Forbes magazine recently released the annual top ten rankings of best small cities for business and careers. These best cities to live and work were chosen based on a variety of factors such as availability of labor, tax rates and other living costs, quality of life issues, educational opportunities, crime rates and cultural and recreational opportunities.

The rankings of best cities in the U.S. were partly based on data supplied by Economy.com, a Pennsylvania-based economic research firm. The firm's business cost index factors in the costs of labor, taxes, energy and office space. Cost of living was considered by various aspects such as housing, utilities, transportation, and food and household expenditures. The firm also provided five-year annualized figures on job and income growth and migration trends.

Another research firm that contributed towards the rankings is Sperling's Best Places. Forbes magazine uses the culture and leisure index developed by Researcher Bertrand Sperling of Sperling's 'Best Places to Live' fame for quality-of-life issues such as cultural and recreational opportunities. The culture and leisure index is based on museums, theaters, golf course, sports teams and other activities. The data also includes the education scenario in the cities and the presence of four-year colleges. Crime rates of the cities were sourced from the FBI Index of Crime.

The following are the top ten best small metro cities to live and work and their approximate populations:

1. Sioux Falls, S.D.: Sioux Falls captured the top spot of smaller cities that are best for business and careers. The metro area consists of 210,000 residents.

2. Bismarck, N.D.: Bismarck ranked second in the list and has a population of 100,000.

3. Columbia, Mo.: Columbia with a population of 154,000 clinched the third place.

4. Fargo, N.D.: At fourth place was Fargo, North Dakota with approximately 186,000 residents.

5. Iowa City, Iowa: Fifth on the list of best small cities to live and work was Iowa City with a total population of 139,000.

6. Bloomington, Ind.: Bloomington was sixth on the annual list of the best smaller metro areas for business and careers and has a population of 139,000.

7. Rapid City, S.D.: South Dakota's Rapid City was number seven on the list. The metro area has a population of 119,000 residents.

8. Las Cruces, N.M.: Las Cruces, New Mexico ranked eighth with a population of 193,000.

9. Morgantown, W.Va.: At ninth spot was Morgantown, West Virginia with a population of 115,000 residents.

10. Johnson City, Tenn.: Rounding up the top ten smaller metros was Johnson City, Tennessee. The metro area has about 190,000 residents.