Where Does the Gen Z Cohort Want to Live?

Where are the best places to live that offer that intangible psychic joy for the group collectively known as Gen Z/? Of course, it depends on what matters to each member, but CommercialCafe took the pulse of a large segment of this population, which it knows is interested in community, frugality and sustainability. And because the group’s age range covers a wide gamut of 26 down to 11 that means some still live at home and others are in and out of college and maybe renting their first apartment while working at a first or second job. Therefore, it’s not surprising that there’s a wide geographic range of places, too, that appeal to the cohort also known for its sense of individuality. 

But based on the common denominators and a ranking of the top 20 cities, the group finds Minneapolis the most appealing city due to the professional and personal opportunities available. Why this city over others? More than half or 52% were enrolled in some form of educational institution, the survey found, and it also boasted one of the lowest unemployment rates among all cities in the study at 2.6%.

Atlanta came in second with half of its Gen Zer members enrolled in an educational institution, including well-known, prestigious Emory and Georgia Tech. The city also has the largest number of parks per capita.

Boston, No. 3, has long been a go-to place for college students and a bigger 61% of its cohort were enrolled in post-secondary education—far higher than the 39% average in the study. It also offered grads a good job supply and a good number of green spaces and public transportation choices. Its downside: its high cost of living.

 Many of the other most popular locations are also spread along the East Coast, stretching from Boston to Philadelphia, Washington, D.C., Baltimore and down to Florida’s Miami and Jacksonville. The East Coast also led the way for efficient commuting and most parks per capita. And though some might consider it a surprise, New York City was touted as the best city in the green category for its public transit system plus streets and parks to walk and cycle. In fact, it has more than 4,000 parks, including Central Park. 

Washington, D.C., came in second in the green category for its smaller but still sizable number of 500 parks. In third place was Boston for an environmentally friendly commuting city and the best place in the country to live without a car. New York also won for best place to have fun with art exhibits and other entertainment, helping it to live up to its tagline of “the city that never sleeps.”

Four of the top 20 Gen Zer favorites are located in Texas, including Houston, Fort Worth, San Antonio and Austin. The sole West Coast city that made the list was Seattle at No. 13. And in between in the Heartland besides Minneapolis is Columbus, Oklahoma City, Milwaukee and Kansas City. Tucson in the Southwest made it all the way to No. 6.

Since frugality is important, Columbus, No. 4, deserves more mention due to its cost of living being 10% cheaper than the national average. The city also offers Ohio State University and the state’s capital. Coming in fifth was Raleigh, also the capital of its state, and having a good supply of jobs for recent graduates, a low unemployment rate of 3.3%, and a strong educational system including North Carolina State University and Research Triangle, which also includes Chapel Hill and Durham.

Since being connected almost 24/7 via the Internet is so key to this generation, Oakland, Calif., deserves mention for having the lowest cost connections of only $50 per month among the study’s cities.