The 30 most fun cities in America
Los Angeles ranked 12th.Jeremy Bishop/Unsplash
While certain places in the US are particularly good for finding love, others are good for just having fun.
WalletHub conducted a recent study to determine the most fun cities in America. The study looked at the 150 most populated cities in the US, and then compared them across three categories:
- Entertainment and recreation: number of attractions, sports facilities, restaurants, hiking trails, parks, etc.
- Nightlife and parties: number of bars, beer gardens, dance clubs, music venues, etc.
- Costs: wine and beer prices, restaurant meal prices, price for a three-star hotel room, cost of living, etc. (The higher a city ranked in this category, the cheaper it is.)
Below are the cities that ranked in the top 30. Four Florida cities made it into the top 30 as well as three California cities. New York City took third place whereas Chicago barely made the top 10, taking ninth place.
Keep scrolling to see what other US cities are your best bet for having a good time.
30. Omaha, Nebraska
Omaha is not only a good place to have fun, it's also a relatively cheap place to do it. The Midwestern city rounded out the top 15 in the costs category.
29. Dallas, Texas
Dallas ranked in the top 25 of the overall nightlife and parties category.
28. Richmond, Virginia
Richmond rounded out the top 30 in the overall entertainment and recreation category.
27. Sacramento, California
Sacramento was ranked number 23 in terms of the city's options for entertainment and recreation.
26. Tucson, Arizona
Tucson came in 14th place in the overall category of cost, which means that visitors can have a good time in the city without breaking the bank.
25. Minneapolis, Minnesota
Minneapolis just made it into the top 20 in the overall entertainment and recreation category — the city ranked 19th.
Having a good time in the city isn't cheap though. The city came in 73rd in the costs category.
24. Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
Pittsburgh came in 16th place in the overall entertainment and recreation category. It ranked much higher in the costs category though, coming in at 68th place.
23. Salt Lake City, Utah
There's plenty of inexpensive fun to be had in Salt Lake City. The Utah city ranked 21st and 23rd in the overall categories of entertainment and recreation and costs, respectively.
22. Fort Lauderdale, Florida
Thanks to the fact that it's a tourist draw, Fort Lauderdale is a more expensive destination. The city ranked 85th in the cost category.
However, there's plenty to do. The city came in 20th in the entertainment and recreation category and 24th in the nightlife and parties category.
21. Honolulu, Hawaii
Honolulu and San Francisco tied for first place when it comes to festivals per capita. The city is anything but cheap, though. Honolulu came in 132nd place in the costs category.
20. Seattle, Washington
Despite inclement weather, Seattle made it into the top 10 in terms of the city's offerings for entertainment and recreation — the city came in 8th place overall.
It also ranked 13th in the nightlife and parties category.
19. Houston, Texas
Houston took 16th place in the nightlife and parties category.
18. Austin, Texas
Austin ranked just after Houston in terms of nightlife and party options, coming in at number 17.
The city is also known to be a hot spot for good food.
17. Washington, DC
Besides being home to some of the country's most recognized landmarks, DC is also known for its bars and clubs. The city ranked 7th in the nightlife and party category.
It's one of the more pricey cities on the list, though. DC came in at 146 in the costs category.
16. Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Philadelphia made it into the top 20 for entertainment and recreation, taking 17th place. Be ready to spend some money here, though. The city ranked 102nd in the costs category.
15. Tampa, Florida
Tampa might not be the first city that comes to mind when you think of festivals, but the city actually came in third place in terms of festivals per capita.
14. St. Louis, Missouri
For ranking in the top 15, St. Louis isn't as pricey as you might assume. The city came in 6th in terms of cost.
13. Cincinnati, Ohio
Cincinnati ranked 15th overall in the entertainment and recreation category.
12. Los Angeles, California
Los Angeleans take their fitness seriously. The city has the fifth most fitness centers per capita. It also ranked in the top 10 in the entertainment and recreation category, taking 7th place.
However, LA, along with NYC, has some of the highest movie ticket costs per capita.
11. Denver, Colorado
Denver ranked 11th in terms of nightlife and party options in the city.
10. San Diego, California
San Diego, along with San Francisco and New York, has the highest number of fitness centers per capita.
But going out in the idyllic west coast city isn't cheap. San Diego has one of the highest average beer prices.
9. Chicago, Illinois
Chicago is a clean city and it's also a green city. It tied with NYC for the most park playgrounds per capita.
The city scored high in the entertainment and recreation category, coming in 5th place. Chicago is known as a great summer destination, thank to its beaches, ball parks, and its popular summer music festival, Lollapalooza.
8. New Orleans, Louisiana
New Orleans ranked number five in the overall category of nightlife and parties, which isn't surprising considering the city is a hot destination for bachelor and bachelorette parties and for friends looking to celebrate Mardi Gras.
7. San Francisco, California
San Francisco and Honolulu tied for first place when it comes to festivals per capita. The city also placed first in two other categories: most fitness centers per capita (a tie with NYC and San Diego) and most dance clubs per capita (a tie with Las Vegas, Atlanta, and Los Angeles).
Fun comes at a steep price here, though. San Francisco ranked 145th place in the costs category.
6. Atlanta, Georgia
Atlanta has plenty to offer foodies; the city took 5th place in the category of restaurants per capita. And if you're looking for a follow-up to dinner, the city also tied with San Francisco and Las Vegas for the most dance clubs per capita.
5. Portland, Oregon
If you like to go out, you'll love Portland. The city ranked 4th in the overall nightlife and parties category, and it also took 4th place in terms of the number of accessible bars in the city.
4. Miami, Florida
Unsurprisingly, Miami took the number two spot in the nightlife and parties category, coming in just after Las Vegas. The city also ranked 4th in terms of fitness center per capita.
Although it may have plenty of beautiful beaches, Miami placed in the bottom half for parkland per capita.
3. New York City, New York
Although NYC took third place in WalletHub's overall rankings, the big apple ranked first in the entertainment and recreation category.
The city also took the number one spot in the categories of most accessible bars, most restaurants per capita (a tie with Orlando and Las Vegas), most park playgrounds per capita (a tie with Chicago), and most fitness centers per capita (a tie with San Francisco and San Diego).
2. Orlando, Florida
Considering Orland is home to Walt Disney World, it's no wonder that the city placed second overall in WalletHub's rankings.
Orlando is a great place to experience all different kinds of cuisine — it tied with NYC and Las Vegas for the most restaurants per capita. Plus, for a city that offers so much in the way of entertainment, it's relatively inexpensive, taking 6th place in the costs category.
1. Las Vegas, Nevada
Las Vegas took the top spot in WalletHub's list, making it the most fun city in the US. Sin City ranked first in the nightlife and party category and 6th place in the entertainment and recreation category.
Vegas has the most restaurants per capita (a tie with NYC and Orlando) and the most dance clubs per capita (a tie with Atlanta, LA, and San Francisco). It placed 2nd in terms of most accessible bars and 5th in terms of festivals per capita.
The city is the ultimate destination for party animals.
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