Which Florida cities are Gen Z's young professionals flocking to?

Florida has the most cities on U.S. News and World Report's 2023-2024 list of best places for young professionals to live.

The list was determined by pulling data on local job markets, desirability and affordability for the 150 most-populous metropolitan areas in the country.

The first round of Generation Z workers are entering the labor force and the opportunity to start a career is a driving factor in where they're choosing to live. The results of the list reflect this by using job market data to account for over 50% of each city's score.

How old is Gen Z? These are the years that the generation was born.

Which Florida cities are attracting young professionals?

Two of Florida's cities that made the list ranked in the top 10, while four more ranked in the top 25, making it the most-repeated state on the list.

"We weighted job market the heaviest, accounting for 55% of the overall score. Knowing that exciting experiences – and hoping your friends will want to come visit – is also a major factor, desirability makes up 30% of the score," U.S. News and World Report said. "Finally, with entry-level salaries in mind, affordability scores are weighted at 15% of the overall score."

Here's U.S. News and World Report's full 2023-2024 list of best places for young professionals to live:

1. San Jose, California

2. San Francisco, California

3. Boulder, Colorado

4. Colorado Springs, Colorado

5. Huntsville, Alabama

6. Naples, Florida

7. Seattle, Washington

8. Sarasota, Florida

9. Charlotte, North Carolina

10. Washington, D.C.

11. Raleigh and Durham, North Carolina

12. Boston, Massachusetts

13. San Diego, California

14. Honolulu, Hawaii

15. Portland, Maine

16. Melbourne, Florida

17. Minneapolis-St. Paul, Minnesota

18. Austin, Texas.

19. Jacksonville, Florida

20. Tampa, Florida

21. Portland, Maine

22. Nashville, Tennessee

23. Madison, Wisconsin

24. Atlanta, Georgia

25. Port St. Lucie, Florida

Has Gen Z entered the workforce?

Gen Z, those born from 1997 through 2012, is the most diverse, best-educated generation of American citizens thus far. And those born in the first five years of this generation are now working age, officially taking the "young professional" title from Millennials, who are entering their prime earning years.

According to a special report on Gen Z workforce data by Paychex, Gen Z currently has the greatest impact on the workforce.

"Generation Z has increased their employment share by at least 2 percent every year since 2018," the report said. "The group surpassed Baby Boomers in July 2022 and are steadily gaining on Gen X and Millennials, despite experiencing the largest share of employment loss due to the COVID-19 pandemic."

How did Gen Z's favorite Florida towns rank in rent costs?

According to Zillow, these are the median rent prices for the six Florida cities that ranked in U.S. News and World Report's list of top 25 places to live for young professionals:

• Naples - median rent: $4,500

• Sarasota - median rent: $2,900

• Melbourne - median rent: $2,188

• Jacksonville - median rent: $1,750

• Tampa - median rent: $2,287

• Port St. Lucie - median rent: $2,594

Lianna Norman covers trending news in Palm Beach County for The Palm Beach Post. You can reach her at lnorman@pbpost.com. You can follow her reporting on social media @LiannaNorman on Twitter.

This article originally appeared on Palm Beach Post: Florida cities on the best places to live list 2023-2024