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WASHINGTON — Detroit has been touted as being “America’s Comeback City” by some since declaring bankruptcy in 2013, but a 2017 study does The Motor City no favors in its revitalization efforts. According to WalletHub, Detroit is the unhealthiest city in America, as opposed to San Francisco, which got the top grade in a study of the country’s 150 most populated cities.

To reach their findings, WalletHub graded each city using 34 categories as metrics along with a specific weight for each category. The categories were split among four groups that accounted for 25 points each: health care, food, fitness, and green space. The higher the score, the healthier the city.

Detroit is the unhealthiest city in America, according to a new study.

Categories considered in the study included mental health counselors per capita, cost of medical visit, and quality of public hospitals for health care; healthy restaurants per capita, share of obese residents, and produce consumption for categories under food; fitness clubs per capita, weight loss centers per capital, and share of residents who engage in any physical activity for categories in fitness; and quality of parks, bike score, and walking trails per capita among the categories for green space.

The top five healthiest cities in America were (1-5): San Francisco, Calif.; Salt Lake City, Utah; Scottsdale, Ariz.; Seattle, Wash.; Portland, Ore.

The unhealthiest cities were (146-150): Shreveport, La.; Laredo, TX; Memphis, Tenn.; Brownsville, TX; Detroit, Mich.

The full list from WalletHub.com:

Overall Rank City Total Score ‘Health Care’ Rank ‘Food’ Rank ‘Fitness’ Rank ‘Green Space’ Rank
1 San Francisco, CA 68.06 29 1 37 3
2 Salt Lake City, UT 67.50 27 3 3 17
3 Scottsdale, AZ 67.14 20 16 1 15
4 Seattle, WA 67.08 31 4 7 6
5 Portland, OR 65.16 49 2 18 10
6 Irvine, CA 63.96 5 11 12 14
7 Huntington Beach, CA 63.23 12 10 13 16
8 Honolulu, HI 62.67 8 5 53 11
9 Washington, DC 60.24 13 9 73 9
10 Santa Clarita, CA 59.67 10 38 44 1
11 Tempe, AZ 58.92 48 15 5 49
12 Fort Lauderdale, FL 58.87 45 17 14 21
13 Fremont, CA 58.82 21 14 35 18
14 Boise, ID 58.36 18 47 23 12
15 Minneapolis, MN 58.19 6 22 63 13
16 Rancho Cucamonga, CA 57.72 76 77 6 4
17 Denver, CO 57.65 38 13 22 27
18 Lincoln, NE 57.03 3 51 40 20
19 Madison, WI 56.99 16 33 38 19
20 Orlando, FL 56.44 94 8 19 55
21 Atlanta, GA 56.42 110 30 2 46
22 Glendale, CA 56.26 40 39 49 2
23 Santa Rosa, CA 56.25 92 20 50 5
24 Plano, TX 55.96 9 37 24 42
25 Overland Park, KS 55.76 1 88 16 95
26 Vancouver, WA 55.54 80 34 4 73
27 Tampa, FL 55.50 62 35 10 45
28 Sacramento, CA 54.66 67 12 66 22
29 San Diego, CA 54.61 53 23 41 25
30 Oakland, CA 54.41 82 6 81 39
31 Boston, MA 54.06 33 28 51 31
32 Austin, TX 53.82 30 21 56 33
33 San Jose, CA 53.78 4 18 75 64
34 Richmond, VA 53.56 52 41 28 43
35 Raleigh, NC 53.55 11 44 15 84
36 Peoria, AZ 53.46 64 106 25 7
37 Reno, NV 53.17 113 19 29 36
38 St. Louis, MO 53.02 108 49 20 28
39 Tallahassee, FL 53.01 56 119 34 8
40 Sioux Falls, SD 52.76 2 120 21 93
41 Springfield, MO 52.56 15 123 26 37
42 Miami, FL 52.46 105 7 84 51
43 Virginia Beach, VA 52.28 24 66 45 35
44 Pittsburgh, PA 51.71 23 45 33 72
45 Spokane, WA 51.64 78 48 47 29
46 St. Paul, MN 51.50 19 60 61 38
47 Gilbert, AZ 51.44 22 75 8 80
48 Chandler, AZ 51.27 32 63 11 100
49 Garden Grove, CA 51.23 36 25 88 67
50 Long Beach, CA 51.07 51 24 80 40
51 Pembroke Pines, FL 50.56 25 71 27 123
52 Rochester, NY 50.40 107 29 72 30
53 Durham, NC 50.32 58 58 36 62
54 Cincinnati, OH 50.28 119 26 31 68
55 Colorado Springs, CO 50.14 28 82 57 44
56 Chesapeake, VA 50.08 35 98 68 23
57 Worcester, MA 49.73 68 68 39 70
58 St. Petersburg, FL 49.72 66 65 30 66
59 Anaheim, CA 49.69 41 27 71 76
60 Aurora, CO 49.63 34 52 60 65
61 Las Vegas, NV 49.23 135 43 9 90
62 Oceanside, CA 49.13 73 93 32 83
63 Grand Rapids, MI 49.10 14 59 97 56
64 Henderson, NV 49.05 101 118 17 48
65 Tacoma, WA 48.96 109 54 42 77
66 Albuquerque, NM 48.52 42 56 69 58
67 Buffalo, NY 48.25 77 40 77 58
68 Anchorage, AK 47.82 100 55 99 26
69 Yonkers, NY 47.52 37 57 104 53
70 Omaha, NE 47.06 17 89 67 92
71 Glendale, AZ 46.79 79 87 86 41
72 Knoxville, TN 46.40 128 86 64 34
73 Little Rock, AR 46.23 57 122 52 63
74 Modesto, CA 46.20 122 104 54 50
75 Los Angeles, CA 45.95 70 32 109 78
76 Des Moines, IA 45.76 7 114 92 98
77 Mesa, AZ 45.66 71 78 46 112
78 Providence, RI 45.58 134 74 78 32
79 Chicago, IL 44.78 60 69 130 47
80 Tucson, AZ 44.68 121 70 65 81
81 Charlotte, NC 44.30 46 109 55 119
82 Norfolk, VA 44.15 98 79 110 54
83 Jersey City, NJ 44.15 55 31 136 94
84 Baltimore, MD 44.01 125 53 120 52
85 Phoenix, AZ 44.00 96 85 91 75
86 Port St. Lucie, FL 43.97 91 131 48 125
87 Newport News, VA 43.77 75 90 103 87
88 Huntsville, AL 43.72 123 117 70 60
89 Santa Ana, CA 43.63 95 50 119 91
90 Philadelphia, PA 43.42 126 46 131 57
91 New Orleans, LA 43.13 146 121 87 24
92 Aurora, IL 43.10 44 94 124 88
93 Irving, TX 42.91 103 72 111 99
94 Fontana, CA 42.90 133 95 83 86
95 Lexington-Fayette, KY 42.75 26 113 98 108
96 New York, NY 42.65 85 36 146 61
97 Riverside, CA 42.50 124 76 74 104
98 Garland, TX 42.50 81 62 106 114
99 Nashville, TN 42.42 54 105 101 96
100 Greensboro, NC 42.39 72 132 85 71
101 Fort Wayne, IN 42.11 47 135 62 101
102 Lubbock, TX 42.06 63 130 58 113
103 Chula Vista, CA 41.88 65 110 90 116
104 Milwaukee, WI 41.65 61 81 138 85
105 Oxnard, CA 41.55 111 80 135 79
106 Kansas City, MO 41.52 39 108 113 106
107 Ontario, CA 41.36 136 64 128 110
108 Akron, OH 41.05 74 99 132 89
109 Grand Prairie, TX 40.50 90 83 144 105
110 Arlington, TX 40.26 86 97 100 129
111 Dallas, TX 39.95 104 67 118 134
112 Jacksonville, FL 39.84 129 101 96 117
113 Cape Coral, FL 39.69 118 136 76 109
114 Columbus, OH 39.66 83 107 116 118
115 Louisville, KY 39.22 115 96 112 121
116 Wichita, KS 39.11 59 129 82 131
117 Fayetteville, NC 39.10 120 145 59 140
118 Moreno Valley, CA 39.03 137 100 142 74
119 Birmingham, AL 38.89 141 102 95 130
120 Stockton, CA 38.41 112 73 127 126
121 Houston, TX 38.37 87 103 114 138
122 Cleveland, OH 38.27 139 61 141 103
123 Amarillo, TX 38.15 88 138 121 82
124 Fort Worth, TX 37.88 106 91 108 146
125 Winston-Salem, NC 37.72 99 144 122 97
126 Columbus, GA 37.51 138 134 126 69
127 Jackson, MS 37.41 50 139 93 148
128 San Antonio, TX 37.34 84 112 115 142
129 Montgomery, AL 37.08 131 141 89 128
130 Tulsa, OK 36.97 89 125 102 136
131 Fresno, CA 36.92 132 111 123 122
132 Chattanooga, TN 36.91 144 147 79 102
133 Hialeah, FL 36.88 102 42 150 141
134 Indianapolis, IN 36.85 93 115 125 135
135 San Bernardino, CA 36.60 147 92 134 115
136 Bakersfield, CA 36.40 127 116 105 139
137 Oklahoma City, OK 35.78 69 126 129 137
138 Mobile, AL 35.61 149 148 43 149
139 El Paso, TX 35.29 116 137 117 124
140 Baton Rouge, LA 35.18 145 140 94 107
141 Augusta, GA 34.32 140 124 107 150
142 Toledo, OH 33.92 97 127 139 143
143 Newark, NJ 33.28 143 84 147 133
144 North Las Vegas, NV 32.69 142 133 145 111
145 Corpus Christi, TX 32.56 130 143 133 132
146 Shreveport, LA 32.44 114 149 137 147
147 Laredo, TX 30.65 43 146 149 127
148 Memphis, TN 29.77 150 128 140 144
149 Brownsville, TX 28.54 117 150 143 145
150 Detroit, MI 28.37 148 142 148 120

The WalletHub.com list also included a breakdown of best and worst cities for several of the categories, including the cities with the highest and lowest costs of medical care, highest and lowest premature death rates, and highest and lowest costs of memberships to fitness centers. They also break down the weighted values per category to fully explain their methodology.

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208 Comments

  1. Donebelieving says:

    Most of the cities at the bottom of the list are highly dependent on welfare.

    From working as a cashier I can tell you that when food is “free” people make very poor choices. When they are spending their hard earned money don’t have much of it, people tend to focus on getting the most nutrition for the buck…people on food stamps buy whatever they want. Most monthly food stamp allotments are about double what our average non-food stamp customer spends.

    There is one notable exception…American senior citizens rarely have food stamps, and when they do the amounts are so low it is hardly worth it for them to swipe the card.

    Yes, I can see how much you are getting in food stamps, along with your WIC and cash balances when you swipe your card.

  2. Wallythedog says:

    This was a private study put out by a personal finance company. My guess is that they have quite a few customers in the San Fran area and not so many in Detroit.

    1. Guest2 says:

      Makes sense – I have issues on quite of few of their ‘findings’. Just DELETE…

  3. azgolfrat says:

    No problem. All the folks in Detroit should simply illegally immigrate to Windsor Canada right across the border. They can have a better life and collect some nice benefits from the Canadian government. No problem right? right?

  4. mnjack30 says:

    Total bullshit. These ignorant fools must have some gov’t funding. Money to waste. Taxpayers money.

  5. Wallythedog says:

    Huh, it sure looks most of the top ranked cities in this study by WalletHub are also where most of their customer base is located, but that surely doesn’t have any impact on the study results, no way, right?

  6. bobh says:

    Spent eighteen months working in healthcare in Detroit. Forest most dangerous city in my experience. I have been in every State but three. Will never return to Detroit!!!

    1. Mark says:

      Didn’t enjoy the wonders of dieversity? Didn’t enjoy the african “culture”? How terrible of you! 🙂

      1. bobh says:

        Classic example of Liberalism at work. Every effort! Yes! Every effort failed!!

    2. Michael Woods says:

      You wouldn’t recognize it!

  7. Amos10 says:

    Another famously questionable study, full of made up, skewed and distorted metrics to support an a priori conclusion. How much taxpayer funds were used to support the derelicts who composed this fable?

  8. will says:

    I think I would be a little skeptical of all those California cities listed there. Probably brought to you by the same people that had Hillary +4 on election night.

    1. Amos10 says:

      Good One!

      1. YourGranny says:

        You too Amos10

    2. YourGranny says:

      You wanna get bitc* slapped will?

  9. dwstick says:

    Judging by the well-thought-out responses to this word salad of a story, I think we can conclude that this is Fake News!

  10. Analog Human says:

    More fake news.

  11. Just my .02 says:

    Well, San Francisco’s stellar score is surely due to it’s population of illegals drawn there to bask in it’s “sanctuary city” glow, as well as it’s magnetic attraction to all the homeless who enjoy the freedom to defecate and urinate everywhere in public, unfettered by any city attempts to curtail it. That’ll bring good “health” grades every time.

    1. Raoul Duke says:

      Indeed! Because one always thinks of feces and used syringes as being synonomous with good health!

  12. G_Note says:

    Did anyone go to SF before writing this? Fitness clubs and walking trails? Look out for the needles.

    1. Raoul Duke says:

      Nah, this piece is utter trash. You know for fact the “author” never walked down Ofarell, Post, 6th or any of the other grimy streets (80 percent of SF).

  13. Earl Hoffman says:

    Just because SF has more mental health counselors per capita doesn’t make it a healthier city. In fact, you could argue that the fact that there is a market for so many more is indicative of the reverse.

  14. sleeperd says:

    San Francisco….!??? I presume they’ve cleared out the stench of human sewage..!!?? Does the Kate Steinle family agree with this finding…??
    Who funded the study… the LGBQT community…???

    1. mnjack30 says:

      You got it!! Bunch of smarmy corksoakers and butt humpers. May they rot in hell

  15. Toni Franklin says:

    San Francisco, Portland, Seattle…They may be physically “healthy”, but mental & social FREAKS. I prefer to chow down on some yummy Memphis BBQ any day and chat with normal people. But thats just me.

  16. rubbermeatpuppet says:

    USS Independence used in Bikini Island atomic weapons test was towed and sunk off the coast of San Francisco. Bay Area women especially in Marin County have abnormally high rates of invasive breast cancer. Being a sanctuary city, San Francisco County has the highest case rate of tuberculosis. 3.5 times the national average. Also SF has higher than average occurrence of MRSA. And new cases of Zika are on the rise.

    1. zen says:

      Super high abortion and feminista rate, making their parts shrivel.

  17. waterytart says:

    The hell you say! You mean having insurance doesn’t guarantee good health?! I’ll be damned. Being a healthcare professional in MI, I can honestly state that there are more enrolled in ACA, Medicare, and Medicaid in Detroit than most of the rest of the state.

    1. Gino Schafer says:

      Maybe Detroit will take a hint from Kalifonia and secede too. The rest of the State will be glad to help them pack. As long as they take Dearborn with them.

      1. waterytart says:

        Amen. They could easily become an annex of Windsor. Would suit us non urban dwellers just fine!

      2. mnjack30 says:

        Please don’t take Dearborn away. Burn it to the ground. Get rid of the filth and vermin. Make way for rebuilding for Mideast Christians!!

  18. alanthegreat says:

    Ah the “comeback city”, Detroit, at the bottom again. Renaissancing for 65 years.

    1. Troy Dynes says:

      Detroit was once known as the “Paris of the West” because of its culture, art and architecture. Detroit at one time had the highest per capita income in the U.S. After 60 years of democrat control, it has been gutted and bankrupt.

      1. alanthegreat says:

        Yep, I was born and raised there for 30 years.

      2. Michael Woods says:

        The downtown area is roaring back….MAJOR revival! You get out of the downtown area and NOTHING has really changed…

      3. Hillbilly Bone says:

        Just hope you don’t have any car breakdown, or are purposely involved in accident on your way to or from downtown. Downtown is very safe, getting there and back to the suburbs is where the danger lies.

      4. Michael Woods says:

        Yep!

      5. Hillbilly Bone says:

        Born and Raised near Rouge Park.

  19. Glaubenskrieger says:

    San Francisco the healthiest city? Clearly STDs were not included in the metrics for this study.

    1. DerRotMax says:

      …or drug use.

      1. Dindoo Nuffin says:

        Or an overabundance of self absorbed liberal snowflakes.

    2. Booshcat says:

      Or urine and feces in the streets……

      1. rickmcinnis says:

        Fecal matter in all kinds of places it is not supposed to be. Another Leftie made contest made to measure for the Lefties to win. You would think they would get tired of their own self-aggrandizing? But that artifically elevated self-esteem requires lots of maintenance.

      2. Carl Mertz says:

        You should ask them if they are getting in shape for the trip to hell.???????

      3. varet says:

        Hell is not that far from Detroit really (Less than an hour drive) It would most likely score higher than Detroit but not much.

      4. TheBigKitty says:

        How can you ignore AIDS/HIV/STDs and drug addictions?

        Healthcare is different from health

        “Food” is at best subjective.

        Green Spaces in Portland and San Francisco are often/always homesteaded by the vagrants and addicts and are all up unusable

    3. Joe Engel says:

      STDs don’t cost nearly as much money as obesity and obesity related diseases. Everyone that’s overweight should be charged more money for insurance.

      1. Brian Barkley says:

        With all the nasty old STDs that are now drug resistant that’s a stupid thing to say.
        The CDC isn’t calling the problem epidemic for no reason.

      2. Jerry Brickley says:

        Joe says stupid things, ’cause he’s…

      3. Joe Engel says:

        Free markets baby!! #’murica #MAGA

      4. Joe Engel says:

        Most recent CDC estimates report ~$147 billion annual spending on obesity related illness. ~$16 billion on STD. Or roughly 10.9% of obesity spending. While epidemics of STDs may exist (as epidemic is regional), a pandemic of obesity exists (nationwide) sending health care costs skyrocketing. If you’re upset about paying for other people’s healthcare costs, you should be more upset passing a heffer on a hoveround, than a poor person.

      5. Brian Barkley says:

        Look at the increase in STDs. Obesity is not exploding like STDs

      6. candymanal says:

        The word is spelled, Heifer.
        Furthermore, the CDC, does NOT list AIDS as a STD. (thanks to the gay agenda)
        Just fact checking, your post.
        However, if you include HIV/AIDS treatments and related drugs?
        The numbers, are astronomically higher.

      7. Joe Engel says:

        Unless you have some counter evidence to support your claim….

      8. grateful1 says:

        At least obesity isn’t contagious.

      9. Jerry Brickley says:

        I thought health insurance was affordable because of the Affordable Care Act.

      10. Dindoo Nuffin says:

        Claptrap. Takes a lot of meds to cure that dynamo hum.

      11. The 6 Horse says:

        A food guzzler tax.

      12. Jim1937 says:

        So, Joey, what STD do you have?

      13. Joe Engel says:

        I’m gonna show restraint and not crush the softball you just lob to me.

      14. Jim1937 says:

        Crush it with your participation trophy?

      15. Robdouth says:

        I would have paid to see a great response to that one lobbed over the plate. For as smug as his response was, it was begging to be responded to with cold and calculating humor.

      16. Joe Engel says:

        “Here goes Happy from 9 feet. Uh oh! Here comes the putter throw! What’s this? A new, restrained Happy Gilmore.”

      17. Robdouth says:

        I love how his response also shows how oblivious he was to such an easy setup. Ironically what you are saying is statistically correct, and as a conservative myself, I don’t understand why pointing to the much greater problem of obesity is a big deal. Who cares what your political lean is if you are giving proper facts in the proper context. It doesn’t mean STDs aren’t a problem as you even noted, but saying that one thing is 10 times the problem as the other is actually a damn good point.

        Additionally just in the realm of yo-momma jokes, you had a good dozen jokes that could have blistered as responses.

        Have a good one brother.

      18. Joe Engel says:

        I am a middle of the road pragmatist. So refreshing to hear from a voice of reason on the right. Thank you. I’ve been given the impression recently that all hard data contrary to one’s beliefs was disbarred from the Republican Party.

      19. Robdouth says:

        Well when Trump was elected, I was sent a giant bucket and told I had to carry water for him. I kept misplacing the bucket though, so they are very very angry at me. 🙂

        As I get older, the hardness of the edges of my conservatism seem to smooth out. As I get more dedicated to my church I’m starting to understand what one of my associate pastors said about his politics. He said he was too conservative for liberals and too liberal for conservatives because he tries his best to follow what Jesus actually preached, and it’s at times anathema to a rigid left/right ideology.

        Ironically though I feel like I can be friends with everyone because what you believe is less important to me than how you treat other people and there are truly decent people on both sides, and truly indecent people on both sides. I’ve found that politics is not as much a predictor of human kindness as many would like to pretend it is. I still consider myself more right than left though because of my economics degree pushing me towards the siren’s call of Adam Smith, Bastiat and Hayek.

        I feel enriched from having made your acquaintance. Have a good one, and let me know how pragmatism works out for you. I find it not pragmatic enough. Ha!

      20. ConCynic says:

        That’s a big fat liberal lie.

      21. rickmcinnis says:

        Of course you are right about the cost of being obese but in this Scared New World you are not allowed to tell someone they are FAT. It might hurt their feelings.

      22. zen says:

        They cost more: AIDS drugs are the most expensive. SF is filled with people taking billions of dollars of drugs.

      23. Raoul Duke says:

        A month supply of Odefsey costs around 3k, a 90 day supply of Complera costs about 7k. Hard facts, just check with your pharmacist.

      24. Snailmailtrucker says:

        Only a Brain Damaged LibTurd would believe a word that you just posted
        or that is in this Article !

      25. Jerry Brickley says:

        Joe, not many people on your side…baby.

      26. Yah Saves says:

        So, you do not think they should HAVE TO cover them and their pre existing condition?

    4. Bill E. BOBB says:

      Nor was Mental Health included….

      1. Robdouth says:

        Mental Health is seriously a growing concern everywhere in this country and it’s sorely neglected.

      2. subo says:

        Drug use…People altering their normal metabolism with chemicals comes with a price.

      3. Robdouth says:

        You are correct, however, it’s more than that. I work at a Children’s hospital and much of the mental health needs for Children (at least the very young ones) don’t always stem from drug use (unless it’s the effects of their parent’s drug use) and the abuse that comes from that.

      4. Yah Saves says:

        The toxins are coming at them via food, water and air. Then they get toxic vaccines shoved in them. They don’t stand a chance and us adults let them be abused. We do NOTHING about this assault on them. Ignorance seems to be the devil’s sandbox.

    5. Heartland Patriot says:

      Between you, “Booshcat”, and “DerRotMax”, you covered the reasons I thought that the list was BS. Thank you.

    6. Jim1937 says:

      Nor insanity.

    7. Rinosaretheproblem says:

      Old and retired people can’t afford to live there, they retire to cities and states with lower costs of living.

    8. Mojari 32 says:

      More importantly Fukushima Fallout was not included in the metrics of this study… Those Ocean currents do travel from from Japan to the Pacific West Coast of North America.

    9. Raoul Duke says:

      I lived in SF for over a decade…you have no idea how accurate your statement is. I know someone that was stabbed with a used syringe by a homeless illegal while walking home through the TL. Turns out they wound up contracting HIV. I personally saw more feces, needles, dopefiends and dead bodies in SF than I care to revisit. This piece of trash article is leftist insanity.

    10. allah_speaking says:

      Not to mention the toxicity of the air. I left the Bay Area over 8 years ago for a place in the country. It took 3 months for the garbage my body had accumulated from the air there to exit out of my system. I will tell you how bad. My sweat literally stung my skin. Yes, that bad. People don’t know what healthy is until you get away from areas with heavy auto traffic.

    11. QuinsigamondMan says:

      Once again, another progressive liberal piece full of lies and clap trap babble. This is a cesspool city without a doubt. Over the last 20-years, we have saved approximately $8,000 and used those savings to visit other locations mostly outside the state.

    12. MidwestNorsk says:

      Not to mention illegal aliens in a “sanctuary city” bringing in Tuberculosis and all kinds of diseases that were once extinct in America.

      Minneapolis – another town full of illegal aliens festering with TB.