Happiest Places to Live in America. Does Your City Rank?

An older couple celebrate with their hands in the air while sitting in beach chairs on the beach facing the ocean.

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published 19 March 2024

Where are the happiest places to live in the United States and what determines that happiness? And for the places that are less happy, what's causing that overall lack of joy. A new report looks to answer those questions and the results may surprise you.

Happiness is contagious. Even Lucille Ball noted, “It’s a helluva start, being able to recognize what makes you happy.” Maybe it’s a healthy body, a new job, financial well-being or simply where you live. And although the U.S. is one of the richest countries in the world, it ranks only 15th on the World Happiness Report.

WalletHub’s new 2024 report, Happiest States in America , examined each city based on 29 key indicators for happiness — from depression and income, to average leisure time spent each day — to determine the happiest places to live in the U.S.

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We’ve listed the top (and bottom) 25. Don’t find your city listed here? Read the full report from WalletHub.

Happiest places to live in the U.S.

Swipe to scroll horizontally

Overall Rank	City	Total Score	Emotional and Physical Well-being Rank	Income and Employment Rank	Community and Environment Rank
1	Fremont, CA	74.16	1	85	3
2	Overland Park, KS	69.78	6	36	6
3	San Jose, CA	69.54	2	33	37
4	Madison, WI	68.99	7	17	9
5	Irvine, CA	68.22	4	26	24
6	Honolulu, HI	68.03	19	40	1
7	San Francisco, CA	67.01	3	81	30
8	Pearl City, HI	66.90	15	151	2
9	Columbia, MD	65.77	5	170	60
10	Scottsdale, AZ	65.26	27	72	4
11	Sioux Falls, SD	65.06	10	57	47
12	Huntington Beach, CA	64.28	13	77	53
13	Minneapolis, MN	63.98	17	22	57
14	Garden Grove, CA	63.91	24	52	15
15	San Diego, CA	63.75	20	43	19
16	Fargo, ND	63.68	11	20	134
17	Portland, ME	63.46	43	3	27
18	Seatttle, WA	63.39	8	14	128
19	Lincoln, NE	63.35	21	27	43
20	Bismarck, ND	63.23	12	11	149
21	Gilbert, AZ	62.99	40	44	7
22	Charleston, SC	62.53	45	15	18
23	South Burlington, VT	62.42	16	30	139
24	Glendale, CA	62.31	32	92	13
25	Anaheim, CA	62.28	26	55	36

Least happiest places to live in the U.S.

Swipe to scroll horizontally

Overall Rank	City	Total Score	Emotional and Physical Well-being Rank	Income and Employment Rank	Community and Environment Rank
158	Corpus Christi, TX	44.55	151	64	156
159	Salem, OR	44.10	137	54	179
160	Baltimore, MD	43.78	139	165	165
161	Philadelphia, PA	43.57	156	136	137
162	Charleston, WV	43.26	178	12	67
163	Lubbock, TX	43.17	164	47	155
164	St. Louis, MO	42.99	149	166	147
165	San Antonio, TX	42.31	155	130	169
166	Columbus, GA	40.91	169	142	148
167	Fayetteville, NC	40.56	170	146	152
168	Fort Smith, AR	40.10	181	9	106
169	Baton Rouge, LA	40.10	167	114	171
170	Memphis, TN	39.85	158	181	159
171	Augusta, GA	39.44	163	156	178
172	Gulfport, MS	39.25	173	162	146
173	Akron, OH	39.15	166	145	175
174	Mobile, AL	38.97	175	172	107
175	Jackson, MS	38.79	161	178	177
176	Toledo, OH	37.51	174	164	166
177	Huntington, WV	37.31	182	18	22
178	Shreveport, LA	36.54	179	173	140
179	Birmingham, AL	36.22	171	148	180
180	Montgomery, AL	35.70	177	177	167
181	Cleveland, OH	34.83	172	161	182
182	Detroit, MI	31.43	180	182	176

What determines how happy a city is?

WalletHub also looked at depression rates in cities across the U.S., which can lead to more or less happiness. In first place for the lowest depression rate was Pearl City, HI, followed closely by Honolulu, HI. Cities with the highest depression rate were Huntington, WV, and Lewiston, ME.

What role does lack of sleep play in happiness?

Like depression rates, lack of sleep can also lead to unhappiness. Cities with the highest sleep rates are South Burlington, VT and Madison, WI. On the other hand, the cities with minimal sleep rates include Cleveland, OH, and Detroit, MI.

Read the full report from WalletHub.

For the past 18+ years, Kathryn has highlighted the humanity in personal finance by shaping stories that identify the opportunities and obstacles in managing a person's finances. All the same, she’ll jump on other equally important topics if needed. Kathryn graduated with a degree in Journalism and lives in Duluth, Minnesota. She joined Kiplinger in 2023 as a contributor.