Best Cities for Quality of Life

From Nerd Wallet, October 16, 2017

Work less, spend less, worry less. Enjoy life more.

It’s an elusive equation for many Americans, yet there are some cities where you’re more likely to find a balance that potentially leads to better quality of life.

» COMPARE: List of the best cities for quality of life

Our analysis

NerdWallet analyzed 177 U.S. cities with over 150,000 residents using data estimates from the 2016 U.S. Census Bureau American Community Survey. We analyzed the number of hours worked, commute times, percentage of income spent on housing, health insurance coverage, poverty levels and unemployment rates to get a picture of quality of life in each location. To see the data, click here.

Key takeaways

The top cities aren’t among the nation’s biggest. No city in our top 10 had a population over 281,000 — so New York, Los Angeles and Chicago didn’t make the cut. Fun fact: 5 of 10 cities are state capitals.

Fewer work hours doesn’t necessarily mean a better quality of life — and vice versa. The 10 cities with the shortest average workweeks rank as high as seventh (Eugene, Oregon) in overall quality of life and as low as 177th (Newark, New Jersey). Meanwhile, the 10 cities with longest workweeks score as high as sixth (Cary, North Carolina) and as low as 159th (Dallas). One thing is undisputed, however: Cities that scored well for quality of life tended to have shorter commutes.

There are more financial opportunities and stability. The top 10 cities rank highly in our analysis for data that show a smaller total of median gross rent as a percentage of monthly income and lower unemployment and poverty rates. As well, a higher percentage of residents in these cities have health insurance.

Best cities for quality of life…

Honolulu, Hawaii

• Rank 18
• Population 351,769
• Average weekly hours worked 38.5
• Average travel time to work in minutes 23.0
• Median gross rent as a percentage of monthly income 46.5%
• Percentage of population with health insurance coverage 96.7%
• Percentage of residents whose income in past 12 months was below poverty level 7.1%
• Unemployment rate 4.1%
• Score 73.66

read … Quality

PBN: Honolulu among top cities in new quality of life ranking