Charlotte’s Rankings and Accolades

Charlotte added more people over the past year than any other U.S. city, according to a new U.S. Census report. (Charlotte Observer, May)

Charlotte's Gallery restaurant has earned a 2026 Forbes Travel Guide Star award, one of the world's top dining honors. (Charlotte Observer, May)

Six Charlotte neighborhoods rank among the top 10 nicest places to live in North Carolina, according to Niche. (Charlotte Observer, May)

Charlotte-Douglas International Airport ranks seventh in a preliminary ACI report, maintaining its position among the busiest airports in North America and globally for passenger traffic. (CLT Airport, April)

Moving company MoveBuddha has ranked the Charlotte metro as the “stickiest” city in the country. The study finds that residents in Charlotte are more likely to stay than to move away. (WSOC-TV, April)

UNC Charlotte saw gains in the 2026 U.S. News & World Report Best Graduate Schools rankings, with business, engineering and public affairs programs all moving up. The Belk College of Business has the top-ranked part-time MBA program among public universities in North Carolina. (UNC Charlotte, April)

Charlotte ranks among the top cities in the U.S. for future-readiness, according to the Geography of Prosperity Index, a national index developed by Motivf and Human Change. (Prosperity, March)

Etihad Airways, the national airline of the United Arab Emirates, has launched North Carolina's first nonstop flight to the Middle East, connecting Charlotte Douglas International Airport with Abu Dhabi. (CLT Airport, March)

The Pearl, Charlotte's first innovation district, has earned a 2026 CoStar Impact Award for commercial development of the year. The awards are judged by independent professionals in the market. CoStar says the public-private partnership project's fast start and long-term outlook earned it the award. (CoStar, March)

According to new U.S. Census Bureau estimates, between July 2024 and July 2025, Charlotte was the fifth fastest growing U.S. metro, adding 54,122 residents. The region’s population was 2.9 million. (Axios Charlotte, March)

Charlotte job boom is driving an steady increase in office leasing activity, according to reports. Between February 2025 and February 2026, Charlotte saw its highest 12-month leasing total since early 2020, a 25% year-over-year increase. (CoStar, March)

Charlotte moved up one spot to No. 9 on CommercialCafe’s 2026 list of the top 20 tech hubs in the South. (Charlotte Business Journal, February)

Charlotte Douglas International Airport welcomed 53.6 million passengers in 2025, marking its second-busiest year on record, according to new data. (Charlotte Observer, February)

In 2025, the Charlotte region added more jobs than any other metro area in the country except New York City, bucking a national trend toward slower hiring, according to new U.S. Labor Department statistics. (Charlotte Ledger, February)

North Carolina has been named the 2025 State of the Year by Business Facilities magazine, recognizing the state’s strong business climate and continued success in attracting investment and creating jobs statewide. (Business Facilities, January)

A Rentcafe analysis places Charlotte #3 among markets with the fastest growth in affordable apartment construction for 2020-24, with an increase of nearly 191%. Over the period, the Charlotte market added more than 6,000 new affordable apartments. (Rentcafe, January)

A new analysis of Fortune 1000 companies per capita shows Charlotte outperforms most major metro areas in the country. (Charlotte Regional Business Alliance, January)

Charlotte's visitor economy generated a record $1.2 billion in economic impact for fiscal year 2025, according to CRVA's Impact Report. (Axios Charlotte, January)

For the fifth consecutive year, UNC Charlotte has ranked among the nation's top 10 colleges for online bachelor's degree programs, according to U.S. News & World Report's 2026 online rankings. The Charlotte region's public university ranks #4 overall and #1 in North Carolina. (UNC Charlotte, January)

Yet gain, the James Beard Awards have a Charlotte chef in its sights. Robin Anthony, executive chef at Omakase by Prime Fish, is a James Beard Award 2026 Semifinalist for the Best Chef Southeast. James Beard Awards are among the most recognizable honor for restaurants. (Charlotte Observer, January) 

For 2025, Charlotte was among the fastest-growing large metropolitan areas in the country for job growth, according to Piedmont Crescent Capital’s chief economist. The region added nearly 40,000 net new jobs over the past 12 months. (Charlotte Business Journal, January) 

Customer sentiment in Charlotte is among the highest among 47 U.S. markets surveyed in the quarterly Metropolitan Consumer Sentiment Index. (Charlotte Business Journal, January) 

Charlotte tops CNBC’s Power City Indexes, with seven Charlotte-based companies seeing stocks rise more than 20% in 2025. (CNBC, January)

Charlotte ranks #4 on U-Haul Growth Index for 2025. This is the second consecutive year the Queen City has landed as a top 5 region for do-it-yourself movers. (Business Wire, January)

Based on updated talent metrics, Site Selection magazine has named North Carolina the #1 state for workforce development for 2026. (Site Selection, January)

Charlotte is #3 on real estate website Zillow's list of the most buyer-friendly large housing markets of 2026. Top-ranked markets stand out for affordability, lower competition and expected growth ahead. (Financial Times, January)

For the second year in a row, Charlotte ranks #2 on Site Selection magazine’s survey of top locations for headquarters deals. The ranking is part of the publication’s 2026 Site Selectors Survey, which pulls from 30 of the country’s leading national site consultants. (Site Selection, January)

The City of Charlotte has placed in the top five among large U.S. cities for its work using innovative technology to improve constituent services, according to a Center for Digital Governments survey. (City of Charlotte, December)

For the fourth consecutive year, Charlotte has landed on the top 10 Housing Hot Spots list. The 2026 report notes Charlotte’s “winning formula”: young buyers, strong jobs and more listings. (National Association of Realtors, December)

For the second consecutive year, Charlotte Regional Visitors Authority has set records for revenue and tourism-related spending. According to a report, events recruited and booked or held at city-owned venues between July 2024 and June 2025 generated $1.2 billion in economic impact. (Charlotte Business Journal, December)

On average, A WalletHub analysis has placed Charlotte’s housing market third among 68 large cities and 12th overall. The ranking is based on 17 metrics based on the market, affordability and the economic environment. (Charlotte Business Journal, September)

UNC Charlotte has achieved its highest-ever ranking among public institutions in U.S. News & World Report’s 2026 Best College rankings.(Queen City News, September)

Six companies based in the Charlotte region are among the best in the country for tech workers, according to list from Forbes and market research firm Statista (News & Observer, September)

Charlotte ranks as the second-busiest city nationwide for new apartments planned this year, projected to add 16,995 new apartments, more than Raleigh, Durham, Wilmington and Asheville combined (WCCB, September)

On average, 157 people are moving to the Charlotte region each day, according to a Charlotte Regional Business Alliance report (WSOC, August)

Fifteen Charlotte region high schools have earned spots among the top 50 in North Carolina, according to U.S. News & World Report rankings (Charlotte Observer, August)

A study from Lawn Love ranked the top cities for tree huggers, and the Queen City made the top five (WCNC, August)

Firms based in the Charlotte region grabbed 53 spots on the Inc. 5000 list of the fastest-growing private firms in America (Charlotte Business Journal, August)

Charlotte has the #3 best large real estate market in the U.S. (Wallethub, August)

North Carolina is again named the top state for business by CNBC (WSOC, July)

Charlotte ranks as a Top 10 Best U.S. City for job opportunities and earnings potential (Checkr, July)

Charlotte is a Top 10 city in U.S. for tech job gains based on CompTIAs report with 6.7% of the areas total workforce employed in the tech sector (Charlotte Business Journal, July)

Nineteen companies based in the Charlotte region make the 2025 Fortune 1000 list (Charlote Regional Business Alliance, June)

Charlotte ranks as one of the Top 10 most liveable U.S. cities and top 50 in the world, according to the Economists Intelligence Units 2025 rankings (Newsweek, June)

Charlotte, with its strength in financial services and fintech hub and high concentration of population with bachelors degrees, ranks a top 10 best city for new college graduates (Zumper Rentals, June)

Charlotte ranks as the No. 2 fastest growing large city in the U.S. since 2020, growing by an average of more than 17,000 people annually (Charlotte Observer, May)

Charlotte is 1 of 5 North Carolina communities to receive the 2024 Tree City USA Growth Award for sound urban forestry management (N.C. Forestry Service, April)

Charlotte Douglas International Airport is now the sixth busiest airport in the world (CLT Airport, April)

Charlotte ranks among the Top 10 Best Big Cities to Live in the nation (U.S. News & World Report, May)

Charlotte is the fourth best large city in the U.S. for women in tech (CoWorkingCafe, March)

AAA ranks Charlotte among the top 10 domestic spring break destinations (Queen City News, March)

Charlotte has more than 30 A+ neighborhoods (Niche, March)

The Queen City ranks 12th among 100 large U.S. cities for Black-owned businesses (Charlotte Business Journal, February)

Charlotte is one of the Top 10 Most Diverse Cities in the U.S. (WalletHub, February)

UNC Charlotte ranks No. 3 in the nation in U.S. News & World Report’s 2025 Best Online Bachelor’s Degrees rankings. (UNC Charlotte, January)

Three Charlotte restaurants were recognized as 2025 James Beard Foundation semifinalists (Axios Charlotte, January)

More than 1,000 international businesses call the Charlotte region home, and since 2022 these companies have invested more than $2 billion in foreign capital into the city and have created over 5,000 new jobs. (Charlotte Observer, January)

Charlotte ranks 3rd among 50 cities for economic mobility progress (Opportunity Insights, January)

Charlotte ranks as the #1 fastest-growing sports market in the North America (WRHI, December)

The Queen City attracts more than 30 million tourists annually (Charlotte Regional Visitors Authority, December)

Charlotte ranks among U.S. News & World Report's top 10 Best Places to Retire in the U.S. (Charlotte Observer, November)

Charlotte is one of the top 10 best cities for young professionals (Careertransitions.com, November)

Charlotte ranks in the top 10 for business climate and for tech talent in Business Facilities 20th annual rankings (Business Facilities, July)

U.S. News & World Report has ranked Charlotte fifth out of 150 major cities for the best place to live in the U.S. (WCNC, May)

Charlotte’s South End is ranked by MPF Research as the #1 fastest growing apartment submarket in America. (Charlotte Stories, March)

For the first time in over a decade, the Charlotte region ranks as one of the Milken Institutes Top 10 Best Performing Large Cities for sustainable growth and resilience. (Axios Charlotte, February)

Forbes has named the City of Charlotte to its 2023 list of Americas Best-in-State Employers (City of Charlotte, 2023)

The Queen City is the No. 3 best city for sports businesses in the U.S., according to the Sports Business Journal (WCNC, 2023)

Charlotte ranks as the No. 2 best metro for Black entrepreneurs, according to an analysis of prevalence, success and financial health of Black-owned businesses. Charlotte stood out for its above-average presence of Black-owned businesses and its welcoming environment for new businesses (Travel Noire, 2023)

Charlotte earned a top 10 spot on a national list of places where Black residents fare the best economically (News & Observer, 2022)

Charlotte ranks as the No. 1 major city across the world for tree coverage, according to a study from Swedish manufacturer Husqvarna. (Herald Scotland, 2021)

Chalotte ranks No. 3 among the nations 75 most populous cities in a Financial State of the Cities report that analyzes political leadership that values honesty, sustainability and financial responsibility (The Center Square, 2020)

The Charlotte Region is one of the best metros for overall outcomes for Black women, according to a study from the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health. (Bloomberg, 2020)

A report from Yelp ranks Charlotte, based on success in restaurants and the wider food industry as the No. 1 most up-and-coming city in the U.S. (Time, 2018)