The 2011 Milken Institute Best-Performing Cities Index ranks U.S. metropolitan areas by how well they are creating and sustaining jobs and economic growth. The components include job, wage and salary, and technology growth. In most years, these give a good indication of the underlying structural performance of regional economics. The full report can be downloaded here.  

• Scroll over the map below to see the ranked metros in each state and click through for more metro-specific data in that state.
• Click through the full list of ranked metros (see additional tabs for full list) on the left for job growth, wage and salary and other data.
• Find a specific metro by typing in any part of the metro name in the table below.
• Compare metro data side by side with another metro of your choice.
• Best-Performing Cities time series - see how regional and national economic trends have shaped the top 20 rankings since 1999.