These 3 NC cities are among the happiest in the nation, a new study says. Here’s why
A new study found that three cities in North Carolina are among the happiest in the nation.
The study from WalletHub, a personal finance website, said Raleigh is the happiest city in North Carolina, coming in at No. 22 on the list, followed by Durham and Charlotte, ranked at No. 29 and No. 52, respectively.
Of the 182 total cities ranked, Winston-Salem came in at No. 110, Greensboro at No. 116 and Fayetteville at No. 150.
Happy and healthy
The WalletHub ranking comes just weeks after Hers, a health and wellness company, named Raleigh the 10th healthiest city in the nation, The Charlotte Observer reported. (Conversely, Hers ranked Charlotte the No. 10 least healthy city in the U.S.)
“Raleigh, North Carolina is the only Southern city to make it in the top 10 best cities for healthy living,” Hers writer Lauren Ward wrote in June. “The tech-centric city ranked particularly well for sleep, walkability, and access to psychologists and psychiatrists.”
That’s not the only time the capital city has earned attention for its focus on health. The U.S. News & World Report 2025 Best Places to Retire ranking recently named Raleigh the sixth-best city to retire, the Observer reported.
Who is middle class in NC?
A recent study from personal finance website SmartAsset found that a North Carolina household needed to earn $47,198 to $141,608 to be considered middle class in 2023, the Observer reported — but for a few cities in North Carolina, those numbers are higher.
▪ To be considered middle class in Raleigh in 2023, households needed to earn $57,534 to $172,618, putting it at No. 1 in the state in terms of highest middle-class income range.
▪ Charlotte ranked second on the list of N.C. cities, with a 2023 middle-class income range of $53,715 to $161,162.
▪ Durham came in at No. 3, with an income range of $53,371 to $160,128.
However, the middle-class income range in a couple of cities was lower than the state average in 2023. Households in Greensboro needed to earn $41,161 to $123,494 to be considered middle class in 2023, for example, and those in Winston-Salem needed to earn $39,455 to $118,378.
Top 10 happiest cities in America
Here are the 10 happiest cities in America, according to WalletHub:
Fremont, CA
San Jose, CA
Irvine, CA
Sioux Falls, SD
Overland Park, KS
Lincoln, NE
Madison, WI
Scottsdale, AZ
San Francisco, CA
Huntington Beach, CA
“The ideal city provides conditions that foster good mental and physical health, like reasonable work hours, short commutes, good weather and caring neighbors,” said Chip Lupo, WalletHub analyst, according to the study.
How did WalletHub determine its findings?
To determine the happiest places in America, WalletHub compared 182 of the largest cities in the U.S. across three metrics: emotional and physical well-being, income and unemployment, and community and environment. Here’s some of what was included in each of those metrics:
Emotional and physical well-being: Suicide rate, share of adults who used marijuana in the last month, life expectancy and food insecurity rate.
Income and unemployment: Share of households earning annual incomes above $75,000, poverty rate, unemployment rate and bankruptcy rate.
Community and environment: separation and divorce rate, hate crime incidents per capita and acres of parkland per 1,000 residents.
Inspired by a story from The Kansas City Star.
This story was originally published March 17, 2025 at 11:02 AM with the headline "These 3 NC cities are among the happiest in the nation, a new study says. Here’s why."
