IRVINE, Calif., Aug. 30 /PRNewswire/ -- Entrepreneur magazine and the National Policy Research Council (NPRC) have released the 12th Annual Hot Cities Ranking on the best places to start and grow a business.

To develop the ranking, Entrepreneur collaborated with the NPRC and drew upon its Entrepreneurial Activity Index, which measures the best places to start and grow a business. The NPRC looks at the percentage of businesses started four to 14 years ago and that employ five or more workers. An area must have a large number of young businesses and be able to support growth to achieve a high overall score.

"Thanks to Spencer Tracy (yes, that's his real name), the National Policy Research Council and new Entrepreneur columnist Carol Tice," says Rieva Lesonsky, editorial director for Entrepreneur magazine, "you can find out why you might want to pack your bag and boxes and head to Phoenix, Arizona or Mobile, Alabama." For the second year in a row, Phoenix has captured the top spot in the ranking. Southern locals stand out this year; seven of the top 10 states are in the South. The Midwest was not a strong performer, although Kansas City, Missouri ranked 11th overall. Among the Northeastern cities, the Washington, DC/Baltimore area is the region's top market; it ranked sixth overall. Extended information on each of the cities in the ranking is available online at http://www.entrepreneur.com/bestcities.

About Entrepreneur Media Inc.

Entrepreneur Media Inc. is an organization of people dedicated to empowering entrepreneurs worldwide to start and grow successful companies. To provide entrepreneurs with the relevant information they need to make informed decisions, Entrepreneur Media Inc. offers a full range of products and services. Products include: Magazines - Entrepreneur, Entrepreneur's StartUps, Entrepreneur Mexico, Entrepreneur Philippines, Entrepreneur Hungary, Entrepreneur Russia and Entrepreneur South Africa; Websites - Entrepreneur.com, SoyEntrepreneur.com, SmallBizSearch.com, EntrepreneurPress.com, Smallbizbooks.com and Freebks.com; Book Publishing - Entrepreneur Press, Entrepreneur eBooks and Business Startup Guides; Also - Conferences and Custom Publishing.

CONTACT: Lisa Murray of Entrepreneur Media Inc., +1-949-622-5220,
lmurray@entrepreneur.com

Web site: http://www.entrepreneur.com/bestcities

Web site: http://www.entrepreneur.com/