These Are The 10 Most Successful Cities In Tennessee

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What is success? Is it the amount of money you have in your bank account, at any given point? Is it that feeling you get after delivering a killer presentation, or even a pretty decent bar joke?

Or is it something biggerâsomething wholly unnamable, undefinable, immeasurable, and totally subjective?

Probably so.

But here at Zippia, we like things that we can neatly measure and then expound upon. So yes, with the Power of Math, we have determined the unarguable, totally objective 10 most successful cities in Tennessee. And here they are:

If you are trying to argue already with our unarguable list, keep reading. Thereâs a method to this madness.

For more TN reading, check out:

How We Determined The Most Successful Cities In Tennessee

The first thing that comes to most capitalist minds in terms of success isâmoney. After all, rich people must be successful, right?

Meh. Maybe. But we think thereâs a bit more that goes into it than that. So we looked at this set of criteria from the 2010-2014 American Community Survey:

1. Arlington

Source: Wikipedia

Population: 11,623Median Income: $97,500
Poverty Level: 2.6%
Unemployment Rate: 2.3%

2. Brentwood

Population: 39,059Median Income: $138,395
Poverty Level: 2.8%
Unemployment Rate: 4.0%

3. Signal Mountain

Population: 8,416Median Income: $97,092
Poverty Level: 2.0%
Unemployment Rate: 3.1%

4. Germantown

Population: 39,207Median Income: $110,169
Poverty Level: 4.0%
Unemployment Rate: 4.2%

5. Spring Hill

Population: 31,467Median Income: $76,840
Poverty Level: 3.2%
Unemployment Rate: 3.6%

6. Farragut

Population: 21,111Median Income: $104,715
Poverty Level: 3.7%
Unemployment Rate: 5.4%

7. Collierville

Population: 46,780Median Income: $106,783
Poverty Level: 3.3%
Unemployment Rate: 6.2%

8. Nolensville

Population: 6,131Median Income: $102,982
Poverty Level: 4.3%
Unemployment Rate: 4.3%

9. Lakeland

Population: 12,549Median Income: $91,620
Poverty Level: 4.9%
Unemployment Rate: 4.6%

10. Franklin

Population: 66,596Median Income: $81,432
Poverty Level: 6.1%
Unemployment Rate: 5.3%

Measuring Success

If youâre still looking at this post thinking, âSurely, such superficial methods canât possibly measure a city, or rather, the individuals that make up that cityâs success!â well, youâre probably right.

But we like to measure things, and when it comes to success, we feel pretty successful in our approach. Congrats to Arlington and our winners. And for those who didnât make the cut, well, better luck next year.

Detailed List Of The Most Successful Cities In Tennessee

Rank	City	Median Income	Poverty Rate	Unemployment Rate
1	Arlington	$97,500	2.6%	2.3%
2	Brentwood	$138,395	2.8%	4.0%
3	Signal Mountain	$97,092	2.0%	3.1%
4	Germantown	$110,169	4.0%	4.2%
5	Spring Hill	$76,840	3.2%	3.6%
6	Farragut	$104,715	3.7%	5.4%
7	Collierville	$106,783	3.3%	6.2%
8	Nolensville	$102,982	4.3%	4.3%
9	Lakeland	$91,620	4.9%	4.6%
10	Franklin	$81,432	6.1%	5.3%
11	Bartlett	$80,240	3.4%	6.3%
12	White House	$68,284	4.2%	7.1%
13	Hendersonville	$61,514	6.8%	5.6%
14	Fairview	$54,906	6.3%	6.2%
15	Mount Juliet	$73,512	8.7%	6.3%
16	Millersville	$58,968	7.1%	8.4%
17	Atoka	$80,625	6.3%	9.8%
18	Jonesborough	$49,688	14.0%	5.7%
19	Oakland	$66,981	8.8%	8.7%
20	Mount Carmel	$53,080	6.8%	9.3%
21	Maryville	$52,120	11.9%	7.5%
22	La Vergne	$53,672	8.0%	8.8%
23	Smyrna	$52,516	12.6%	7.6%
24	Clinton	$40,194	11.3%	6.4%
25	Gallatin	$46,279	12.8%	7.7%
26	Kingston	$45,424	11.5%	8.0%
27	Munford	$62,201	10.2%	10.7%
28	Goodlettsville	$52,648	11.1%	9.8%
29	East Ridge	$39,445	14.8%	6.4%
30	Church Hill	$46,034	10.3%	8.8%
31	Nashville	$46,758	16.8%	8.2%
32	Millington	$48,779	16.7%	8.5%
33	Murfreesboro	$50,337	18.4%	8.4%
34	Soddy-Daisy	$42,937	10.7%	9.7%
35	Oak Ridge	$52,534	17.0%	9.5%
36	Greenbrier	$50,641	7.3%	11.7%
37	Portland	$51,027	16.1%	10.0%
38	Collegedale	$49,688	11.3%	10.5%
39	Dickson	$34,869	15.9%	7.2%
40	Lynchburg	$43,393	10.9%	10.8%
41	Clarksville	$47,489	15.7%	10.8%
42	Johnson City	$39,121	25.4%	6.2%
43	Winchester	$39,167	19.2%	9.3%
44	Hartsville/Trousdale County	$37,211	14.6%	9.9%
45	Red Bank	$37,678	21.1%	8.2%
46	Springfield	$39,980	17.2%	10.2%
47	Bristol	$35,959	18.3%	9.4%
48	Lebanon	$41,051	17.0%	11.1%
49	Loudon	$34,195	22.7%	7.8%
50	Kingsport	$38,333	19.8%	10.1%
51	Alcoa	$34,847	21.4%	8.9%
52	Manchester	$38,063	25.3%	8.5%
53	Sevierville	$34,167	23.0%	8.1%
54	Chattanooga	$39,683	20.6%	10.7%
55	Pigeon Forge	$30,885	21.8%	8.0%
56	Dyersburg	$34,444	19.7%	10.0%
57	Knoxville	$33,494	24.8%	7.9%
58	Lexington	$41,847	20.1%	13.7%
59	Tullahoma	$35,665	19.5%	12.5%
60	Jackson	$37,988	22.0%	11.7%
61	Cleveland	$37,325	23.0%	11.1%
62	Sweetwater	$34,684	15.8%	15.5%
63	Humboldt	$31,515	20.8%	10.1%
64	Columbia	$34,325	21.2%	10.7%
65	McMinnville	$28,535	27.4%	7.0%
66	Greeneville	$32,869	25.1%	10.0%
67	Memphis	$37,099	23.6%	13.4%
68	Pulaski	$29,019	27.2%	8.4%
69	McKenzie	$35,036	27.5%	10.2%
70	Jefferson City	$34,683	22.1%	13.6%
71	Lewisburg	$32,348	19.9%	14.3%
72	Milan	$33,667	24.2%	12.1%
73	Elizabethton	$28,721	23.0%	10.4%
74	Athens	$31,807	26.5%	10.3%
75	Shelbyville	$27,743	30.3%	8.7%
76	Union City	$35,051	25.0%	16.5%
77	Crossville	$27,946	26.4%	10.1%
78	Rockwood	$28,098	30.0%	9.7%
79	Brownsville	$29,162	24.1%	13.1%
80	Fayetteville	$30,488	26.0%	13.3%
81	Morristown	$31,082	27.3%	12.7%
82	Henderson	$36,404	29.2%	19.2%
83	Lenoir City	$33,500	26.6%	17.6%
84	Erwin	$26,884	23.9%	16.1%
85	Sparta	$24,035	29.0%	11.3%
86	Lawrenceburg	$27,100	25.1%	17.6%
87	Savannah	$29,926	26.5%	21.2%
88	Paris	$29,705	31.3%	15.7%
89	Harriman	$24,495	25.5%	16.7%
90	Dayton	$29,391	32.5%	15.7%
91	Cookeville	$29,240	38.5%	13.7%
92	Martin	$30,189	36.7%	16.2%
93	Bolivar	$30,065	34.9%	23.7%
94	Covington	$26,784	27.8%	18.5%
95	Newport	$22,329	37.7%	15.3%
96	La Follette	$23,071	36.2%	18.3%
97	Ripley	$23,581	33.8%	22.6%

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Author

Chris Kolmar

Chris Kolmar is a co-founder of Zippia and the editor-in-chief of the Zippia career advice blog. He has hired over 50 people in his career, been hired five times, and wants to help you land your next job. His research has been featured on the New York Times, Thrillist, VOX, The Atlantic, and a host of local news. More recently, he's been quoted on USA Today, BusinessInsider, and CNBC.

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