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    • u: niversal appeal
    • r: egion
    • b: uildings
    • a: mbition
    • n: eighborhoods
    • S: treets
    • C: ompactness
    • A: ccess
    • L: and use patterns
    • E: conomy
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u: niversal appeal

How magnetic is your city?  Does it appeal to people from all walks of life?  Is your city’s crime rate something that can be bragged about in tourism marketing materials, or is it a negative factor that repels people?  Is your city a hub for college students, recent grads and young adults?  Is your city a major gateway for immigrants?

Top 10 Cities With the Highest Level of Universal Appeal (2014)

  1. Irvine, CA
  2. Boston, MA
  3. Atlanta, GA
  4. Jersey City, NJ
  5. Honolulu, HI
  6. Durham, NC
  7. Pittsburgh, PA
  8. Madison, WI
  9. Orlando, FL
  10. Washington, DC

The full list of urbanSCALE ratings for Universal Appeal for all 100 cities (10 being the highest level of Universal Appeal and 1 being the lowest level of Universal Appeal):

Rank City State Universal Appeal urbanSCALE Score
1 Irvine CA 10.0
2 Boston MA 6.9
3 Atlanta GA 6.5
4 Jersey City NJ 6.4
5 Honolulu HI 6.3
6 Durham NC 6.3
7 Pittsburgh PA 6.3
8 Madison WI 6.2
9 Orlando FL 6.1
10 Washington DC 6.0
11 New York NY 5.9
12 Austin TX 5.7
13 Irving TX 5.6
14 Fremont CA 5.6
15 Tampa FL 5.6
16 St. Louis MO 5.5
17 Miami FL 5.5
18 San Jose CA 5.5
19 Denver CO 5.5
20 Minneapolis MN 5.4
21 New Orleans LA 5.4
22 Gilbert AZ 5.4
23 Riverside CA 5.3
24 Seattle WA 5.3
25 San Francisco CA 5.2
26 Raleigh NC 5.2
27 San Diego CA 5.2
28 Los Angeles CA 5.1
29 Plano TX 5.0
30 Buffalo NY 5.0
31 Charlotte NC 4.9
32 Chula Vista CA 4.9
33 Chicago IL 4.8
34 Oakland CA 4.8
35 Hialeah FL 4.8
36 Houston TX 4.7
37 Dallas TX 4.7
38 Nashville TN 4.7
39 North Las Vegas NV 4.7
40 Winston-Salem NC 4.7
41 Arlington TX 4.7
42 St. Paul MN 4.7
43 Fort Worth TX 4.7
44 Santa Ana CA 4.6
45 Sacramento CA 4.6
46 Columbus OH 4.6
47 Greensboro NC 4.6
48 Long Beach CA 4.6
49 Philadelphia PA 4.6
50 Las Vegas NV 4.6
51 Aurora CO 4.5
52 Norfolk VA 4.5
53 Tucson AZ 4.5
54 Boise ID 4.5
55 Garland TX 4.5
56 Anaheim CA 4.4
57 Newark NJ 4.4
58 Cincinnati OH 4.4
59 Lubbock TX 4.4
60 Henderson NV 4.4
61 Lexington KY 4.4
62 Reno NV 4.3
63 El Paso TX 4.3
64 Portland OR 4.3
65 Baltimore MD 4.3
66 Chandler AZ 4.3
67 Fresno CA 4.2
68 Virginia Beach VA 4.1
69 Omaha NE 4.1
70 Milwaukee WI 4.1
71 Bakersfield CA 4.1
72 Lincoln NE 4.1
73 San Bernardino CA 4.1
74 Stockton CA 4.0
75 Phoenix AZ 4.0
76 Baton Rouge LA 4.0
77 San Antonio TX 4.0
78 Anchorage AK 3.9
79 Laredo TX 3.9
80 Scottsdale AZ 3.9
81 Jacksonville FL 3.8
82 Albuquerque NM 3.8
83 Oklahoma City OK 3.8
84 Colorado Springs CO 3.8
85 Mesa AZ 3.7
86 Chesapeake VA 3.6
87 Glendale AZ 3.6
88 Fort Wayne IND 3.6
89 Indianapolis IN 3.6
90 Corpus Christi TX 3.5
91 Cleveland OH 3.4
92 Kansas City MO 3.4
93 Louisville KY 3.4
94 Wichita KS 3.2
95 Birmingham AL 3.2
96 Memphis TN 3.2
97 Tulsa OK 3.2
98 St. Petersburg FL 3.1
99 Toledo OH 2.8
100 Detroit MI 2.5
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