Cities with the highest rates of depression
Depression has taken an increasingly firm grip on Americans' lives over the past decade, with both self-reported lifetime and current depression rates among U.S. adults increasing each year—and hitting a high in 2023—according to Gallup poll data. The COVID-19 pandemic significantly worsened the nation's overall mental health, with the rate of elevated depressive episodes increasing from 27.8% at the beginning of the pandemic to 32.8% in 2021, a longitudinal study published that year showed.
The pandemic hurt public mental health due to increased isolation during lockdowns, financial insecurity, illness, and grief. Consequently, public health outcomes linked with depression and anxiety deteriorated during that time, according to the Kaiser Family Foundation. For instance, age-adjusted drug overdose rates rose from 21.6 to 32.4 deaths per 100,000 from 2019 to 2021. Alcohol-induced death rates increased from 10.4 to 14.4 deaths per 100,000 in the same time frame. The foundation reported that the pandemic's effects, as measured by these indicators, were especially pronounced in rural and low-income populations as well as in communities of color.
Stacker examined data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's annual PLACES report, released in July 2023, to see which cities had the highest share of adults diagnosed with depression. Cities are ranked by the share of respondents to a 2021 survey who reported having been told by a health professional that they had depressive disorder. In the event of a tie, the overall population was used. Cities with at least 10,000 residents were included.
The current ranking primarily features cities in the South, a part of the U.S. with elevated poverty rates that also saw consistently higher COVID-19 mortality rates during the pandemic. The confluence of these risk factors likely contributed to increased depression rates in Southern cities. According to the 2021 longitudinal study, while low-income individuals were 2.3 times more likely to experience elevated depressive episodes than those with high incomes prior to COVID-19, this odds ratio jumped to 7 as the pandemic progressed.
However, the pandemic and its ramifications don't fully explain the regional distribution of cities in the ranking. Cities in the Pacific Northwest also appear frequently on the list, likely due to the area's climatic conditions. These states are home to places with some of the highest precipitation in the nation. A 2014 study in the International Journal of Preventive Medicine found that depression was more prevalent in areas with higher numbers of cold and rainy days in a given year.
#50. Seymour, Tennessee
- Total population: 10,919
- Share of adults who are depressed: 29.0%
#49. Dickson, Tennessee
- Total population: 14,721
- Share of adults who are depressed: 29.0%
#48. Newport, Kentucky
- Total population: 15,273
- Share of adults who are depressed: 29.0%
#47. Bayou Cane, Louisiana
- Total population: 19,355
- Share of adults who are depressed: 29.0%
#46. Auburn, Maine
- Total population: 23,055
- Share of adults who are depressed: 29.0%
#45. Lebanon, Oregon
- Total population: 15,547
- Share of adults who are depressed: 29.1%
#44. Campbellsville, Kentucky
- Total population: 10,399
- Share of adults who are depressed: 29.2%
#43. Four Corners, Oregon
- Total population: 15,718
- Share of adults who are depressed: 29.2%
#42. Clarksburg, West Virginia
- Total population: 16,575
- Share of adults who are depressed: 29.2%
#41. New Castle, Indiana
- Total population: 18,114
- Share of adults who are depressed: 29.2%
#40. Medford, Oregon
- Total population: 74,986
- Share of adults who are depressed: 29.2%
#39. Bayou Blue, Louisiana
- Total population: 12,352
- Share of adults who are depressed: 29.3%
#38. Paris, Tennessee
- Total population: 10,173
- Share of adults who are depressed: 29.4%
#37. Glasgow, Kentucky
- Total population: 14,137
- Share of adults who are depressed: 29.4%
#36. Aberdeen, Washington
- Total population: 16,896
- Share of adults who are depressed: 29.4%
#35. Central Point, Oregon
- Total population: 17,200
- Share of adults who are depressed: 29.4%
#34. Henderson, Kentucky
- Total population: 28,857
- Share of adults who are depressed: 29.4%
#33. Cookeville, Tennessee
- Total population: 30,981
- Share of adults who are depressed: 29.4%
#32. Longview, Washington
- Total population: 36,867
- Share of adults who are depressed: 29.4%
#31. Nicholasville, Kentucky
- Total population: 28,112
- Share of adults who are depressed: 29.5%
#30. Morristown, Tennessee
- Total population: 29,192
- Share of adults who are depressed: 29.5%
#29. Kelso, Washington
- Total population: 11,917
- Share of adults who are depressed: 29.6%
#28. Gatesville, Texas
- Total population: 12,672
- Share of adults who are depressed: 29.6%
#27. Cheney, Washington
- Total population: 10,590
- Share of adults who are depressed: 29.7%
#26. Lake Stevens, Washington
- Total population: 28,121
- Share of adults who are depressed: 29.7%
#25. Union City, Tennessee
- Total population: 10,898
- Share of adults who are depressed: 29.8%
#24. Gloversville, New York
- Total population: 15,681
- Share of adults who are depressed: 29.8%
#23. Everett, Washington
- Total population: 103,019
- Share of adults who are depressed: 29.8%
#22. Crossville, Tennessee
- Total population: 11,077
- Share of adults who are depressed: 29.9%
#21. Ferndale, Washington
- Total population: 11,437
- Share of adults who are depressed: 29.9%
#20. Portland, Tennessee
- Total population: 11,502
- Share of adults who are depressed: 29.9%
#19. Athens, Tennessee
- Total population: 13,538
- Share of adults who are depressed: 29.9%
#18. Huntington, West Virginia
- Total population: 49,138
- Share of adults who are depressed: 29.9%
#17. Martin, Tennessee
- Total population: 11,461
- Share of adults who are depressed: 30.0%
#16. Lewiston, Maine
- Total population: 36,592
- Share of adults who are depressed: 30.0%
#15. Bellingham, Washington
- Total population: 81,279
- Share of adults who are depressed: 30.0%
#14. Lynden, Washington
- Total population: 12,023
- Share of adults who are depressed: 30.1%
#13. Sevierville, Tennessee
- Total population: 14,835
- Share of adults who are depressed: 30.2%
#12. Marysville, Washington
- Total population: 60,017
- Share of adults who are depressed: 30.4%
#11. Arlington, Washington
- Total population: 17,836
- Share of adults who are depressed: 30.6%
#10. Kingsport, Tennessee
- Total population: 52,487
- Share of adults who are depressed: 30.7%
#9. Lawrenceburg, Tennessee
- Total population: 10,428
- Share of adults who are depressed: 30.8%
#8. Bristol, Tennessee
- Total population: 26,714
- Share of adults who are depressed: 31.0%
#7. Crowley, Louisiana
- Total population: 13,265
- Share of adults who are depressed: 31.3%
#6. Ashland, Kentucky
- Total population: 21,684
- Share of adults who are depressed: 31.3%
#5. McMinnville, Tennessee
- Total population: 13,605
- Share of adults who are depressed: 31.5%
#4. Elizabethton, Tennessee
- Total population: 14,193
- Share of adults who are depressed: 31.5%
#3. Somerset, Kentucky
- Total population: 11,225
- Share of adults who are depressed: 31.6%
#2. Parkersburg, West Virginia
- Total population: 31,497
- Share of adults who are depressed: 31.7%
#1. Middlesborough, Kentucky
- Total population: 10,207
- Share of adults who are depressed: 32.3%
Data reporting by Elena Cox. Story editing by Jeff Inglis. Copy editing by Tim Bruns.
