These California cities are the ‘most fun,’ study says
Fun isn’t something you can scientifically measure, but that hasn’t stopped researchers at WalletHub from trying.
The personal finance website has released a list of the “Most Fun Cities in America,” and three California cities, San Francisco, San Diego and Los Angeles, made the top 20.
WalletHub ranked more than 180 cities on 65 factors including the number of attractions, restaurant diversity, bars per capita, the number of amusement parks and sports venues and costs. Cities were then scored on a 100-point scale.
Las Vegas ranked #1 with a score of 71.38 followed by Orlando (62.42), Miami (55.91) and Atlanta (55.73). San Francisco landed at number five with 53.35 points.
“Sin City is known for partying, and it’s one of the only cities in our study where public drinking is allowed in most or all places – whether that’s a plus or not will depend on your personality, though,” WalletHub said in its report. “When it comes to activities, Vegas unsurprisingly has the largest number of casinos in the country. But it’s also renowned for its performers, especially when it comes to music. The city has a very high number of music festivals and music venues relative to others.”
San Diego (48.33) was 16th and Los Angeles (47.01) was 20th.
Los Angeles ranked first in restaurants per capita and number of attractions but received lower marks for other metrics like festivals per capita, playgrounds per capita and average beer price.
Overall rank for Los Angeles: 20th
20th – Festivals per Capita
1st – Restaurants per Capita
37th – Playgrounds per Capita
25th – Parkland Acres per Capita
6th – Dance Clubs per Capita
1st – Number of Attractions
80th – Avg. Beer Price
One Southern California city landed near the bottom of the list. With a score of just 20.20, Oxnard ranked 180th out of 182. It seems beautiful coastlines were not heavily weighted as WalletHub ranked Pearl City, Hawaii (18.51) dead last at 182nd.
Most Fun Cities in America (WalletHub)
Overall Rank | City | Total Score |
1 | Las Vegas, NV | 71.38 |
2 | Orlando, FL | 62.42 |
3 | Miami, FL | 55.91 |
4 | Atlanta, GA | 55.73 |
5 | San Francisco, CA | 53.35 |
6 | New Orleans, LA | 52.49 |
7 | Austin, TX | 51.60 |
8 | Chicago, IL | 50.57 |
9 | Honolulu, HI | 49.98 |
10 | New York, NY | 49.35 |
11 | Cincinnati, OH | 49.22 |
12 | Denver, CO | 48.99 |
13 | Portland, OR | 48.86 |
14 | St. Louis, MO | 48.78 |
15 | Washington, DC | 48.67 |
16 | San Diego, CA | 48.33 |
17 | Tampa, FL | 47.83 |
18 | Fort Lauderdale, FL | 47.40 |
19 | Houston, TX | 47.28 |
20 | Los Angeles, CA | 47.01 |
21 | Philadelphia, PA | 45.35 |
22 | Seattle, WA | 44.90 |
23 | Salt Lake City, UT | 44.25 |
24 | Pittsburgh, PA | 44.24 |
25 | San Antonio, TX | 44.12 |
26 | Richmond, VA | 43.35 |
27 | Tucson, AZ | 43.29 |
28 | Reno, NV | 42.80 |
29 | Charleston, SC | 42.31 |
30 | Phoenix, AZ | 41.97 |
31 | Dallas, TX | 41.60 |
32 | Knoxville, TN | 41.03 |
33 | Scottsdale, AZ | 41.00 |
34 | Sacramento, CA | 40.88 |
35 | Minneapolis, MN | 40.19 |
36 | Nashville, TN | 40.18 |
37 | Jacksonville, FL | 40.15 |
38 | St. Petersburg, FL | 40.13 |
39 | Birmingham, AL | 40.04 |
40 | Milwaukee, WI | 39.77 |
41 | Indianapolis, IN | 39.64 |
42 | Louisville, KY | 39.61 |
43 | Fort Worth, TX | 39.48 |
44 | Boston, MA | 39.34 |
45 | Omaha, NE | 39.22 |
46 | Chattanooga, TN | 39.19 |
47 | Oklahoma City, OK | 38.76 |
48 | Cleveland, OH | 38.73 |
49 | Kansas City, MO | 38.67 |
50 | Raleigh, NC | 38.64 |
51 | Charlotte, NC | 38.61 |
52 | Tulsa, OK | 38.54 |
53 | Buffalo, NY | 37.99 |
54 | Baton Rouge, LA | 37.94 |
55 | Columbus, OH | 37.92 |
56 | Albuquerque, NM | 37.80 |
57 | Rochester, NY | 37.48 |
58 | Portland, ME | 37.21 |
59 | El Paso, TX | 37.15 |
60 | Madison, WI | 37.14 |
61 | Columbia, SC | 36.98 |
62 | Tempe, AZ | 36.72 |
63 | Colorado Springs, CO | 36.38 |
64 | Memphis, TN | 36.00 |
65 | Henderson, NV | 35.84 |
66 | Grand Rapids, MI | 35.78 |
67 | Mobile, AL | 35.59 |
68 | Virginia Beach, VA | 35.17 |
69 | Wichita, KS | 35.13 |
70 | Boise, ID | 35.09 |
71 | Plano, TX | 35.02 |
72 | Baltimore, MD | 35.00 |
73 | Springfield, MO | 34.85 |
74 | Lincoln, NE | 34.84 |
75 | Arlington, TX | 34.72 |
76 | Oakland, CA | 34.32 |
77 | Huntsville, AL | 34.29 |
78 | Providence, RI | 34.27 |
79 | Rapid City, SD | 34.16 |
80 | Durham, NC | 34.09 |
81 | Detroit, MI | 33.91 |
82 | Tallahassee, FL | 33.60 |
83 | Missoula, MT | 33.57 |
84 | Long Beach, CA | 33.17 |
85 | Norfolk, VA | 33.15 |
86 | Gulfport, MS | 32.87 |
87 | Akron, OH | 32.61 |
88 | St. Paul, MN | 32.42 |
89 | Garden Grove, CA | 32.23 |
90 | Greensboro, NC | 32.17 |
91 | Anaheim, CA | 32.04 |
92 | Corpus Christi, TX | 32.04 |
93 | Glendale, AZ | 32.01 |
94 | Fort Smith, AR | 31.84 |
95 | Overland Park, KS | 31.82 |
96 | Bakersfield, CA | 31.78 |
97 | Toledo, OH | 31.68 |
98 | Billings, MT | 31.62 |
99 | Sioux Falls, SD | 31.52 |
100 | Cape Coral, FL | 31.49 |
101 | Chandler, AZ | 31.20 |
102 | Huntington Beach, CA | 31.14 |
103 | Montgomery, AL | 31.06 |
104 | Fargo, ND | 31.04 |
105 | Mesa, AZ | 31.01 |
106 | Anchorage, AK | 30.97 |
107 | Lubbock, TX | 30.90 |
108 | Lexington-Fayette, KY | 30.90 |
109 | Irvine, CA | 30.79 |
110 | Des Moines, IA | 30.64 |
111 | Huntington, WV | 30.58 |
112 | San Jose, CA | 30.52 |
113 | Winston-Salem, NC | 30.35 |
114 | Fayetteville, NC | 30.35 |
115 | Chesapeake, VA | 30.29 |
116 | Shreveport, LA | 30.28 |
117 | Spokane, WA | 30.19 |
118 | Amarillo, TX | 29.98 |
119 | Tacoma, WA | 29.86 |
120 | Modesto, CA | 29.85 |
121 | Salem, OR | 29.66 |
122 | Cedar Rapids, IA | 29.50 |
123 | Jackson, MS | 29.45 |
124 | Wilmington, DE | 29.17 |
125 | Fort Wayne, IN | 29.05 |
126 | Augusta, GA | 28.99 |
127 | Little Rock, AR | 28.95 |
128 | Newport News, VA | 28.92 |
129 | Fresno, CA | 28.78 |
130 | Aurora, CO | 28.55 |
131 | Jersey City, NJ | 28.55 |
132 | Newark, NJ | 28.51 |
133 | Columbus, GA | 28.44 |
134 | Worcester, MA | 28.42 |
135 | Hialeah, FL | 28.33 |
136 | Irving, TX | 28.31 |
137 | Charleston, WV | 28.27 |
138 | New Haven, CT | 28.14 |
139 | Riverside, CA | 27.98 |
140 | North Las Vegas, NV | 27.98 |
141 | Glendale, CA | 27.92 |
142 | Pembroke Pines, FL | 27.84 |
143 | Casper, WY | 27.75 |
144 | San Bernardino, CA | 27.74 |
145 | Gilbert, AZ | 27.72 |
146 | Las Cruces, NM | 27.63 |
147 | Santa Ana, CA | 27.45 |
148 | Vancouver, WA | 27.25 |
149 | Port St. Lucie, FL | 27.21 |
150 | Juneau, AK | 26.77 |
151 | Burlington, VT | 26.72 |
152 | Columbia, MD | 26.70 |
153 | Santa Clarita, CA | 26.39 |
154 | Stockton, CA | 26.32 |
155 | Peoria, AZ | 26.24 |
156 | Garland, TX | 26.19 |
157 | Bismarck, ND | 26.09 |
158 | Oceanside, CA | 26.08 |
159 | Laredo, TX | 25.42 |
160 | Moreno Valley, CA | 24.82 |
161 | Ontario, CA | 24.34 |
162 | Aurora, IL | 24.21 |
163 | Rancho Cucamonga, CA | 24.09 |
164 | Chula Vista, CA | 23.90 |
165 | Fontana, CA | 23.77 |
166 | Grand Prairie, TX | 23.77 |
167 | Lewiston, ME | 23.70 |
168 | Warwick, RI | 23.61 |
169 | Manchester, NH | 23.60 |
170 | West Valley City, UT | 23.53 |
171 | Brownsville, TX | 23.01 |
172 | Nampa, ID | 22.98 |
173 | Bridgeport, CT | 22.75 |
174 | Cheyenne, WY | 22.73 |
175 | Fremont, CA | 22.58 |
176 | Dover, DE | 22.42 |
177 | Santa Rosa, CA | 21.80 |
178 | Yonkers, NY | 21.41 |
179 | Nashua, NH | 20.76 |
180 | Oxnard, CA | 20.20 |
181 | South Burlington, VT | 20.11 |
182 | Pearl City, HI | 18.51 |
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