By: Donald V. Watkins
Copyrighted and Published on November 20, 2024
An Editorial Opinion
The Milken Institute is an independent economic think tank based in Santa Monica, California, with offices in Washington, D.C., New York, Miami, London, Abu Dhabi, and Singapore. The Institute publishes annual rankings of the Best-Performing Cities (BPC) in the U.S.
The BPC rankings for 2024 evaluate the performance of 403 metropolitan areas across the U.S. based on 13 indicators that cover labor market conditions, high-tech impact, and access to economic opportunities. The 13 indicators used for the 2024 rankings are depicted in the chart below:
The Institute ranked 200 large cities and 203 small cities. Huntsville, Birmingham, Montgomery, and Mobile, Alabama are listed among the 200 large cities.
Rankings for Large Alabama Cities
In 2024, Huntsville ranked No. 16, Montgomery ranked No. 150, Mobile ranked No. 151, and Birmingham ranked No. 158.
Montgomery improved its ranking from No. 167 in 2022 to No. 165 in 2023, and to 150 in 2024.
In contrast, Birmingham’s rankings dropped from No. 104 in 2022 to No. 110 in 2023, and to No. 158 in 2024.
Likewise, Mobile's rankings dropped from No. 122 in 2022 to No. 139 in 2023, and to No. 151 in 2024.
Huntsville ranked No. 12 in 2022, No. 40 in 2023, and No. 16 in 2024.
Birmingham Continues to Lead the State of Alabama in Negative Rankings
In 2024, online financial website WalletHub.com ranked Birmingham as the worst-run city in Alabama.
In 2024, Forbes magazine ranked Birmingham as the No. 3 most dangerous city in the U.S.
The Milken Institute’s poor economic ranking for Birmingham adds to the city's growing constellation of negative rankings.
Do Any of These Negative Rankings Matter to the Residents of Birmingham?
According to the objective rankings by respected financial organizations and think tanks, Birmingham is the worst-performing city in the state and the city’s performance rankings are getting worse.
The only relevant question at this point is this: Do the residents of Birmingham even care about the city’s rapidly deteriorating economic, public safety, and mismanagement conditions?