Rochester Rankings
The Greater Rochester, NY region has been consistently ranked as one of the best places to live and work.
Photo by Don Race
What is Rochester, NY Known For?
When you list all the things the Greater Rochester, NY region has to offer, it may seem a bit unbelievable. But the reality is, our region really does have it all. Top-tier talent, natural resources, world-class colleges and universities, great location near major markets, and an affordable cost of living. That’s why companies like fairlife, Creation Technologies, and Toyota Material Handling recently made multimillion-dollar investments in new operations right here in our community. They recognize that Rochester offers great opportunities.
Photo credit: Zackary Laffin / Monroe County
Achieve a Work/Life Balance in One of the Best Regions in America
Business
Top Metro in US for Future Growth
Rochester is the top metro in the US for future growth and strategic investment in tech innovation.
Source: MIT Economics, 2019
Top 10 Best Business Climate
The Rochester, NY region was named to Business Facilities’ list of Top 10 Best Business Climates among mid-sized metros. This ranking is based on growth potential, talent pipeline, quality of life, and affordability.
Source: Business Facilities, August 2024
Where College Grads Are Landing Jobs
A recent study conducted by ADP, highlighted in The Wall Street Journal, positions the Greater Rochester, NY metro among the top places where young professionals are successfully landing jobs. This impressive ranking is a testament to Rochester’s strength in key areas, including affordability, competitive wages, and a thriving job market for young professionals. The methodology involved crunching public cost-of-living data and ADP payroll data for over five million U.S. workers in their 20s, ultimately combining hiring rates for jobs typically requiring a degree with affordability-adjusted wages to establish the final list.
Source: ADP study reported in The Wall Street Journal, July 2025
Technology
Top 5 Patent-Producing Major Metro
Rochester is ranked #5 in the U.S. among major metros for patents issued per 1,000 workers
Source: U.S. Patent and Trademark Office 2022
Education
9 Rochester Area High Schools Rank Among Top 10% in US
In U.S. News and World Report’s 2024 evaluation of 17,650 public high schools, 9 schools in the Greater Rochester, N.Y. region are among the top 10 percent. They are Pittsford Mendon (335), Pittsford Sutherland (394), Honeoye Falls-Lima Senior (599), Brighton (769), Geneseo Middle School High School (1,151), Victor Senior (1,182), Fairport Senior (1,238), LeRoy Junior-Senior (1,576), and [Webster] Thomas (1,604)
Living and Culture
2nd Most Affordable City for Housing
Rochester, NY was named the second most affordable city for housing, according to Demographia International Housing Affordability report. Demographia International Housing Affordability uses the “median multiple” to rate middle-income housing affordability. The median multiple is a price-to-income ratio, which is the median house price divided by the gross median household income.
Source: Demographia International Housing Affordability report 2024
6th Most Affordable City to Buy a Home
Forbes ranked Rochester, NY the 6th most affordable city to buy a home. They looked at several factors to gauge affordability, including the median income of that city, average home costs and median real estate taxes.
Source: Forbes 2022
9th Best Place to Live in the U.S. for Quality of Life
According to U.S. News & World Report, Rochester is the 9th Best Place to Live in the U.S. for Quality of Life. Rochester’s people and welcoming community contributed to this ranking.
Source: U.S. News & World Report 2023
Rochester Homes 36% More Affordable than the National Average
At $268,400, the median home sales price is 36% more affordable than the national average.
Source: NAHB Cost of Housing Index (Q3 2024)
Rochester is ranked the 15th Large Vibrant Arts Community
Among the top 40 most arts vibrant communities, Rochester, NY is ranked the 15th, according to SMU DataArts Arts Vibrancy Index
Recreation
Letchworth State Park Ranks 4th Best State Park in the US
Letchworth State Park, also known as the “Grand Canyon of the East” was recently named one of the best state parks in the US according to “Time Out.”
(March 2024)
We have inherited an exceptional quality of life thanks to an impressive cluster of cultural organizations, unparalleled natural resources, and a resilient and welcoming spirit of community.
David Munson
President, RIT
You know your business.
We know Greater Rochester.
Let’s team up.
Photo by John Kucko
Thank You To Our Investors
High tech companies know Rochester as the optics mecca in the United States.
Matt Sydor
Vice President, Sales and Compliance, Sydor Optics
Rochester is the right place for a manufacturer like Pfisterer. We found an affordable, suitable manufacturing site, a skilled and motivated workforce, excellent infrastructure and a city with an excellent standard of living.
Marcus Horn
President, North America, Pfisterer
At Toyota Material Handling North America, which is comprised of two main group companies – Toyota Material Handling and The Raymond Corporation – we are committed to leading the way in energy innovation. We believe that the Greater Rochester, NY region shares that commitment, and is the ideal location to establish our cutting-edge energy storage and fuel cell development center.
Jennifer Lupo
Vice President of Energy Solutions, Supply Chain, and Leasing, The Raymond Corporation
Rochester has a great work base. They’re loyal. They’re smart. They’re well educated and they want to succeed.
Jim Continenza
Executive Chairman and CEO, Eastman Kodak
The presence of excellent educational institutions in the area provides a valuable talent pool and opportunities for collaboration.
Jeff Mickel
Project Manager – Genesee, Edwards, Part of the Atlas Copco Group
Rochester has the manufacturing capability, testing capability, and intellectual horsepower.
Matt Fronk
Past Chairman, NY BEST
Rochester has a deep talent pool around all of the things that we need to do to commercialize advanced materials for the energy economy.
Ben Britton
Co-Founder and Chief Strategy Officer, Ionomr
The decision to expand locally was a relatively easy one for CooperVision. The Rochester area has provided so many of the elements necessary for a successful operation.
Jerry Warner
President, CooperVision
The proximity to top colleges and industry-leading companies, in addition to the quality of life in Western New York, made the decision to open our second office in Rochester an easy one.
Mike Pinch
Director, Security Risk Advisors
Rochester is world famous for precision optics manufacturing and photonics.
Jennifer Cable
President, Thorlabs
We have a long history of people skilled in aerospace technology and precision optical assembly. We take advantage of the industrial base in the Rochester area. We also take advantage of the skill sets developed by our local technical institutions like MCC, RIT, or the University of Rochester.”
Tony Whitman
Cryogenic Optical Test Director for James Webb Space Telescope, L3 Harris
Rochester loves Rochester…people support local small businesses.
Paul Guglielmo
Owner & CEO of Craft Cannery
Once people get here and their families get used to short commute times, low home prices, the fact we have all kinds of recreational sporting activities, the quality of schools, they don’t want to leave.
Arunas Chesonis
CEO and Chairman, Sweetwater Energy
Rochester has provided ID Signsystems with the ability to grow and develop by tapping into the region’s large pool of design-focused talent, technicians, engineers and sign makers.
Paul Dudley
President, ID Signsystems
Our network of local universities, colleges, and optics companies has created a workforce pipeline that is unmatched anywhere in the United States.
Joseph Spilman
CEO, Optimax
GRE’s direction and guidance proved to be well worth our investment. Their passion to make the business environment in the Rochester area greater is very apparent.
Scott MacCaull
Workplace Interiors
There is unlimited, untapped technical talent in the area and I hope we start a wave of other companies moving to Rochester.
Austin McChord
Founder, Datto
Rochester has a long history of being a hub for telecommunications. There is a rich ecosystem of talent and services to support business growth.
Jai Ramachandran
Founder and CEO, Wire3
Rochester is the perfect size city to get business done. I’m always one connection away from anything I’m looking for.
Zack Phillips
President, Kink BMX
We have access to talent graduating from our businesses and technical institutions capable of perpetuating our success for years to come.
Marc Iacona
President & CEO, Simcona Electronics
The Rochester region provided convenient access to both railroads and major highways, as well as proximity to Barilla’s customer base in the Northeast.
Fabio Pettenati
Vice President of Supply Chain, Barilla America
We’re excited about this area. There’s high-quality milk in the region. There’s a lot of top talent. The industry, the innovation, the technical experience , the work ethic is all attractive to us.
Phil LaMothe
Vice President of Manufacturing, fairlife
The country is starting to recognize Rochester as a technical city outside of just software. We have optics and manufacturing that’s exceeding most of the baselines around the country.
Craig Lamb
Co-owner, Envative
Rochester has the resources optics companies need to transform their concepts into reality.
Dr. Duncan T. Moore
Vice Provost for Entrepreneurship and Professor of Optical Engineering
Rochester has a great base of intellectual capital in the science and technology fields at local businesses and universities.
Daniel J. Burns
Area Executive for Upstate NY, Western NY, and Pennsylvania, M&T Bank Corporation
We’ve developed vaccines to prevent cervical cancer right here in Rochester.
Peter Robinson
Vice President and COO, University of Rochester Medical Center
Among many great options, none could match Rochester in terms of talent, local supplier networks, and opportunities to partner with top-tier research institutions.
Andy Marsh
CEO, Plug Power
There is an incredible hotbed of talent in Rochester.
Jeff Mucha
CEO and Managing Partner, EEP Quality Group