Detroit named least happiest city in America, according to WalletHub (2024)

(CBS DETROIT) - A new study from WalletHub places Detroit at the bottom of the list of the happiest cities in America.

The study -- released on Tuesday -- marks Fremont, Califonia, as the top happiest city out of 182, followed by San Jose, California, and Madison, Wisconsin.

Detroit, which ranks the lowest, comes behind Cleveland, Ohio, Shreveport, Louisiana, and Huntington, West, Virginia. Another Michigan city, Grand Rapids, ranked No. 70.

Experts compared 182 of the largest cities, including the 150 most populated cities and at least two of the most populated in each state. The findings were based on three key dimensions: emotional and physical well-being, income and employment, and community and environment.

In those categories, the city of Detroit ranked:

• Emotional and physical well-being: 181
• Income and employment: 178
• Community and environment: 180

"Where you live makes a difference, to be sure, although where you live probably is not as big a factor as personal and family influences on any one person's happiness," said Sherry Hamby, research professor of psychology at the University of the South." Places with more resources -- whether these are natural resources like beaches and mountains, cultural resources like museums and theaters, or essential resources like health care and transportation -- tend to have happier people than other places."

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