This North Carolina city was just named the most beautiful and affordable in America 

From big cities to small towns, a local city was named as the most beautiful and affordable place to live in the country — Hickory.

Travel + Leisure magazine released a study of the top ten cities using data from U.S. News & World Report’s latest rankings based on cost of living, median home prices and quality of life.

According to the magazine, the median price for homes in Hickory is $161,000, making it the most affordable place to live in the U.S.

But aside from being the cheapest, Hickory also topped the list for its variety of hiking trails and Southern charm.

Hickory is about one hour’s drive from Charlotte, accessed by Interstate 85 south and N.C. Hwy. 321, heading north from Gastonia.

“This affordable neighbor to the east of Asheville and north of Charlotte is popular with retirees, but it’s also becoming more attractive to young families; a steady stream of residents has been flocking here for its newfound fame as a technological hub for Google and Apple,” Travel + Leisure wrote.

Nestled in the middle of the two tech giants’ buildings, Hickory is about 17 miles away from Google’s data center in Lenoir and 13 miles away from Apple’s data center is Maiden.

Here’s a full list of the cities named the most beautiful and affordable:

1. Hickory, North Carolina

2. Grand Rapids, Michigan

3. Greenville, South Carolina

4. Louisville, Kentucky

5. Knoxville, Tennessee

6. St. Louis, Missouri

7. Dallas-Fort Worth, Texas

8. Raleigh-Durham, North Carolina

9. South Bend, Indiana

10. Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania

Chyna Blackmon

The Charlotte Observer

Chyna Blackmon was a service journalism reporter for The Charlotte Observer. A native of the Carolinas, she grew up in Columbia, SC, and graduated from Queens University of Charlotte. She’s also worked in local television news in Charlotte, NC, and Richmond, VA. Support my work with a digital subscription