Great Falls has been ranked 42 among the best cities for first responders.

Analysts at GoodCall.com found that towns with populations of less than 100,000 tend to be great places for police and sheriff officers, firefighters, and emergency medical technicians.

Analysts looked at data from 835 towns and cities nationwide to determine the Best Cities for First Responders.

The review included several metrics, including pay for first responders, cost of living, the number of jobs available, crime rate, unemployment and factors that indicate nice places to live, such as amenities and educational attainment.

Great Falls was the top-ranking Montana city in the report with Kalispell coming in at 66 and Helena at 97.

Key takeaways, according to GoodCall are:

• The top cities were spread out across the country, though there were fewer in the Southeast, New England, and states in the West other than California.
• Cities at the top of the list tended to be smaller – the top 100 cities averaged about 55,000 residents. All but 10 of the top 100 cities had fewer than 100,000.