Talent Attraction Scorecard 2026
A data-focused look at the US areas leading the way in talent attraction, workforce growth, and retention.
Introduction
Strong regions do more than attract great talent.
Over our 11 years of producing the Talent Attraction Scorecard, we’ve occasionally considered renaming the annual ranking to something like the Talent Development Scorecard. That’s because the states and regions that perform the best in the scorecard don’t just focus on attracting workers to their areas. They prioritize talent retention and obsess over every step in the process of developing a thriving talent ecosystem — from K–12 career awareness to adult learner support.
At the same time, the attraction of prime-age people and earners remains a core part of our ranking and is vitally important to communities in an era of aging demographics and stubborn skills mismatches. No matter the hype or fears about AI, the battle for talent in the skilled trades, healthcare, and other sectors continues to rage. And as our partner DCI’s survey-based research shows, relocation remains very relevant for those who can afford to move.
This year the Talent Attraction Scorecard — the name lives on! — looks at the same seven metrics we used in last year’s revamped 10th anniversary edition to draw insights on the top-performing states and large, mid-sized, small, and very small MSAs. For the second straight year, Florida, Texas, and Idaho are our top three states in that order. But several states have vaulted up the rankings and we have a new No. 1 large metro to mint.
This Year's Top Tens
State Rankings
Idaho is the only state that ranks in the top 10 in every subcategory of the scorecard. The Gem State is No. 1 in overall job growth and blue-collar job growth and No. 3 in college-educated population growth.
The Carolinas have come in strong this year, but Arizona is another emerging state. It moved up to No. 4 this year after ranking seventh last year. Phoenix also improved in the large MSA category, jumping up No. 4.
Large MSA Rankings
Austin is our top large metro for talent attraction, ranking in the top five in all but two of the seven subcategories.
Mid-Sized MSA Rankings
Keep an eye on Central Virginia: Charlottesville, home to the University of Virginia, moved into the top 10 of the mid-sized MSA ranking, at No. 9. And the neighboring Staunton-Stuarts Draft MSA leapt 35 spots to No. 20 in the same size category, driven by strong prime-age attraction.
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Small MSA Rankings
Very Small MSA Rankings
Takeaways and Themes
Last year we laid out six key trends that helped shape the 2025 rankings. Those trends still hold true this year, with a few slight twists, so we’re not going to address all six. But here are our main takeaways and themes from the 2026 results.
Just how dominant are the Sunbelt and Mountain West? They make up seven of the top 10 states, 19 of the top 20 large MSAs, and nine of the top 10 mid-sized MSAs.
The Sunbelt and Mountain West also show up strong for blue-collar job growth because of the industrial investment flowing into these states.
There are some exceptions, and it’s worth noting the Miami and Houston MSAs, while still in the top 25 large metros, saw fairly significant drops from 2025 to 2026.
Last year we emphasized the importance of quality of life and affordability to attract remote workers. Both are still true, with affordability especially on people’s minds given rising cost of living. DCI’s 2026 research survey bears this out: Quality of life is the top talent relocation trigger, while the desire for lower cost of living is fourth (just behind accepting a new job that requires relocation and wanting to be closer to family).
Regions with strong job opportunities and affordable housing are in prime position to attract young families, many of whom are asking, “Can we afford to move?”
This one holds true from last year: The regions leading the way in prime-age (25-54) talent attraction are still lagging behind in blue-collar job growth.
Take Killeen-Temple, TX, and Clarksville, TN, for example. They are #1 and #2 in prime-age population growth, but #57 and #99, respectively, in blue-collar job growth.
Two notable exceptions to this widespread trend are Savannah, GA, and Austin, TX. Savannah is #1 in blue-collar job growth and #4 in prime-age attraction, while Austin ranks in the top 15 in both categories. The lack of electricians, truck drivers, and other blue-collar workers is an emerging problem for fast-growing regions who are trying to keep up with population growth and the surge in data centers and manufacturing investment.
Conclusion: The Common Ingredients
Eleven years in, the Talent Attraction Scorecard — nicely complemented by DCI’s Talent Wars — paints a clear picture. The states and regions that consistently perform well in our rankings have geographic advantages, sure (see takeaway #1 on the Sunbelt and Mountain West). But they have other common ingredients, too. They think long-term. They drive new business investment. They focus on retaining the talent they have first and foremost. They care deeply about quality of life, safety, and other community attributes. And they start with a foundation of data and research.
Full Rankings Tables
The Talent Attraction Scorecard evaluates how effectively states and metropolitan and micropolitan areas attract talent and grow economic opportunity. The 2026 Scorecard ranks 50 states, as well as 925 metropolitan and micropolitan areas plus Washington, D.C.
Data Sources
Job and occupation measures come from Lightcast’s Core Labor Market Information series. Population and migration measures come from the U.S. Census Bureau’s American Community Survey (ACS) 5-year Detailed Tables. Note: The Talent Attraction Scorecard typically measures change over a five year period, but the 2026 rankings use 2019-2025 change to preserve a pre-COVID baseline.
Scorecard Metrics
The scorecard uses the following components:
Overall Job Growth: Percent change in employment.
College-Educated Popuation Growth: Change in the population with an associate’s degree or higher, including both count growth and percentage-point change in share.
Blue-Collar Job Growth: Change in selected occupations in trades, installation, manufacturing, production, and protective services.
High-Earning Job Growth: Change in the 200 occupations with the highest national average earnings.
Competitive Effect: The local portion of job change after accounting for broader national and industry trends. Positive values indicate growth above expectation; negative values indicate growth below expectation.
Attraction of Earners: Gross in-migration of people with reported income of at least $25,000, expressed per capita.
Prime-Age Attraction: Gross in-migration of adults ages 25–54, expressed per capita.
Ranking Calculations
“As a region, it is one of our top metrics to measure how the Fargo metro is doing in comparisons to other markets. Instead of just tracking our progress against internal measures, we know having a third party validated comparison across markets is important. We also use it in marketing when doing business and workforce attraction.”
