| 12 | Scottsdale, AZ | 20 | Gilbert, AZ |
| 40 | Chandler | 42 | Peoria |
| 58 | Tempe | 77 | Mesa |
| 115 | Glendale, AZ | 122 | Phoenix, AZ |
| 131 | Tucson, AZ |
Scottsdale and Gilbert were among the top twenty 2018’s Happiest Cities in America. Interestingly the two largest cities in Arizona placed among the lowest.
Location plays a hand in how bright or gloomy our days are. For years, researchers have studied the science of happiness and found that its key ingredients include a positive mental state, healthy body, strong social connections, job satisfaction and financial well-being. Interestingly, money can only make you so happy , for instance studies have indicated people who make $75,000 a year won’t get any higher satisfaction from more money.
WalletHub, a personal-finance website, looked at 2018’s Happiest Cities in America to coincide with the International Day of Happiness on March 20.
In order to determine where people in America are most content with their lives, WalletHub compared more than 180 of the largest U.S. cities across 28 key indicators of happiness. The data set ranges from depression rate to income-growth rate to average leisure time spent per day.
| Top 20 Happiest | Cities in America | |||
| 1 | Fremont, CA | 11 | Madison, WI | |
| 2 | Bismarck, ND | 12 | Columbia, MD | |
| 3 | San Jose, CA | 13 | San Francisco, CA | |
| 4 | Pearl City, HI | 14 | Scottsdale, AZ | |
| 5 | Plano, TX | 15 | Overland Park, KS | |
| 6 | Fargo, ND | 16 | Santa Clarita, CA | |
| 7 | Sioux Falls, SD | 17 | Glendale, CA | |
| 8 | Irvine, CA | 18 | Oakland, CA | |
| 9 | Huntington Beach, CA | 19 | St. Paul, MN | |
| 10 | Grand Prairie, TX | 20 | Gilbert, AZ | |
Interesting Statistics
- El Paso, Texas has the lowest depression rate, 10.3 percent, which is 2.9 times lower than in Salem, Oregon, the city with the highest at 29.6 percent.
- Laredo, Texas, has the lowest number of suicides per 100,000 residents, 5.26, which is 5.5 times lower than in Missoula, Montana, the city with the highest at 29.18.
- Fremont, California, has the lowest separation & divorce rate, 16.52 percent, which is 2.9 times lower than in Detroit, the city with the highest at 47.65 percent.
- Overland Park, Kansas has the lowest adequate-sleep rate, 26.4 percent, which is 1.9 times lower than in Detroit, the city with the highest at 50.8 percent.
- Cheyenne, Wyoming, has the lowest average commute time, 14.6 minutes, which is 2.8 times lower than in New York, the city with the highest at 40.3 minutes.
To view the full report and your city’s rank, visit here.