Just One Michigan Location Named Among Ten Best College Towns in U.S.

In terms of the MSU vs. U-M rivalry... one school REALLY came out on top in this ranking.

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A lot can go into picking a school. Prospective students are not only looking for a great education, but a place to call home for the next several years.

A new report by the personal-finance website WalletHub compared more than 400 U.S. cities based on 31 key indicators across three dimensions: wallet friendliness, social environment, and academic/economic opportunities. They analyzed things like cost of living, crime rate, to the quality of higher education in the city.

As Wallethub points out, student living expenses can reach over $35,000 for a 12-month period, so students should try to find the most bang for their buck.

Which Michigan college town is the best, according to Wallethub?

Ann Arbor, home to the University of Michigan, has been named the No. 2 overall college town in the U.S. and the No. 1 small college town in the U.S.

With an overall score of 62.39, Ann Arbor received a 250 in wallet friendliness, 3 in social environment, and 31 in academic opportunities.

The No. 1 school in Wallethub's overall ranking? Austin, Texas.

Now, you might be wondering how East Lansing, home to Michigan State University fared in comparison to Ann Arbor...

Well, here are the Michigan schools that showed up the Best Small College Town ranking:

• No. 47 - Mt. Pleasant
• No. 57 - East Lansing
• No. 76 - Kalamazoo
• No. 124 - Ypsilanti
• No. 128 - Dearborn
• No. 129 - Lansing
• No. 180 - Flint

When it comes to Midsize College Towns, Grand Rapids came in a No. 50, Sterling Heights at No. 95, and Warren at No. 104.

For Large College Cities, Detroit landed at No. 67.

Check out Wallethub's full study here.