In recent years, Greater St. Louis has earned national recognition as having a favorable business climate with a competitive cost of doing business and a highly skilled work force. A wide array of area companies have been recognized as being among the nation’s largest privately held companies, the best places to work, the fastest growing, and more. 

In addition to a strong business environment, St. Louis’ transportation, research & development, health care, education, and quality of life have also gained national recognition.  

A sampling of St. Louis’ ratings and rankings recently received are highlighted below. 

Doing Business

Lowest Business Costs – Large Metros
St. Louis MSA (7th)
– KPMG Competitive Alternatives, 2008

America’s 50 Hottest Cities
– Expansion Management, 2007

200 Largest Metro Areas
St. Louis (27th)
– Forbes, April 2006

Best Places for Business and Career
St. Louis MSA (67th)
– Forbes, April 23, 2007

Top Metropolitan Area
St. Louis MSA (3rd)
– Site Selection, March 2008

Best Place to Do Business
St. Louis MSA (44th)
– Inc., 2005

Top 20 Large Counties for Recruitment & Attraction
St. Louis County, MO
 – Expansion Management, 2007

Best Cities for Jobs
St. Louis MSA (81st)
– Forbes, 2007

Top 500 Information Companies
A.G. Edwards*
Ameren Corp.
Amdocs Ltd.
Anheuser-Busch Cos. Inc.
Arch Coal
Charter Communications
Emerson
Enterprise-Rent-A-Car
Graybar Electric
Maritz
Monsanto Co.
Savvis Inc.
Scottrade
Solutia
UniGroup
– InformationWeek 500, 2007
* Now Wachovia Securities

Transportation

Five-Star Knowledge Worker Metro
Five-Star Logistics Metro
– Expansion Management, 2007

Top Logistics Metros
St. Louis MSA – (2nd Best Logistics Metro)
St. Louis MSA – (5th Best Interstate Highway Connectivity)
St. Louis MSA – (5th Best Railroad Service)
– Expansion Management, 2007

Least Amount of Road Rage
St. Louis MSA (4th)
– “In the Driver’s Seat Road Rage Survey,” AutoVantage, May 2007

Least Miserable Airport in America
Lambert-St. Louis International Airport (7th)
– U.S. News and World Report, 2008

Research & Development

Greatest Overall Strength and Growth in Biotechnology
Missouri (14th)
– Business Facilities, 2006

Top Cities with the Highest Number of Buildings Designed to Minimize Environmental Impact
St. Louis MSA (7th)
– U.S. Green Building Council, July 2006

Leader in Nanotechnology Venture Funding
Missouri (4th)
– Small Times Magazine, July/August 2006

Health Care

America's 50 Best Hospitals Award
St. Luke's Hospital
– HealthGrades, 2008

America’s Best Hospitals
Barnes-Jewish Hospital/Washington University (9th)
– U.S. News & World Report, 2007

Best Pediatric Hospital in the Nation
St. Louis Children’s Hospital (7th)
– Child, 2007

America's Best Children's Hospitals
St. Louis Children’s Hospital (15th)
– U.S. News & World Report, 2007

Thompson 100 Top Teaching Hospitals
SSM St. Mary's Health Center
– Thompson, 2006

Solucient Top 100 Hospital: National Benchmarks for Success
Barnes-Jewish Hospital
St. Luke’s Hospital
– Modern Healthcare, 2006

Primaris Hospital Quality Award
St. John's Mercy Medical Center
– Primaris, 2006

Consumer Choice Award
Barnes-Jewish Hospital
– National Research Corporation, 2006/07

Malcolm Baldrige National Quality Award
SSM Healthcare
– National Institute of Standards and Technology, 2002

Missouri Quality Award
SSM Cardinal Glennon Children’s Hospital
– Excellence in Missouri Foundation, 2004

Best Fertility Center in the Nation
Infertility Center of St. Louis at St. Luke’s Hospital
– Child, 2005

Health-Care Startup Investment (Midwest Region)
Illinois (1st)
Missouri (4th)
– BioEnterprise, 2006

Education

Nation’s Best Medical Research School
Washington University in St. Louis (3rd) with top ten specialties in:
Occupational Therapy (1st)
Physical Therapy (2nd)
Audiology (5th)
Pediatrics (7th)
Internal Medicine (8th)
– "America's Best Graduate Schools," U.S. News & World Report, 2009

America's Best Graduate Schools
Saint Louis University's Health Law (1st)
– U.S. News & World Report, 2009

Best National Universities
Washington University in St. Louis (12th)
Saint Louis University (82nd)
– U.S. News & World Report, 2008

Best Business Programs
Olin School of Business at Washington University (12th)
– U.S. News & World Report, 2008

Best Undergrad Business Schools
Olin School of Business at Washington University (15th)
John Cook School of Business at Saint Louis University (71st)
– BusinessWeek, March 2008

Best Baccalaureate College
McKendree University (18th)
Greenville College (26th)
– "America's Best Graduate Schools," U.S. News & World Report, 2008

Best Universities-Master’s (Midwest division)
Webster University (26th)
Maryville University (29th)
Southern Illinois University at Edwardsville (46th)
– U.S. News & World Report, 2008

Top 25 Entrepreneurship Programs for Undergraduates
Saint Louis University
– Fortune Small Business

Top International Business Programs
University of Missouri–St. Louis (8th)
– U.S. News & World Report, 2007

Most Literate City in America
St. Louis MSA (6th)
– Central Connecticut State University, 2007

Best Library Services
St. Louis Public Library (2nd)
– Central Connecticut State University, 2007

Quality of Life

Most Affordable Places to Live Well
St. Louis MSA (4th)
– Forbes, 2007

Four-Star Quality of Life Metro
St. Louis MSA (4th)
– Expansion Management, 2007

Best City for Young Professionals
St. Louis MSA (14th)
– Forbes, June 2007

Best Cities for Relocating Families – Large Metros
St. Louis MSA (9th)
– Worldwide ERC and Primacy Relocation, 2007

100 Best Places to Live
O'Fallon, MO – St. Charles County (39th)
– Money, 2006

50 Smart Places to Live
St. Louis MSA (18th)
– Kiplinger's Personal Finance, 2006

Best Cities for Singles
St. Louis MSA (9th)
– Forbes, 2007

Most Affordable U.S. Real Estate Market
St. Louis MSA (7th)
– Forbes, August 2007

Ten Great Streets in America
Delmar Loop in University City and St. Louis
– American Planning Association, Great Places in America Program, 2007

25 Best Affordable Suburbs in the U.S.
St. Charles, MO
– BusinessWeek, 2006

Most Affordable City for Health Insurance
St. Louis MSA (1st - Children’s Health Insurance)
St. Louis MSA (9th - Family’s Health Insurance)
– eHealthInsurance.com, 2006

Top Midwest City Zoo
St. Louis Zoo (1st)
– Chicago Tribune, July 2007

World’s 10 Best Public Spaces
St. Louis City Museum
– Project for Public Spaces, 2005

Best Art Fair in the Nation
Art on the Square in Belleville, IL (5th)
– Art Fair Source Book, 2006

Top Fine Art Show in the Country
St. Louis Art Fair in Clayton, MO (1st)
– Harris List, 2006

Safest City from Food Borne Diseases
St. Louis MSA (2nd)
– Men's Health, February 2008