Rank The Cities Based on Overall Quality of Life 2021 (Post-COVID)
I know there are a ton of these threads, but a lot has changed in the last year. Assuming COVID is now becoming a thing of the past (not here to debate that but lets just assume vaccinations or whatever will take place) and its after effects are now present.
Cities: NY, LA, SF, Charlotte, Chicago, Miami, Tampa, Atlanta, Boston, Dallas, Houston, Austin, Phoenix, Seattle, DC, and Minneapolis
Feel free to look at it from the perspective of an undergrad out of school, MBA, older professional, etc.
Separate rankings on nightlife, opportunities in finance, COL, growth trajectory, fun, and others would also be good.
Discuss away
The fact that you listed Tampa and not Austin, Denver, Phoenix, or Seattle is interesting.
Added them now!
I don't think there is any dollar amount you could pay me to move to Seattle, Portland, or LA.
Add SF and Minneapolis to that list
Don't worry. No one is waiting for you to move there.
Pensacola
interest
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Anywhere in Texas is hard to beat imo. I’m bias Bc I’m a Texan but it’s easy living down here. No one gives af what you do with your life or bothers you as long as you’re a good person. I think that’s pretty refreshing.
Obviously it’s different than the east coast but the thing to know is that you gotta give it the time of day if you move here. Don’t expect to get a good understanding of it over the course of a week.
I’m planning to head out there for a few months later this year assuming we’re still given the remote option. What do you advise I do to soak in the culture? I am thinking 1) Dallas 2) Austin 3) Houston
Visit all of them, they are all pretty unique to themselves. If I had to rank them I’d say Austin, Houston, Dallas. Then again I’m from Houston - I think most would say Austin, Dallas, Houston. Imo, people in Austin and Houston are a bit more down to earth than Dallas but that’s not to say Dallas is terrible.
I’d try to meet people in all three and find some people to go out with to get a sense of the cities. Obviously with any city, the night life you get is pretty dependent on the bars you go to (I.e., you’ll get a different taste if you go to a dive bar vs a club but that goes w/o saying)
What general area of the country are you from?
I've lived in the northeast and had no racist remarks randomly said to me, and no evangelicals knock on my door trying to convert me. But in the South and in Texas, I've had those things happen. I also know that getting abortions in Texas is insanely difficult compared to other parts of the country.
I like Texas, but the comment regarding how it's "refreshing" to not have anyone bother you is BS. There's lots to like about Texas, but there's lots to dislike too. It just comes down to choosing your poison.
I mean I can only speak from my experience so you may certainly have a diff experience entirely.
How often are you getting abortions that you need to factor that into where you live? Might want to see if planned parenthood has a rewards card for you.
Start using birth control
For someone not from the US but interested in TX, can you expand a bit on the racist remarks and which group(s) they were directed at?
(understand it if you won't for the sake of anonymity)
Too many people in Texas have sex with their own siblings.
Grew up in Florida, have lived in NYC and the a tier 3 mid west city, and now in Dallas and love it. By far my favorite city I have every lived in for what it's worth.
What do you like about it so much and how does it compare to Florida?
A few things....
1) While Texas is extremely hot, it's not nearly as humid as Florida.
2) Dallas and Houston have more of a big city feel to me, there isn't really a city in Florida that compares to either. Miami is fun to visit, but I'd never want to live there.
2a) One downfall to the big city feels is that in general, there are a lot of very loud liberal people that in general you wouldn't have to be around in Florida... personally I just wish everyone would keep politics to themselves, but ehh oh well.
3) I miss my sports teams, kind of bummer not being there while they are crushing it .
4) The amount of opportunity for financial / consulting professionals has to be 10 fold in Texas compared to Florida (plenty of IB / PE, along with tons of F500 companies HQs spread across the state).
5) Dallas can have a "keeping up with the Jones" type of vibe... I have seen more super / hyper cars here than I ever have in my life. Not a day goes by that I don't see a handful of Rolls, Bentley, Lamborghini, etc. This might be due to where I work / live, but it is utterly insane to see some of the wealth (or purported wealth) that is here, that I feel like you'd only have to deal with in parts of Miami / Ft. Lauderdale.
Can't speak for the others, but the D.C. area, in my view, is an area of dying opportunity. We've basically run out of land to build houses and real estate prices are out of control. There are a ton of well-paid job opportunities, and with each one are hundreds of qualified applicants. Traffic is God awful. Public transit is a joke (in fact, the Metro system is in a financial death spiral). It's a nice place to live if you can afford it. But for newcomers looking for opportunity on "virgin soil", so to speak, D.C. is not going to be welcoming relative to states/cities like Charlotte, NC, Georgia, Florida, Texas, etc.
Yeah, it's definitely expensive, but, in my opinion, has some of the best amenities out there, especially for a city its size. We're talking world class museums (not just the Smithsonian), performing arts (Kennedy Center, Wolf Trap, etc.), food scene (one of 5 US cities with a Michelin guide), sports (has all the major leagues and all readily accessible) and on. It's not far from most East Coast destinations either so it's only a quick flight to Miami, NYC, Boston, Chicago, etc.
Plus if you live in the right spot it's incredibly walkable. I lived by Logan Circle for a while and I could walk to about 90% of what I wanted to do in the city.
Yeah, my point isn't that DC area is a bad place to live, just that it isn't a place of special new opportunity anymore like it was in the 1990s. It's just too expensive and there is too much qualified competition.
Minneapolis is the best. I got a place right by Cup Foods and the cheap rent, vibrant community, access to illicit “therapeutics” and city amenities (when not burned down) are all amazing and will take your breath away.
Also the periodic "everything is free!" shopping days are a big help for folks on a budget.
White collared shirts and suspenders only cost you a brick or two in Minneapolis.
HA the funniest comment ive ever heard....unless u bring a bulletproof vest I wouldn't visit here not at the current moment. maybe in 5-10 years if things change
Good discussion thus far. Let's keep it going.
Lived in Philly for the last 5 years, originally Chicago and Pittsburgh before that. All 3 in my opinion are underrated by a lot of people. Chicago gets the closest to its due, but it is undoubtedly a tier 1 city in the US and it think since its always talked about with NYC and LA, it gets forgotten a bit. It is a world class city with top food, drink, entertainment, art, sports, music, architecture, job market, and history, not to mention the still modest cost of living relative to its peers.
Pittsburgh is probably one of, if not the best tier 3 city in the country. Potentially the best skyline for a smaller city, great influx of young talent with booming healthcare, engineering, and education fields. Plenty to do for the average person with 3 sports teams, nice mix of different neighborhoods with great food, drink, and an entertainment and art scene that swings much above its weight class. Great city for what it is, especially what it offers compared to other cities of comparable size.
Philly to me is far and away the most underrated city in the US, let alone just in tier 2. When I moved here, the first thing that jumped out was the location. An hour and a half from the beach, hour and a half away from NYC, a little over 2 hours from DC, and 6 hours from Boston. Can get to anything you want to do within a 6 hour drive. The architecture is great, very nice skyline, as well as a big city feel with the physical size of the city, as well as the population. Very diverse mix of neighborhoods that each have their own individual feel and identity. The food and drink is fantastic, great options from grab and go to bar food all the way up to fine dining, and everything in between. Great sports and entertainment relative to its peers, and it is also still very affordable. So much to do across the city and surrounding areas, it will take quite a while for anyone to get board and feel like they just do the same thing every weekend. Philly is usually skipped over in favor of NYC, DC, and Boston when people talk about a trip to the Northeast, but it really should be included.
Philly should 100% be on the list above - it's the 6th largest city in the US, it's dense and walkable, it has good nightlife and great food, and is wildly reasonable from a CoL standpoint. It doesn't have great opportunities in finance (or consulting really) but in healthcare, education & legal it's a powerhouse. If you can't tell I love Philadelphia - have pretty well-developed plans to move there after I find a wife in NYC (Philly dating scene is not good).
Agree on Philly dating scene. It’s definitely not the best. lol
I’m addition to the industry strengths and weaknesses, I’d say Philly is weak in big tech and energy. I agree it’s strong in healthcare (JnJ, GSK, AZ, Endo, AmerisourceBergen, Cigna, Merck) and weak in finance and consulting.
My Dad is from Philly and has great pride for the city. He went to Germantown Academy then Penn.
Yes!
I was planning on advocating for PA but I was beat to the punch! I grew up in the Philly burbs and lived in Pittsburgh during undergrad. Pittsburgh is a great place with very reasonable CoL.
There is so much to do in Philly that anyone can have fun living there. It’s very cultural and very diverse for sure. The access to NY, DC, NJ beaches cannot be understated.
Always nice to see love for Philly on here, but I'm not optimistic on the future of the city. The last year was disastrous, WFH/work-from-anywhere dynamics are going to crush wage tax revenue, the schools are still abysmal, the infrastructure continues to deteriorate, homicides are hitting a record pace (and the administration is a clown show - Kenney is just a discount de Blasio). I almost bought in the city a few times but glad I didn't. It's an awesome place to spend your 20s for all of the reasons you noted, but the city has made absolutely zero effort to retain young, high-earning families. There are some really good finance roles but it's a very small scene, and most opportunities are in the suburbs anyway. On that note, the suburbs probably rank among the best in the country.
Love to see the Philly love on here. At the current moment, I prefer the SE (Atlanta and Charlotte) and Texas. However, if someone is keen on being in the NE, there is no better place to be than Philly. Top-tier place to be for healthcare, legal, and education as mentioned earlier. Tech scene is improving greatly as Comcast has expanded and attracted talent from other places to the area. Additionally, on the investing side, First Round Capital, SeventySix Capital, SGE/SPC, and LLR are all very solid. SIG is very good for quant talent. Whereas on the startup side, the landscape has improved dramatically as the number of unicorns increases, with GoPuff being a great example of a recent Philly success story. Outside of work, the food scene is exceptional, with top-tier restaurants serving all types of food everywhere in the city. The club scene has taken a beating from COVID but it is still very solid, and the top clubs rival any on the east coast while being much more affordable. Finally, Philly is the most convenient city in America. Everywhere relevant in the city is walkable and as others have mentioned, Philly is right at the heart of the NE corridor.
Big supporter of Philly as well. It maintained a lot of its identity during urbanization and is well situated geographically It has obvious flaws, but whenever I see DC ranked over Philly (or just not mentioned) in these kind of lists it confuses me. I also don't like seeing it lumped in with CLT which is much smaller and blander city.
If Philly politics could ever get it together just a little the city would be great. There is already great food, solid and varied nightlife (aka hole-in-the-wall bars), a pretty decent layout, and easy access to the beach in NJ, mountains, and the Northeast.
Growth would spike if the city became less business antagonistic given the huge college population would have a better reason to stick around. But, because it hasn't done that, growth will probably be .5%-2% for the foreseeable future.
I generally like Texas, and Dallas specifically, for the mix of cost of living, somewhat large city, and professional opportunities. It’s definitely a “like” relationship though - there really isn’t anything to “love” about living here, but it’s overall comfortable - “nice place to live but I wouldn’t want to visit” as the saying goes.
Finance opportunities are plentiful, but mostly MM and LMM - not a bad thing, just a fact. Culturally, the city can be pretty cliquey around high school and college ties, but luckily the transplant community is large enough that you can still meet people. Nightlife is decent, but nothing to write home about... which again I think describes most things about Dallas. Same with food (one of the few areas where Houston wins hands down)
Can’t stand the suburban sprawl and car culture - they keep building another layer of suburbs farther and farther out, and pretty much every one of them feels the same after adjusting for median income. Downtown is treated like an office park and starts to die after hours (though this is slowly changing with some recent developments).
Don't have much to add but, anyone have thoughts on Charlotte?
Lived in Charlotte for a bit - imo it's not a great city if you're young/single. Not much of a dating scene and finance is the main industry so very dude-heavy. There isn't much culture to the city besides the freakish amount of breweries and two garbage sports franchises. Social scene is very UNC and NC State heavy, and can feel insular.
It is cheap af and pretty clean, traffic is very manageable, and it is growing, so not a bad place to settle down if you're married.
How long ago was this? Has me a bit worried as I'll be a young transplant out of UG.
Don't agree with this at all. Recent perspective, pre-covid. I've probably never been to a city with a better male/female ratio from a dating perspective. Lots of attractive single women, typically with good jobs.
I forgot where I heard the statistic, but during covid Mckinsey performed a study. It showed that more people changed their job locations on Linkedin to Madison Wisconsin than any other city in the US.
Edit: found it https://bringmethenews.com/.image/c_limit%2Ccs_srgb%2Cq_auto:good%2Cw_1…
I would thoroughly appreciate any insight on Boston. Moving there post-grad (work is in Cambridge).
I hope you like Dunkin Donuts.
From Boston originally. It's definitely expensive, but really nice. Back Bay especially is great to walk around, solid bars in food. Other than the brutal winter weather and prices you'll have a good time.
I live 5mi from the beach in the south - no masks required there, no masks required at the gym - life is good. Masks required when entering restaurants, but when you sit down you can take it off.
I received my second dose of Moderna on 3/29 so not worried about Covid at all.
That'll be me soon enough, just need to find a good spot by the water. Fuck the masks.
Would add Denver to the list
Not very bullish on NYC post covid. Maybe it’s just me, but I can’t stand the high taxes, dirty streets, rent prices, etc. Young people basically consist of insecure finance bros and stuck-up, instagram obsessed white girls - at least that’s what I’ve experienced. I have basically abstained from drinking for the Last year during covid, and I am not looking forward to going back to the city where basically the only activity young people partake in is drinking. Straight up depressing to think about going back honestly
How many cities do you think have tons of young people where the majority activity is NOT drinking? Have lived in half a dozen states across the country and visited most of the others and I promise you it’s the same.
I’m guessing outdoor activities are more your style? Only category I can think of where NYC isn’t in the discussion... and even then plenty of people in the city venture a couple hours out to hike, camp, raft, climb, etc, though obviously the mountains are better out west and the beaches are better down south
I do hope you find what you’re looking for, and for cost and cleanliness no doubt there are plenty of cities that have NYC beat, but in terms of things to do for young people it’s hard to see NYC not competing with the best (music, fashion, art, entertainment, food, sports, education... I don’t know, political activism... specialty craft shops? hard to think of passions and hobbies that aren’t present there).
Not even hyping for NYC or disputing the rest of your post, I’m somewhere cheaper and quieter these days, I’m just curious what the country’s biggest city is missing for young people
I know very few people who venture north or out east to partake in such activities and even then, it’s at most every few months and 100% for Instagram
I think SLC would be a good city for you to settle in long term if you decide to go the corp dev/corp strat route (Don't think there is any IB presence in the city after GS winded down its IB group there). Both on the abstinence of drinking front (bars are there but have a curfew) and the fact it is very outdoors/nature centric seems to make it a good place for you. I've been to SLC once and the views are pretty amazing.
Texas
Wisconsin
California
Michigan
Colorado
Florida
Pennsylvania
Maine
North Carolina
Nevada
These are states, not cities.
49 replies and not a single one answering OP’s prompt. Never change, WSO
Lol at least we got a discussion going, can't complain too much I guess lol. Hopefully more people chime in.
To be fair, it’s hard ranking a list of cities when you haven’t visited all of them. Maybe I’m in the minority, but I’ve only visited maybe half these cities, and I only know 3-4 of them well enough to feel confident ranking them. Outside of those 3-4, I’d be basing everything else on stereotypes.
In absolutes I would say NY>LA>Chicago>Austin=DC but if we are talking about COL for a new grad, I think Chicago or DC would be my top choices. It really depends on what you want in a city. I personally need good food and a good standard of living which you can get in DC and Chicago, whereas LA and NYC would be too expensive to have a nice apartment.
Maybe I'm wrong, but isn't DC the worst in terms of affordability? Article is old, but I think it's only gotten worse.
https://www.huffpost.com/entry/least-affordable-city_n_2971714#:~:text=….
Snow is fun the first few days. It's a fucking shit ass experience to live through for 1/4 of the year. Hate humidity too. SF ftw
"Even for the compulsive jetsetters among us, it’s a simple truth that most travel stories are aspirational in the best of times. There are too many incredible places to see, not enough vacation days, and sometimes we all have to content ourselves with scrawling another spot on the bucket list and hoping the stars align.
But this year, as we all sat at home and watched the world come to a halt, “aspirational” took on new meaning. When restrictions relaxed this summer, the familiar wanderlust crept back in. With even the most straightforward international getaways ruled out, and many travelers still hesitant to hop on a plane, even simple trips — scenic drives, camping weekends, staycations across town — suddenly felt novel and luxurious.
Related: Guide to more travel ideas
With the first vaccines now rolling out, it seems the end of our long international nightmare is finally (finally!) in sight. In anticipation of that moment, we’ve once again compiled our annual list of the best places to travel in the coming year — with one twist. In honor of our revived appreciation for the discoveries to be made in our own backyards, this year’s list features 50 dynamic, of-the-moment destinations — all right here in the United States.
Related: The Top 15 Cities in the United States
Some spots on the list ahead are newly blossoming thanks to hotel or infrastructure developments or revamped cultural attractions. Others caught on this summer, as social distancing made empty expanses of wilderness more compelling than ever and we all looked for new wells of charm in our own home states. What they all have in common is that singularity that makes a destination memorable — the sense that this place has something to offer that you won’t find anywhere else in the world.
One day soon, we’ll all get back to traveling the way we did before. We’ll gripe about security lines and airplane meals, delight at hearing an unfamiliar language or staying in a new hotel, develop passionate loyalties for a particular food truck or coffee kiosk. Until then, we hope this list will serve as something to hold onto — to stoke your wanderlust and keep the tiny flame of optimism burning. Sure, it’s a little bit aspirational. But that just means we’re still willing to dream.
Ahead, Travel + Leisure’s 50 best places to travel in 2021, listed in alphabetical order:"
https://www.travelandleisure.com/trip-ideas/best-places-to-travel-in-20…
Now this is the kind of effort I like to see here. Thank you sir!
LA is a great place to live during post-pandemic because there are plenty of outdoor activities year-round to do. Surfing, biking, hiking, skiing, skating, camping... damn near the entirety of a Big 5 or REI can be accessed whenever you want. You just have to pay up for the real estate here. I never get politics shoved in my face here but of course if I was looking for controversy I could find it...
Minneapolis hellll to the noooo
(From poc perspective shits scary and GF actually happened 20m driving from me)
I enjoy NYC, but I could really go elsewhere. I like outdoor activities but the weather is only nice enough for a few months a year to actually enjoy it (and no, 60 degrees is not warm), taxes are high and the city is honestly filthy.
After living in other big cities outside of NYC, it’s odd to see people here act like it’s acceptable to have tons of trash on the streets, homeless people pissing on sidewalks, high crime, mice in apartment buildings, and shitty old buildings (that the average person can afford) that have zero amenities. Luckily I make enough to afford these things but I honestly don’t get why the average person lives here.
You have tons of options for arts/museums, but let’s be honest how many times a year are you actually going to go to these places? The professional sports scene is great, but again, this exists elsewhere. The large selection of bars and restaurants is great as well, but other cities have this. I can find really good Asian/Caribbean/Latin food in other big cities too. I won’t have as many options in each category of cuisine but chances are I’ll have at least 2 really good options in each which is more than fine. Most social activities consist of going to bars with friends or coworkers, which I’ve literally done in other big cities. No subway in other cities? Cool, I can literally get in an Uber and have the same access to different areas and if you’re making finance money the incremental cost is probably not a big deal. I go to Central Park a couple of times a week which is also awesome but other big cities have really good parks (not as good as Central Park but when you can only enjoy running through Central Park with a t shirt and shorts a few months out of the year it kind of balances out).
Access to other parts of the country? Many big cities have other places within driving distance and it’s really not a big deal to hop on a 2-4 hr flight to other cities, vs hopping on a 3-4 hr train ride to Boston/DC.
Sorry for the long rant but if I could take my NYC salary somewhere else I’d gladly move out. NYC is top notch for career opportunities when you’re in your 20’s but once you have some experience you have more flexibility.
Can anyone speak to any of these cities with regards to dating from the viewpoint of a conservative male? Assume that I want to date only conservative females.
Dallas would be perfect for you IMO.
Have you had a good experience there?
https://www.homesnacks.com/most-conservative-cities-in-america/
The 10 Most Conservative Cities In America For 2020
Lafayette, LA (Photos)
Tyler, TX (Photos)
The Woodlands, TX
Knoxville, TN (Photos)
Frisco, TX (Photos)
Carrollton, TX (Photos)
Murfreesboro, TN (Photos)
Chattanooga, TN (Photos)
Scottsdale, AZ (Photos)
Plano, TX (Photos)
Not sure why the text is so big - also don’t know how to make it normal size text.
Will second Dallas as a solid option. But even then it's not like all younger women there will be conservative. Women generally "go with the flow" of the social zeitgeist, which in urban areas is wokie shit. It's basically the "things vs people" idea in gender research. Men are more interested in things, women in people (and their relationships with them). So women are less likely to risk losing social standing or deal with backbiting by going against the grain, even if they aren't ideological wokies. Men are more more likely at the margin to say "this is dumb, fuck all of you".
point being the realistic best you can hope for is someone who is apolitical
I mean I'm aware that all of these cities are liberal, and thus wasn't looking for a magical city where every young female is conservative. I guess I would just need a favorable ratio between single conservative females and single conservative males, which doesn't necessarily imply that a large proportion of young females in the city are conservative. Your gender research point is interesting and discouraging at the same time. I'm also curious why you and other poster brought up Dallas but left off Houston which is also on the list. Is there something I'm missing here?
Btw what are the best cities for an European guy ?
Atlanta has become pretty cool in recent years. Tons of good food and nice bars, reasonably affordable, sports teams, and a good airport. Plenty to do outdoors as well.
Welcome to Indy!
Best place I have lived. Pre and post Covid
People are great Prices are low. Housing (was) really affordable Schools are top notch. Weather for 9 months is very good.
Prior: Manhattan, New Haven, New Jersey, Columbus, Palm Beach, Ft Lauderdale
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