Finding the right place to live is challenging for most Americans, with an estimated 28 million people moving in 2021 alone. When looking to settle down, people look for areas with great jobs, fun things to do, accessible public transport, and safe places to raise a family.
Across the country, there are great cities and horrible cities, with the ones on this list the worst run in America.
Cities earned the dubious honor of being on this list for multiple reasons, from poor budget management to high rates of crime. The few here, with a booming economy and plenty of jobs, can’t handle the sudden influx of people moving in.
Wallet Hub compiled a list of American cities based on six key factors: financial stability, education, healthcare, safety, economy, infrastructure, and pollution. We looked into why each city placed so low on the list and why you don’t want to live there.
Chattanooga, Tennesse
Chattanooga is the best of the worst run despite having the third-worst safety rating in the country. The problem is that Chattanooga has a booming job market with many opportunities, and the picturesque city in the Smokey Mountains was never designed to handle that many people.
The result is a healthcare network and highway system straining under the weight while the public education system struggles to meet the demands of all the new residents. Too much of a good thing is a major problem for Chattanooga.
Milwaukee, Wisconsin
It’s not the weather that put Milwaukee on this list; it’s ongoing budget issues. Current numbers have the city running a deficit of $25-$35 million going into next year. The problem is that Milwaukee is one of the poorest cities in the country, with a debt in the billions.
It will only worsen until Milwaukee’s government can figure out a solution to the debt. With a lack of new business coming to the city, there’s no easy answer to the cities’ problems.
New Haven, Connecticut
A lovely New England coastal city home to the prestigious Yale University, New Haven, Connecticut, is facing growing problems from years of a mismanaged budget. New Haven may be one of the best-scoring cities for infrastructure, but incoming million-dollar budget cuts to public transit will make that a thing of the past.
The police department also faced budget cuts. Millions of dollars in budget cuts add up to a city teetering on the edge and will likely be much further down this list next year.
Birmingham, Alabama
The most unsafe city in America is Birmingham, Alabama, a stat that alone is enough to place it on this list. When it comes to education, it might be surprising to learn that Birmingham is in the top half of the country, but when there were five shootings in one day last year, nothing else mattered.
In 2023, Birmingham averaged 12.5 homicides a month, or one every 2.4 days.
Baltimore, Maryland
The second-worst city for education in America is Baltimore, which is also the third-worst city for healthcare. Making things even worse, it’s the 25th worst city for safety and the 10th worst economy. Add all of that up, and it’s clear that something isn’t working in Baltimore.
Decades of corruption and mismanagement have resulted in a broken system that, years after The Wire highlighted all the problems, Baltimore isn’t improving. In this case, staying out of debt is easy when no money is invested in the city.
Chicago, Illinois
A trend on this list is cities with budgets that City Hall mismanages, but none are as bad as Chicago. Incredibly generous pension benefits consume over 20% of the city’s budget, all while it faces a rising crime rate and a strained educational system.
Over the next few years, it’s expected that Chicago will keep falling down this list as new businesses refuse to move to the city and the high taxes drive more residents out.
Baton Rouge, Louisiana
Nestled along the bank of the Mississippi River, Baton Rouge is the capital of Louisiana, with the same problems most state capitals have: rising crime and a lack of employment opportunities. With a surplus measured in the hundreds of millions of dollars, there is no reason for Baton Rouge’s public transit and public education to be underfunded, and yet, it has been for years.
Crime in Louisiana, not just Baton Rouge, is an ongoing problem, resulting in one of the highest rates of incarceration in the country and one of the lowest parole rates. Keeping prisoners behind bars hasn’t resulted in a sharp decrease in crime, making Baton Rouge one of the most unsafe cities in the country.
New Orleans, Louisiana
Everyone loves to visit New Orleans and party along Bourbon Street! This is a problem for the city, as millions of tourists every year arrive to get drunk. Residents are stuck relying on the income from the booming tourist sector, but at the same time, there’s a huge rise in crime, and more people are leaving the city every year because they just can’t handle the drunk crowds.
Public transit is well-funded because of the hordes of tourists, but that’s it. Education, healthcare, and public safety are all underfunded and understaffed. The result is that New Orleans is a great place to visit but a horrible place to live.
Cleveland, Ohio
Cleveland rocks, but besides the Rock’n’Roll Hall of Fame, there’s no reason to visit or live in the city. Across the board, from education to safety and transit, Cleveland isn’t the worst city in America, but it doesn’t do anything right.
Residents agree, with more people fleeing Cleveland every year. According to the 2020 census, the city was down to a population of only 320,000, losing 600,000 people over the past 70 years!
Fort Smith, Arkansas
You’re not alone if you have yet heard of Fort Smith, Arkansas. The third largest city in Arkansas is small by the standards of most other states, with only 90,000 residents. Size is not why Fort Smith is on this list; it’s because of the crime rate.
148% higher than the average for a city of its size, Fort Smith residents are victimized by an average of 14 daily crimes, 2 of which are violent. There are many great reasons to live in Fort Smith, but the astronomical crime rate is enough for residents to look elsewhere.
Stockton, California
Nestled along the San Joaquin River in northern California, Stockton has a lot going for it, from gorgeous vistas to plenty of museums and cultural festivals. What pouts Stockton on this list is that the city went completely bankrupt only a decade ago, and it’s still trying to recover.
When a city runs out of money, emergency measures are taken to keep services running, but it takes a long time to recover. While the community of Stockton is fantastic, and the current government is doing a decent job, every service has suffered, making this a great place to visit, but like New Orleans, it is not one you want to live in right now.
Kansas City, Kansas
Kansas City, Kansas, not to be confused with Kansas City, Missouri, started booming after the Great Recession in 2008, and it shows no signs of slowing down. That’s a problem, as with more people wanting to live in an area where the cost of living is relatively low, the budget has to increase yearly to keep pace.
This means more taxes and cuts to services, and suddenly, a boomtown can go bust. Kansas City is enjoying one of the best economies in the country, but you don’t want to be stuck there when the party’s over and the bill comes due.
St. Louis, Missouri
East St. Louis was one of the most dangerous parts of town for decades, and while the crime rate has been dropping, it’s still high enough for the city to rate as the third most dangerous in the country.
On the other hand, St. Louis is one of the best cities for an education. From public schools to universities, it offers the best education in Missouri. For many people, that’s worth the risk, but while the city has been improving, there is still a long way to go.
Toledo, Ohio
Toledo, Ohio, has a lot in common with other mid-size cities throughout the Midwest; it was once booming, but now that factories have been shutting down and industries are moving overseas, it’s a shell of what it once was. Name a category, and Toledo is towards the bottom of the country for reasons unrelated to the population or the local government.
There’s little opportunity in Toledo, which is why the population is decreasing alarmingly. With no job prospects, people are leaving, bringing down the cities’ income, which means less money for education, health, and safety. It’s a vicious cycle with no good solutions, but it does mean Toledo is one of the worst cities in America.
Memphis, Tennesse
The worst city in America regarding safety, Memphis, Tennesse, is the latest hip party city, with Beale Street hosting massive parties every night. Drunk tourists taking over the city have the dual impact of angering residents and sending the crime rate through the roof.
Flint, Michigan
Flint, Michigan, is the victim of mismanagement from every level of government, resulting in the ongoing water crisis that threatens to make the city unlivable. A manmade crisis brought about by greed, Flint should not be this low on the list.
Unfortunately, when a city is being poisoned, and no one wants to live there, the jobs go away, and the crime rate goes up. The irony is that the current administration is managing Flint’s budget well, but the damage is done, and as of now, the city’s future looks bleak.
Hartford, Connecticut
A bustling New England seaside city, Hartford, Connecticut, is one of the best cities to go to for education but the worst if you want a job. Over 25% of the population in Hartford is below the poverty line. Declining job prospects and a cost of living over the national average are not a good combination.
A state tax reduction that went into effect on January 1st, 2024, will help ease the burden, but for too many people, the damage is done. Go to Hartford, get your degree, and get a job elsewhere.
Shreveport, Louisiana
Shreveport, Louisiana, once a bustling city, was an important trading hub, especially in the oil industry. Over the last few decades, however, the industries at the center of the city’s booming economy have left town, leaving fewer and fewer jobs for those staying behind.
The lack of jobs as General Motors and massive oil companies leave has created a devastating ripple throughout the city, with crime rising and budget issues forcing massive public cutbacks.
Gary, Indiana
One of America’s most famous boom-to-bust cities, Gary, Indiana, has been slowly declining for almost a century. The city is doing great concerning its budget, but there’s no economic growth, and as a result, no population growth either.
A dying city, you would be forgiven for thinking it was already a ghost town with the sheer amount of abandoned factories that dot the landscape. Entire generations have left the city, and there’s no reason anyone should be moving in.
Jackson, Mississippi
One of the poorest cities in America, Jackson, Mississippi, is not a place you want to live. Roads need to be better maintained and are overcrowded; abandoned stores and factories can be found on almost every block. Despite the city’s incredible cultural history, especially for jazz, it’s hard to appreciate what it offers due to the extreme crime levels.
As with Flint, Jackson is also facing a water crisis, which, combined with the well-documented population exodus starting in the 1970s, unfortunately leaves Jackson with little hope for the future.
Detroit, Michigan
Ranking near the absolute bottom in every metric used to measure American cities, no metropolis has fallen quite like Detroit. The seeds for its downfall were planted with the rise of the automotive industry, with massive factories surrounding the downtown area, preventing easy expansion as the population boomed.
The result is an urban blight on a scale never seen in America. Once car manufacturers started heading overseas in the 80s, jobs left town and never returned, leaving residents with few options. Declining jobs caused entire neighborhoods to become abandoned, which then sent the crime rate to some of the highest levels ever seen.
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