On Monday, WalletHub released its latest ranking of the “happiest” cities in America, looking at which places experience the highest rates of fulfillment.
According to the study, the U.S. is one of the richest countries in the world, but it ranks only 23rd on the World Happiness Report. As such, the data factors in more than just how much money people have.
Recommended Videos
“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,” the study reads. “However, money can only make you so happy – people who make $75,000 a year won’t get any higher satisfaction from more money.”
The specific factors used in this study are as follows:
- Emotional and Physical Well-Being: Includes rates of depression, suicide, adequate sleep, sports participation, marijuana users, retail opioid prescriptions, “not good” mental health, food insecurity, and life expectancy
- Income and Employment: Includes rates of income growth, households earning annual incomes over $75,000, poverty, job satisfaction, unemployment, underemployment, bankruptcy, weekly work hours, commute time, and job security
- Community and Environment: Includes rates of separation/divorce, hate crimes, ideal weather, acres of parkland, leisure time, and “community” well-being
The top three cities on the list were all located in California: Irvine (No. 3), San Jose (No. 2), and Fremont (No. 1). Long life expectancies, good physical health, lower divorce rates, and high incomes were all reasons why these cities placed highest.
“Fremont, CA, is the happiest city in America, and one contributing factor is that the city has the highest share of households with an income above $75,000, at nearly 80%. Studies have shown that increasing your income up to $75,000 also increases your happiness, but making more than that does not.
Therefore, cities where a lot of people make at least $75,000 per year are more likely to have maximized their happiness. People in Fremont also have the highest rate of life satisfaction, the fifth-lowest depression rate, and the fourth-highest average life expectancy in the country.
Another contributing factor to Fremont’s happiness is the fact that it has the lowest separation and divorce rate in the country, at only 8.9%. It also has the lowest share of adults who report having 14 or more mentally unhealthy days per month, so people in the city seem to be taking care of themselves psychologically.
Finally, Fremont also ranks sixth among the most caring cities in America, and when people care for each other, they boost each other’s happiness.”
WalletHub, "Happiest Cities in America (2025)"
However, the happiest city in Florida ranked much lower on the national list: Pembroke Pines in Broward County, all the way down at No. 39.
The city ranked fairly high when it comes to its community, though it lagged far behind in terms of income and employment.
In fact, the best-ranked Florida city for employment metrics was Orlando, which came out at No. 5 for that factor specifically. But even then, the City Beautiful still fell behind at No. 66 overall.
The full ranking of Florida cities included in the study is as follows:
| Rank | City | Total Score | Well-Being Rank | Employment Rank | Community Rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 39 | Pembroke Pines | 59.53 | 37 | 147 | 27 |
| 46 | Ft. Lauderdale | 58.74 | 46 | 78 | 54 |
| 50 | Cape Coral | 58.27 | 72 | 83 | 8 |
| 66 | Orlando | 55.82 | 78 | 5 | 102 |
| 69 | St. Petersburg | 55.29 | 82 | 25 | 69 |
| 70 | Tampa | 55.24 | 87 | 46 | 46 |
| 73 | Port St. Lucie | 54.86 | 96 | 49 | 36 |
| 82 | Miami | 54.01 | 74 | 13 | 151 |
| 98 | Tallahassee | 52.59 | 111 | 33 | 78 |
| 105 | Hialeah | 51.53 | 94 | 101 | 104 |
| 119 | Jacksonville | 49.17 | 139 | 123 | 41 |