Raleigh ranked No. 10 on a list that determined which cities were the most prosperous for businesses.

The ranking by MarketWatch, published by Dow Jones & Co., looked at various economic data, including the performance of publicly traded companies in each metro area, to evaluate business conditions in the country’s 100 largest metro areas, and awarded points.

The top five on the “Top Cities for Business Growth in 2012” list were: Austin, Boston, Houston, San Jose and Portland.

Raleigh rated 1,564 points despite being – in MarketWatch’s words – “a relatively unknown city.”

The city got high marks in economic metrics, education scores and concentration of commerce, according to MarketWatch. But “its companies had a spotty year, with Nasdaq firms posting high profits, but NYSE entries ending up in the bottom 10.”

Mark Sirgo, CEO of BioDelivery Sciences International in Raleigh, told MarketWatch that taxes were favorable but getting venture capital remained a problem.

As the old year draws to a close, how about one more "best of" list? This one is probably best left behind in 2009.

MarketWatch's third annual ranking of the best cities for business puts Raleigh at No. 15, tied with Nashville, Tenn. That's a lowly showing for a region that routinely ranks near the top on such lists, which economic boosters tout to attract new businesses.

Charlotte came in at No. 18 and Greensboro was No. 80.

The list ranks the nation's biggest 101 metropolitan areas by 10 factors, including the concentration of companies, unemployment rate, economic stability and population growth.

Topping the list: Des Moines, left, followed by Washington, D.C., Omaha, Neb., and Minneapolis-St. Paul. The rankers cited Des Moines' "slow and steady" growth and low unemployment rate -- 6 percent in September, well below the national average of 9.8 percent for that month.

Read the full list here.