Amazon just kicked off a location search for its second headquarters, and the retailer created a wish list to help find the perfect spot for its new campus.



In its proposal, Amazon said it's looking for a city of more than 1 million people with an international airport, mass transit, quality higher education, an educated workforce and a solid business climate.

To help the world's largest e-commerce company narrow down its search, CNBC looked at some of the key criteria the online retailer laid out in its pitch to cities and states.

The competition has already prompted local officials to tout their city's appeal.



"New York City has the most innovative and diverse tech sector in the nation," said Anthony Hogrebe, a spokesman for the New York City Economic Development Corp.



Boston Mayor Martin Walsh immediately jumped into the ring, too. "If Amazon wants an East Coast headquarters, I don't see any city better in America than Boston, Massachusetts," he said.



To measure how prospective cities stack up, we looked at the list of cities with at least 1 million people and then ranked them in five categories: local airport traffic, mass transit ridership, the number of accredited higher educational institutions, the share of the workforce with at least a college degree and the pace of job growth over the last 12 months.