Life
The 10 Best Cities To Live in If You're a Single Woman in America
February can mislead people into thinking that everyone needs to be in a relationship. But if you’re single, you know you have your good reasons for it. According to the 2012 Census, there are 103 million single people in the United States, and 55 million of those awesome people are women.
But if you're a single woman, where are the best places to live? To find out, we measured several factors in cities including: its walkable score, a combination of the FBI's statistics on violent crime, rape, and aggravated assault, and how wide the gender wage gap is. We also looked at what makes being a single woman in each of these cities a unique experience.
Click on to find out if your city made the list.
Cleveland, OH
Walk Score: 56.8
Crime Rate: 3,758 reported crimes
Median Wage Gap: 82.8 cents to every man’s dollar
Cleveland, Ohio might have a pretty low walk score, but in the city, “National Singles Week” is celebrated every third week of September. Back in the 1980s, The Buckeye Singles Council started the week “to celebrate single life and recognize singles and their contributions to society.” It’s now celebrated nationwide.
Bridgeport, CT
Walk Score: Data not provided
Crime Rate: 981 reported crimes
Median Wage: 77 cents to every man’s dollar
Bridgeport, Connecticut’s touts one of the lowest crime rates of this set, but what really earned its place on this list was its highly regarded feminist restaurant. Bloodroot was established in the 1970s and prides itself on being vegetarian, and not having any waitresses or women at the cash register. Once you’re done, you bus your own table.
New York, NY
Walk Score: 88
Crime Rate: 39,818 reported crimes
Median Wage: 82.9 cents to every man’s dollar
New York City’s only downfall for single women is its high crime rate. But as long as you are on the buddy system, then the high walk score and wide array of ways to meet people make up for it.
Houston, TX
Walk Score: 44.2
Crime Rate: 15,495 reported crimes
Median Wage: 79.6 cents to every man’s dollar
Even though Houston’s walk score is comparatively low, the high number of Single Women Meetups earns Houston a spot on this list.
Ann Arbor, MI
Walk Score: N/A
Crime Rate: 218 reported crimes
Median Wage: 77.3 cents to every man’s dollar
Ann Arbor is home to the Common Language Bookstore, one of the nation’s most popular feminist bookstores. It also is a great university town, and has a low crime rate.
Washington D.C.
Walk Score: 74.1
Crime Rate: 3,635* reported crimes
Median Wage: 94.8 cents to every man’s dollar
D.C. earns a spot for having the lowest median wage gap.
Arlington, VA
Walk Score: 67
Crime Rate : N/A reported crimes
Median Wage: 79.5 cents to every man’s dollar
We had to include at least one place on the list where you can find love (if you’re looking). According to a Bloomberg study, Arlington is one of the best cities on this front.
Seattle, WA
Walk Score: 70.8
Crime Rate: 2,668 reported crimes
Median Wage: 76 cents to every man’s dollar
If you’re into working at a Fortune 500 company, Seattle is the place to be. Nordstrom, Amazon, and Starbucks all have HQ here and their campuses alone encourage making friends.
Image: Jcolman/Flickr
Hoboken, NJ
Walk Score: Not available
Crime Rate: 187.5* reported crimes
Median Wage: 79.4 cents to every man’s dollar
Hoboken is so much of an up-and-coming city that it has no walk rate yet. But Hoboken is turning into a go-to destination for single women who can’t afford high NYC rent, but love being close the Big Apple. Plus, if you’re looking for love, you’re more likely to find it in Hoboken than in NYC.
San Francisco, CA
Walk Score: 83.9
Crime Rate: 4,545 reported crimes
Median Wage: 86 cents to every man’s dollar
If you Google San Francisco women business owners you’re bound to find more than a couple associations that offer a support system for any woman who is starting her own business. The median wage for women in SF is also higher than most, the city’s high walk score and per-capita woman-only meetups place it at the top of our list.
