These 10 cities have the best chance of getting Amazon's $5 billion headquarters, according to the data

Jeff Bezos

It seems that every local official across the US and Canada is trying to lure Amazon to their city or town.

To state their case for the company's second headquarters, they each tout their region's benefits, potential tax breaks, and local opportunities. But what does Amazon really want in a potential location? The financial services arm of Moody's looked at what Amazon might want in a city — both stated and inferred — to come up with a list of the best candidate cities for HQ2.

For its data compilation, Moody's looked at six factors: business environment, human capital, cost, quality of life, transportation, and geography. It then assigned a number to each city, and a weight to each factor to come up with their list of 10 cities. Moody's excluded Seattle, the site of Amazon's current headquarters, from consideration.

Amazon said it would invest $5 billion in the construction of its new headquarters, and it hopes to eventually house 50,000 Amazon staff members there, gradually building up its workforce.

Here's where Amazon is most likely to put down roots, according to the data. All quotes are from Moody's.

10. Salt Lake City, Utah

"Salt Lake has a burgeoning tech industry, a deep and young talent pool, low business costs, and a high quality of life score."

9. Boston, Massachusetts

"The metro division is one of only a few places nationally with a talent pool deep enough to provide the tens of thousands of highly skilled workers sought by Amazon. Boston shares a common labor pool with Cambridge and together the two boast one of the country's largest tech industries and a world-class system of higher education, anchored by Harvard and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology."

8. Portland, Oregon

"Favorably located near the scenic Cascades Mountains, Portland has an arguably higher-than-average quality of life: There are low crime rates, more arts theaters, a hub of microbreweries, and biker-friendly streets. With costs relatively cheaper than the Bay Area, Portland stands to attract more tech entrepreneurs and job seekers over the coming years, too."

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