Healthiest cities in America

Health is certainly on the minds of many Americans this time of year.

With the start of each year comes the commitment from many of us to move more, eat less, and generally embrace a healthier lifestyle. But while it's one thing to adopt a healthy mindset, it's another to actually stick to it.

Where you live plays an important role in reaching and maintaining your health goals. The route to healthy living involves many factors, including access to the outdoors, a sustainable work-life balance, mild weather conditions, and access to education.

Dozens of American cities offer the opportunity for health-conscious New Year's resolutions. Personal practice requires a lot of discipline, but staying motivated is not difficult when your friends, family, and neighbors are right there with you.

Stacker determined the most health-conscious cities by analyzing Niche's 2022 Healthiest Places to Live rankings, which account for smoking, regular alcohol consumption, access to gyms, physicians, and mental health professionals, and obesity rates to rank overall health. Each city's position in the rankings is directly from Niche; there are no ties.

Keep reading to see if your hometown made the cut.

Aerial view of Santa Rosa Valley homes and hillsides.

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#50. Santa Rosa, California

- Population: 178,391
- Overall Niche grade: B
--- Health & Fitness grade: A-

Downtown Ventura and the Pacific Coast from Grant Park.

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#49. Ventura, California

- Population: 108,467
- Overall Niche grade: B+
--- Health & Fitness grade: A

People jogging in Atlanta’s Piedmont Park.

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#48. Atlanta, Georgia

- Population: 497,642
- Overall Niche grade: A
--- Health & Fitness grade: A

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4 / 50

#47. Boston, Massachusetts

- Population: 689,326
- Overall Niche grade: A
--- Health & Fitness grade: A

Colorado Springs, Colorado, cityscape in autumn.

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5 / 50

#46. Colorado Springs, Colorado

- Population: 471,686
- Overall Niche grade: A-
--- Health & Fitness grade: A

Aerial view of Jersey City, New Jersey, at sunset.

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#45. Jersey City, New Jersey

- Population: 262,652
- Overall Niche grade: A-
--- Health & Fitness grade: A

Pedestrians walking in downtown Ann Arbor, Michigan.

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7 / 50

#44. Ann Arbor, Michigan

- Population: 121,093
- Overall Niche grade: A+
--- Health & Fitness grade: A

Elevated view of tennis court and swimming pool in recreation park with Richardson, Texas, in background.

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#43. Richardson, Texas

- Population: 118,583
- Overall Niche grade: A+
--- Health & Fitness grade: A

Big Lake Park on Plano, Texas, Chisholm Trail.

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#42. Plano, Texas

- Population: 288,870
- Overall Niche grade: A+
--- Health & Fitness grade: A

Long Beach, California, skyline with palm trees from marina port.

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10 / 50

#41. Long Beach, California

- Population: 462,081
- Overall Niche grade: B+
--- Health & Fitness grade: A

Aerial photo of sunset over downtown San Jose, California.

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#40. San Jose, California

- Population: 1,029,409
- Overall Niche grade: B+
--- Health & Fitness grade: A

Aerial view of autumn colors in Lakewood, Colorado.

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#39. Lakewood, Colorado

- Population: 155,733
- Overall Niche grade: B+
--- Health & Fitness grade: A

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#38. Stamford, Connecticut

- Population: 130,057
- Overall Niche grade: A-
--- Health & Fitness grade: A

Streetview and clocktower in Overland Park, Kansas.

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#37. Overland Park, Kansas

- Population: 193,412
- Overall Niche grade: A+
--- Health & Fitness grade: A

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#36. Salt Lake City, Utah

- Population: 200,133
- Overall Niche grade: A
--- Health & Fitness grade: A

Georgetown and Key Bridge in Washington DC.

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16 / 50

#35. Washington DC

- Population: 701,974
- Overall Niche grade: A
--- Health & Fitness grade: A

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#34. Provo, Utah

- Population: 116,886
- Overall Niche grade: A-
--- Health & Fitness grade: A

A family with a dog plays in Old Town Square in Fort Collins, Colorado.

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#33. Fort Collins, Colorado

- Population: 166,069
- Overall Niche grade: A
--- Health & Fitness grade: A

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#32. Minneapolis, Minnesota

- Population: 424,536
- Overall Niche grade: A
--- Health & Fitness grade: A

Portland, Oregon, cityscape and Mount Hood in autumn.

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#31. Portland, Oregon

- Population: 650,380
- Overall Niche grade: A-
--- Health & Fitness grade: A

People with bicycles at San Diego Waterfront Park.

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21 / 50

#30. San Diego, California

- Population: 1,414,545
- Overall Niche grade: A
--- Health & Fitness grade: A

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#29. Columbia, Maryland

- Population: 105,412
- Overall Niche grade: A+
--- Health & Fitness grade: A

Water fountain in Roseville, California.

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#28. Roseville, California

- Population: 138,860
- Overall Niche grade: A-
--- Health & Fitness grade: A

Aerial view of Echo Lake Park with city skyline in the background.

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#27. Los Angeles, California

- Population: 3,973,278
- Overall Niche grade: B+
--- Health & Fitness grade: A

Water fountain at Orange Plaza Square Park.

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#26. Orange, California

- Population: 139,322
- Overall Niche grade: B+
--- Health & Fitness grade: A

Busy downtown street scene in Manhattan, New York.

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#25. New York City, New York

- Population: 8,379,552
- Overall Niche grade: A
--- Health & Fitness grade: A

Urban sunset over downtown Scottsdale, Arizona.

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#24. Scottsdale, Arizona

- Population: 254,995
- Overall Niche grade: A
--- Health & Fitness grade: A

Wide view of the historic city of Alexandria, Virginia, along the Potomac River.

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#23. Alexandria, Virginia

- Population: 158,309
- Overall Niche grade: A
--- Health & Fitness grade: A

Aerial view of the Colorado State Capitol building in Denver.

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#22. Denver, Colorado

- Population: 715,878
- Overall Niche grade: A-
--- Health & Fitness grade: A+

Aerial view of Ventura 101 freeway and suburban Thousand Oaks, California.

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#21. Thousand Oaks, California

- Population: 127,648
- Overall Niche grade: A
--- Health & Fitness grade: A+

Aerial view of north Oakland, California, on a sunny autumn evening.

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#20. Oakland, California

- Population: 422,575
- Overall Niche grade: B+
--- Health & Fitness grade: A+

Shops and restaurants along the Naperville Riverwalk.

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#19. Naperville, Illinois

- Population: 147,734
- Overall Niche grade: A+
--- Health & Fitness grade: A+

Murphy Historic Avenue in Sunnyvale, California.

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#18. Sunnyvale, California

- Population: 152,569
- Overall Niche grade: A+
--- Health & Fitness grade: A+

Elevated view of downtown Honolulu, Hawaii.

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#17. Honolulu, Hawaii

- Population: 398,258
- Overall Niche grade: A-
--- Health & Fitness grade: A+

Elevated view of area surrounding Levi’s Stadium in Santa Clara, California.

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#16. Santa Clara, California

- Population: 126,723
- Overall Niche grade: A
--- Health & Fitness grade: A+

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#15. Sandy Springs, Georgia

- Population: 108,180
- Overall Niche grade: A
--- Health & Fitness grade: A+

Street traffic in the city of Burbank, California.

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#14. Burbank, California

- Population: 103,411
- Overall Niche grade: A-
--- Health & Fitness grade: A+

Fountain at the shopping mall in Glendale, California.

Kit Leong // Shutterstock

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#13. Glendale, California

- Population: 199,357
- Overall Niche grade: B+
--- Health & Fitness grade: A+

Buildings and park in Costa Mesa, California.

Matt Gush // Shutterstock

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#12. Costa Mesa, California

- Population: 112,958
- Overall Niche grade: A-
--- Health & Fitness grade: A+

Aerial view of the beach in Carlsbad, California.

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#11. Carlsbad, California

- Population: 114,411
- Overall Niche grade: A
--- Health & Fitness grade: A+

Memorial Bridge in autumn in Arlington, Virginia.

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#10. Arlington, Virginia

- Population: 236,434
- Overall Niche grade: A+
--- Health & Fitness grade: A+

Rowers on the river in front of Harvard Campus in Cambridge, Massachusetts.

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#9. Cambridge, Massachusetts

- Population: 117,822
- Overall Niche grade: A+
--- Health & Fitness grade: A+

Aerial view of downtown Pasadena, California.

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#8. Pasadena, California

- Population: 142,017
- Overall Niche grade: A
--- Health & Fitness grade: A+

Aerial view of Boulder City, Colorado, in autumn.

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#7. Boulder, Colorado

- Population: 108,777
- Overall Niche grade: A+
--- Health & Fitness grade: A+

South Bay lifeguard tower in Torrance Beach in California.

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#6. Torrance, California

- Population: 144,430
- Overall Niche grade: A
--- Health & Fitness grade: A+

Waterfront homes and boats in Bellevue, Washington.

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#5. Bellevue, Washington

- Population: 146,145
- Overall Niche grade: A+
--- Health & Fitness grade: A+

Elevated view of Seattle Space Needle and downtown.

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#4. Seattle, Washington

- Population: 741,251
- Overall Niche grade: A+
--- Health & Fitness grade: A+

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#3. Irvine, California

- Population: 272,694
- Overall Niche grade: A+
--- Health & Fitness grade: A+

People at Mission Dolores park with San Francisco skyline in the background.

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#2. San Francisco, California

- Population: 874,784
- Overall Niche grade: A+
--- Health & Fitness grade: A+

Students pass through Sather Gate at University of Berkeley, California.

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50 / 50

#1. Berkeley, California

- Population: 123,065
- Overall Niche grade: A+
--- Health & Fitness grade: A+

Healthiest cities in America

#50. Santa Rosa, California

#49. Ventura, California

#48. Atlanta, Georgia

#47. Boston, Massachusetts

#46. Colorado Springs, Colorado

#45. Jersey City, New Jersey

#44. Ann Arbor, Michigan

#43. Richardson, Texas

#42. Plano, Texas

#41. Long Beach, California

#40. San Jose, California

#39. Lakewood, Colorado

#38. Stamford, Connecticut

#37. Overland Park, Kansas

#36. Salt Lake City, Utah

#35. Washington DC

#34. Provo, Utah

#33. Fort Collins, Colorado

#32. Minneapolis, Minnesota

#31. Portland, Oregon

#30. San Diego, California

#29. Columbia, Maryland

#28. Roseville, California

#27. Los Angeles, California

#26. Orange, California

#25. New York City, New York

#24. Scottsdale, Arizona

#23. Alexandria, Virginia

#22. Denver, Colorado

#21. Thousand Oaks, California

#20. Oakland, California

#19. Naperville, Illinois

#18. Sunnyvale, California

#17. Honolulu, Hawaii

#16. Santa Clara, California

#15. Sandy Springs, Georgia

#14. Burbank, California

#13. Glendale, California

#12. Costa Mesa, California

#11. Carlsbad, California

#10. Arlington, Virginia

#9. Cambridge, Massachusetts

#8. Pasadena, California

#7. Boulder, Colorado

#6. Torrance, California

#5. Bellevue, Washington

#4. Seattle, Washington

#3. Irvine, California

#2. San Francisco, California

#1. Berkeley, California

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