Houston again anointed the most diverse city in the U.S. by new report
We're No. 1
Diversity is currently at the forefront of the U.S. conversation, as anti-Asian hate crimes have spiked nearly 150 percent in 2021 and the Derek Chauvin trial currently broils in Minneapolis.
But now, a new study sheds some good news on the Bayou City, as Houston has once again claimed its title as the most diverse city in America. Finance website WalletHub released its report on 2021's Most Diverse Cities in America, and Houston tops out not only as the most diverse city, but also as the most diverse big city in the U.S.
To crown the diversity champion, WalletHub compared the profiles of more than 500 of the largest cities across five major diversity categories: socioeconomic, cultural, economic, household, and religious.
The annual report drills down into metrics and creates a point system on items such as industry diversity, income, age, religious affiliation, education, language, worker class, and marital status.
Towards that end, here's a breakdown of Houston's rankings (with 1 equaling most diverse and 250 equaling "average"):
- 49th – educational-attainment diversity
- 40th – racial and ethnic diversity
- 26th – linguistic diversity
- 246th – birthplace diversity
- 15th – industry diversity
- 173rd – occupational diversity
- 228th – marital-status diversity
While not standing out in any one particular measurable, Houston narrowly edged out Jersey City, New Jersey with an overall diversity score of 71.87; Jersey City scored a 71.7. The next major city behind Houston is New York City at No. 3 (71.59).
Dallas follows closely behind at No. 4 overall and a ranking of 71.52. Dallas scored best in religious diversity (43rd overall) and cultural diversity (43rd overall), followed by socioeconomic diversity (68th), household diversity (159), and economic diversity (190).
Elsewhere in Texas, Arlington follows at No. 8 overall and a score of 71.19. The city scored best in cultural diversity (38) and religious diversity (90), followed by socioeconomic diversity (111), economic diversity (117), and household diversity (237).
Fort Worth comes in at No. 25 and a score of 70.12. It scored best in cultural diversity (60), followed by socioeconomic diversity (95), economic diversity (119), religious diversity (161), and household diversity (245).
Meanwhile, Austin ranked 38th overall with a score of 69.67. The Capital City scored an impressive No. 3 overall in socioeconomic diversity, followed by cultural diversity (74), household diversity (192), economic diversity (205), and religious diversity (253).
Further down the list is San Antonio at No. 66 overall and a 68.6 score. San Antonio scored best in household diversity (92), followed by religious diversity (102), cultural diversity (137), economic diversity (143), and socioeconomic diversity (205).
Houston's top ranking should come to no surprise to locals. The city topped WalletHub's diversity ranking in 2019.
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This article originally ran on CultureMap.