This year, over 85 million U.S. pet-owning households are projected to spend $75 billion, according to an report on 2019’s Most Pet-Friendly Cities as well as accompanying videos.
In order to determine where Americans’ animal companions can enjoy the best quality of life without breaking the bank, the personal finance website WalletHub, compared the creature-friendliness of the 100 largest cities across 24 key metrics. The data set ranges from minimum pet-care provider rate per visit to pet businesses per capita to walkability.
| Most Pet-Friendly Cities | Least Pet-Friendly Cities | |||
| 1 | Scottsdale, AZ | 91 | Detroit, MI | |
| 2 | Orlando, FL | 92 | Aurora, CO | |
| 3 | Tampa, FL | 93 | Nashville, TN | |
| 4 | Austin, TX | 94 | Newark, NJ | |
| 5 | Phoenix, AZ | 95 | Santa Ana, CA | |
| 6 | Las Vegas, NV | 96 | Chula Vista, CA | |
| 7 | Atlanta, GA | 97 | Milwaukee, WI | |
| 8 | St. Louis, MO | 98 | Buffalo, NY | |
| 9 | Seattle, WA | 99 | Laredo, TX | |
| 10 | Portland, OR | 100 | Fresno, CA | |
Key Stats
- Stockton, California, has the lowest average veterinary care costs (per visit), $37.08, which is 2.3 times lower than in Plano, Texas, the city with the highest at $84.24.
- Miami has the most veterinarians (per square root of population), 0.3380, which is 88.9 times more than in Newark, New Jersey, the city with the fewest at 0.0038.
- St. Paul, Minnesota, has the lowest monthly dog-insurance premium, $34.84, which is 2.5 times lower than in San Francisco, the city with the highest at $88.76.
- San Francisco has the most pet businesses (per square root of population), 0.8455, which is 21.4 times more than in Newark, New Jersey, the city with the fewest at 0.0395.