Regional Accolades

Although Burlington, Vermont is fairly small, it doesn't go unnoticed. Ranked one of America's "Smallest Big Cities," (population: 42,417), both Burlington and the state of Vermont have been gaining attention in the news and media.

Burlington's biggest achievement is its growing industry and its ability to provide jobs. Home to big companies like IBM and UVM Medical Center, and local businesses like Lake Champlain Chocolates, Ben & Jerry's, Dealer.com and Seventh Generation, Burlington is filled with numerous job opportunities. Ranked in the top cities with low unemployment rates by 24/7 Wall Street and ranked as the #2 "Happiest and Healthiest State in the U.S.," Burlington is the place for undergraduates.

Here are just some of the awards Burlington and Vermont have won:

2020 Regional Accolades 

2019 Regional Accolades

2018 Regional Accolades

  • BURLINGTON IN THE TOP 40 MOST VIBRANT ARTS COMMUNITIES IN AMERICA: The National Center for Arts Research at the Southern Methodist University
  • #1 BEST STATE TO LIVE IN AMERICA: CNBC ranked Vermont its top place to live in the United States. Our quality of life, low crime, and overall health is the highest in the nation.
  • ONE OF THE BEST STATES TO LIVE: Vermont was ranked as the ninth best state to live in 2018 by U.S. News & World Report.
  • BEST SKI RESORTS IN THE EAST 2018: Smugglers' Notch (#1), Sugarbush (#2), Mount Snow (#3), Jay Peak (#5), Mad River Glen (#6), Stowe (#8), and Okemo (#9) were all named in a reader-ranked survey of the the top 10 resorts in the East—and all of those are in Vermont.
  • BEST SNOW IN THE EAST 2018: Jay Peak (#1), Smugglers' Notch (#3), Mount Snow (#4), Okemo (#5), and Sugarbush (#6) were all named in a reader-ranked survey of the the top 10 resorts for snow quality in the East.
  • BEST CHALLENGE IN THE EAST 2018: Mad River Glen (#1), Smugglers' Notch (#3), Jay Peak (#5), Stowe (#6), Sugarbush (#8), and Killington (#9) were all named in Ski magazine's reader-ranked survey of the the top 10 most challenging ski resorts in the East.

2017 Regional Accolades

  • #2 HAPPIEST AND HEALTHIEST STATES IN THE U.S.: Vermont ranked second in the Gallup-Sharecare Well-Being Index in 2017.
  • 2017'S TOP SAFEST CITIES IN AMERICA: Burlington and South Burlington, Vermont, were both named among "2017's Top Safest Cities in America" by WalletHub.
  • ONE OF THE BEST MUSIC SCENES: Burlington was chosen as one of the 50 best college towns with the best music scenes! 
  • TOP 100 BEST PLACES TO LIVE: Burlington is among the Top 100 Best Places to Live according to Livability.com, one of the leading online resources used for researching communities in America. 

2016 Regional Accolades

  • ONE OF THE SAFEST PLACES: Vermont was named the #1 "Safest State in America" by WalletHub.
  • A CULTURE FOR ART: Matador, the largest independent travel publisher, named Vermont #2 in their ranking of "Most Artsy States" in the U.S. 
  • #8 U.S. CITY TO SPEND THE WEEKEND: Burlington was named #8 of the "25 Best Small U.S. Cities to Spend the Weekend" by Thrillist.
  • TOP SMALL STATES FOR SMALL BUSINESS ACTIVITY: The Kauffman Index of Main Street Entrepreneurship ranked Vermont among the top small states for business activity. 

2015 Regional Accolades

2014 Regional Accolades

2013 Regional Accolades

  • THE BEST COLLEGE TOWN: Burlington was ranked #1 on Travel + Leisure's "America's Best College Towns."
  • A GIG CITY: As part of US Ignite's non-profit initiative, Burlington has been named one of 25 'Gig Cities' in the country.
  • TOP CITY FOR TECH INNOVATION: Burlington was named an "Underrated Tech Hub to Watch" by Brookings' patent and innovation research.  
  • A GREAT PLACE TO LIVE:  Burlington was ranked #2 on Kiplinger's Top 10 Greatest Places to Live.
  • TOP ADVENTURE TOWN: Voted #14 in the list of Top 100 Adventure Towns by National Geographic Adventure magazine.
  • HAPPIEST: Vermont has been ranked among the Happiest States in the country.
  • THE COUNTRY'S SAFEST DRIVING: Vermont has been rated as having the country's safest driving.
  • TOP STATE FOR QUALITY OF LIFE: Vermont was rated America's #2 "Top State for Quality of Life" by CNBC.

2012  Regional Accolades

2011 Regional Accolades

  • BEST DOWNTOWN: Burlington was named "One of America's Best Downtowns" by Forbes Magazine.
  • FOODIE PARADISE:  Burlington was ranked #3 in CNBC's "Top 10 Best Cities for Foodies."
  • BEST OUTDOOR RECREATION: Outdoor Magazine named Burlington one of the Top 10 Cities for Outdoor Recreation.

2010 Regional Accolades

  • PRETTIEST CITY: Forbes  Magazine ranked Burlington #2 out of 20 for "America's Prettiest Cities."
  • A CITY FOR THE NEXT DECADE: Kiplinger's named Burlington #8 on the "10 Best Cities for the Next Decade."
  • VOLUNTEER EFFORTS: The Corporation for National and Community Service named Burlington in the Top 10 cities for its volunteer efforts in America.