Seeking Forever Love?

Washington DC Ranks Number Nine Amongst the Best 50 Cities to be Married According to A Survey by LawnStarter

By Cecil Merkerson III

Everyone wants a shot at happily ever after. After two years of uncertainty in the marriage market, the U.S. wedding industry is heading into its busiest season in forty years. This survey will help understand how and why this is occurring. 

According to researchers, marital health depends not just on a couple’s level of commitment to each other but also the durability of other marriages in their circle. In other words, being surrounded by successful or failed marriages can influence a couple’s odds of marital success or risk of divorce.

LawnStarter compared 190 of the biggest cities in the United States across nine critical indicators of nuptial success to determine success, marriage rate, 5-year change in marriage rate, separation and divorce rate, 5-year change in separation and divorce rate, never married young population rate,5-year change in never married young population rate, relationship therapists, outdoor wedding friendliness, and indoor wedding venues.

Tallying the top ten cities in 2022 from best to worst were Bellevue, Washington, Pasadena, California, Fullerton, California, Grand Rapids, Michigan, Orlando, Florida, Newark, New Jersey, St. Louis, Missouri, Atlanta, Georgia, Washington DC and finally Naperville Illinois. 

According to the survey in 2022, the worst cities were Montgomery, Alabama, Augusta, Georgia, Albuquerque, New Mexico, San Antonio, Texas, Killen, Texas, Hialeah, Florida, Toledo, Ohio, and lastly, North Las Vegas, Nevada.

It is important to note that this study did not interview or survey any couples directly. Instead, the study is based exclusively on quantitative metrics. The metrics reflex publicly available data from sources such as Lawn Love, Psychology Today, U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Yelp, and Zola. 

This study was made on the city level and observed state-level trends and patterns. In general, cities in coastal and some Midwestern states tended to do well in our ranking because of good performance across most categories. 

California stands out by claiming 11 out of our top 20 spots. When we look closer at the data, California cities dominate the “Marriage Stability” category, taking six top 10 positions.

California cities have some of the lowest separation and divorce rates among the 190 cities we ranked. One possible explanation is the high concentration of Hispanic Catholics across the state, especially in Central California counties. 

Over half of the married U.S. adults are Catholic, as the church does not recognize divorce, and the annulment process is notoriously tricky, which may deter couples from seeking it, resulting in fewer marital dissolutions.

Some Florida cities have the opposite problem. Cities like Hialeah, Hollywood, and St. Petersburg have the highest divorce rates. These cities also have seen the lowest rate of change in never-married young people. Many Ohio cities show a similar pattern to Florida’s. Its biggest cities have some of the highest separation and divorce rates but many fewer marriages, too. Southern cities, in general, tended to cluster at the bottom of our ranking due to poor performance across the board but particularly in Marriage Stability.

However, there are some expectations in the other categories. Hialeah, Florida, for instance, is 53 for Wedding-Friendliness, thanks to its booming wedding industry, which is ironic considering the city has the highest current and 5-year separation and divorce rates. It would appear that couples in such cities invest heavily in the short term but not as much in the long term.

For more information on the analysis and the complete ranking, visit https://www.lawnstarter.com/blog/studies/best-cities-get-married/.