Best State for Business by CNBC. The ranking looked at cost of doing business, workforce, quality of life, transportation & infrastructure, economy, education, technology & innovation, business friendliness, access to capital and cost of living. (06/11)

Colorado Springs ranked 4th Mountain States Metro Area Leading Locations according to Area Development. The Mountain State metro areas performed the best on Area Development's 100 Leading Locations list. As business populations shift and site selection continuously evolves, smaller regional and metro areas emerge from amongst the field of usual big-city suspects as desirable locations for companies of all sizes. The list brings these locations to light by showing how they stack up to the rest of the field when considering 14 highly regarded surveys. (06/11)

Colorado Springs ranked 6th best in getting the “bang for your buck" metropolitan areas in America. The report, by U.S. News, adjusted incomes by computing median household incomes and the cost of living index, or COLI, as measured by the Council for Community Economic Research. The index takes into account prices on a variety of basic goods and services, including groceries, housing, utilities, healthcare, and transportation, as well as common expenses like movie tickets and newspapers. (06/11)

Colorado ranked 5th the nation in clean-energy leadership, according to Clean Edge Inc.’s U.S. Clean Energy Leadership Index. The ranking based on a number of factors, including each state's total electricity produced by clean-energy sources, hybrid and electric vehicles on the road, clean-energy venture and patent activity, and policy regulations and incentives. (05/11)

Colorado Springs ranked in the “10 Great Cities for College Grads” by Kiplinger. Kiplinger notes that the Springs “features dozens of restaurants, bars, art museums and concert halls within a walkable, nine-block radius. And with the Rocky Mountains looming over the city, Colorado Springs is an outdoor enthusiast’s delight. It ranks among the country’s fittest cities, according to a Gallup survey conducted last year.” (05/11)

Colorado ranked 12th Best State for Business according to Chief Executive Magazine. The annual ranking is based on 500 CEOs consideration of a wide range of criteria, from taxation and regulation to workforce quality and living environment. (05/11)

Colorado Springs ranked 7th in the nation for cities poised for an “early turnaround” in the housing market according to a study released by Realtor.com. Criteria included market conditions such as sales, prices and days on the market. (04/11)

Colorado Springs ranked 18th greenest city by The Daily Beast. To find the greenest cities with 100,000 or more people, rankings were based on citizen behavior across five categories with the final ranking determined by a comparison of each city’s performance compared to the average for each category. (04/11)

Colorado ranked 10th best state tax environment for entrepreneurship and small business, according to a report from the Small Business & Entrepreneurship Council. The report rates Colorado particularly favorably for having low top corporate income tax rates (eighth lowest among the states) and adjusted unemployment tax rates (seventh lowest), as well as 10th for best top corporate capital gains tax rates (with first meaning lowest and 50th highest); 14th for lowest sales, gross-receipts and excise taxes; 6th for lowest top personal income tax rates; 18th for top capital gains tax rates as well as for gas taxes; and 19th for state and local property taxes. (04/11)

Colorado Springs ranked 8th by fDiIntelligence.com in the Top 10 Large Cities FDI Strategy category. The ranking is based upon number of staff dedicated to promote and facilitate inward investment and systems / programs in place, key initiatives implemented, high-growth sectors / sub-sectors, incentives available, major infrastructure and urban planning projects. (04/11)

Colorado ranked 3rd in the national for wind energy jobs in 2010 according to the American Wind Energy Association. More than 5,000 Coloradans are employed in the wind energy industry, up from less than 2,000 in 2010. (04/11)

Colorado ranked 3rd Smartest State by CNNMoney.com. The ranking is based on a weighted score reflecting four different education-level statistics for each state: the percentage of the population (age 25 and older) that has less than a high-school degree, some college, a Bachelor's degree, or a Master's or professional degree. (03/11)

Colorado Springs ranked 4th Least Angry City in America according to Men’sHealth. The survey calculated the number of aggravated assaults per capita (FBI), the number of people with high blood pressure (CDC), the amount of time spent in traffic during rush hour (Texas Transportation Institute), and the number of anger-management specialists per capita (American Psychological Association). (03/11)

Colorado Springs made the top 16 of Forbes Best Retirement Cities. The study looked at populations starting at around 100,000, looking at a lot of issues besides costs. Issues included weather, availability of doctors, driving environment, crime rates and opportunities for an active retirement, which we defined by the extent of volunteering and outdoor paths for bicycling and walking, affordable housing, low cost of living, safe streets. (03/11)

Colorado ranked 5th Happiest State in the Nation by Gallup-Healthways Well-Being Index. The ranking is based on life evaluation, emotional health, work environment, physical health, healthy behaviors, and basic access to clean water, medicine, food, shelter, healthcare, etc. (03/11)

Colorado Springs was named as one of the top 12 Distinctive Destinations by The National Trust for Historic Preservation. The National Trust’s list recognizes communities that offer cultural and recreational experiences different from the typical vacation destination. (02/11)

Colorado Springs ranked 8th in CNNMoney.com’s Housing Markets: Best Recovery Bet. Demand for housing has grown along with the population. That rose almost 17% from 2000 through 2009, faster than the national average of just over 9%. (02/11)

Colorado ranked 3rd in the Nation for its Investment in Technology and Science Assets according to the Milliken Institute. Colorado’s strongest performance was in the technology concentration and dynamism component, where it ranked second. Colorado climbed six places to sixth in the number of Inc. 500 companies per 10,000 business establishments. These fast-growing, job-creating firms have led to its ascension in technology concentration and dynamism. (01/11)

Colorado ranked 2nd Relocation Destination by Allied Van Lines. Analysts cited Colorado's quality of life and relatively low unemployment rate as reasons that more people are moving to the state than are moving out. (01/11)