Tennessee places sixth in latest rankings from Area Development
Georgia tops the rankings for the 12th year in a row.
The Tennessee Department of Economic and Community Development reports that the State of Tennessee was ranked #6 in the nation in Area Development‘s 2025 Top States for Business rankings. On top of that, Tennessee secured multiple top-five rankings, including:
- #2 – Site Readiness Programs;
- #2 – Business Incentives Programs;
- #3 – Energy Availability;
- #3 – Corporate Tax Structure;
- #4 – Logistics & Infrastructure;
- #4 – Overall Cost of Doing Business;
- #4 – Energy Cost;
- #4 – Cooperative State & Local Government;
- #5 – Favorable Property Tax;
- #5 – Favorable Regulatory Framework;
- #5 – Workforce Training Programs; and
- #5 – Climate Risk & Resilience.
What are the states ahead of Tennessee? Georgia tops the rankings for the 12th year in a row, followed by South Carolina, Texas, North Carolina, and Ohio.
To develop the 2025 rankings, Area Development asked leading consultants to industry to give the publication their top state picks in 15 categories that impact companies’ location and facility plans. The states in each category were ranked based on their number of mentions in the particular category.
An article accompanying the rankings can be found here. In the article, there is an explanation that “speed, workforce alignment, and energy infrastructure now define the best states for doing business — not just incentives or tax breaks.”
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