Memphis deemed worst major city in the U.S. for raising a family in 2025. Here’s why

This article originally appeared on Memphis Commercial Appeal

A study found that Memphis was the worst major city to raise a family in.

According to Memphis Commercial Appeal, the analysis, conducted by WalletHub, examined the 182 largest cities in the country and identified the best cities to raise a family across several key metrics, including socioeconomic status, affordability, and education, among other factors.

Memphis ranked last among the cities examined in the analysis. Other Tennessee cities fared better but were also placed in the bottom half of the study.

Here’s what the study found.
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Is Memphis a good place to raise a family?

Memphis ranked as the worst overall city for raising a family, but it did not place last in any of the measuring categories. The city had an overall score of 34.07 out of 100, which is just shy of Detroit, Michigan, which had the second-worst score at 34.10.

Of 182 cities, Memphis ranked best in family fun at No. 153. The city’s worst ranking was in health and safety, where it placed second-to-last at No. 181. In its other categories, Memphis ranked No. 158 in affordability, No. 168 in education and childcare, and No. 169 in socioeconomics.

Memphis tied with Baltimore, Maryland; Cleveland, Ohio; Birmingham, Alabama; Little Rock, Arkansas; and Oakland, California for the highest violent crime per capita.

Is Tennessee a good state for raising a family?

In general, while Tennessee may not be a bad state to raise a family, all of its cities that made the list were ranked in the bottom half. Out of 182 cities, the highest-placing city was still ranked over No. 100.

Nashville placed No. 104 with an overall score of 49.55. Its best ranking was in affordability at No. 53. The worst ranking was No. 164 in health and safety.

Knoxville ranked as No. 114 with an overall score of 49.09. The best ranking for Knoxville was No. 89 in education and childcare. The worst ranking was socioeconomics at No. 132.

Chattanooga ranked as No. 125 with an overall score of 47.94. Its best ranking was No. 51 for affordability. The worst ranking was in health and safety at No. 177.

Best cities to raise a family in 2025

In all 182 cities, there wasn’t one to break 75 points. Fremont, California, the top city for raising a family, was the closest at 73.53 overall points. Its best scores were No. 1 in socioeconomics, No. 2 in education and childcare, and No. 4 in health and safety.

1. Fremont, California: overall score of 73.53

2. Overland Park, Kansas: overall score of 71.66

3. Plano, Texas: overall score of 68.55

4. Irvine, Texas: overall score of 68.50

5. South Burlington, Vermont: overall score of 65.07

6. Seattle, Washington: overall score of 64.93

7. Boise, Idaho: overall score of 64.86

8. Gilbert, Arizona: overall score of 64.69

9. Bismarck, North Dakota: overall score of 64.57

10. San Diego, California: overall score of 64.39

Methodology

To determine the data for the study, WalletHub examined 182 cities, including the 150 most populous in the United States, and compared them across five categories. The metrics were family fun, health and safety, education and childcare, affordability and socioeconomics.

Each category was weighted equally, with 20 points allocated to each section.

Metrics for family fun include factors such as playgrounds per capita, walkability, bike score, average commute time and others. Health and safety metrics include air quality, water quality, infant mortality rate and family homelessness, among others.

Education and childcare factors include high school graduation rate, childcare costs, school system quality and more. Affordability factors include cost of living, housing affordability and wallet wellness. Socioeconomic measurements include separation and divorce rates, the share of families living in poverty, unemployment rates, the wealth gap and more.

Jordan Green covers trending news for The Commercial Appeal. She can be reached at jordan.green@commercialappeal.com.

This article originally appeared on Memphis Commercial Appeal: Is Memphis a good city for raising kids? What a WalletHub study found