These Are the Most Neighborly Cities in the U.S.

Having good neighbors can make things that little bit easier, whether you’re itching to become best friends with those living next door, or you prefer to keep things to a civil “hello” and “good morning”.

For the second year in a row, Neighbor.com set out to find the top 25 neighborly cities in the U.S. Looking at data around charitable giving, volunteering, and community well-being, in addition to surveying people across the nation, the team discovered where you could find the friendliest people to live next door. Last year, Augusta, Georgia, came out on top, but which city took first place in 2021?

Based on the data the study found that Madison, Wisconsin is the most neighborly city in the U.S., for a fair few reasons. First off, Madison was voted the happiest place to live with a palpable community bond. The city also leads the nation in nonprofits per 100,000 residents, and has a low crime rate.

Rochester, New York, climbed up to second place this year, up eight places from 2020. The city ranks fourth in the nation for neighborly acts, and fifth for volunteering. Following closely behind, and in third place, is Portland, Oregon. Ranking in the top ten in the nation for charitable giving, volunteering, and neighborly acts, Portland moved up two places, from fifth place in 2020. It’s been voted the seventeenth happiest city in America, too. Smiles all around.

Also making the top ten in this year’s study is: Minneapolis, Minnesota, Des Moines, Iowa, Washington, D.C., Boston, Massachusetts, Seattle, Washington, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, and Milwaukee, Wisconsin.

Through surveying 1,000 people across the nation, Neighbor.com also found out what it means to be a good neighbor. Nearly two-thirds of respondents (61.5%) hang out with their neighbors at least a few times per year, and about one in three (29%) hang out with their neighbors weekly. More than half of respondents (53.9%) said that they feel more concern for their neighbors because of the pandemic, and 65.8% of respondents shared that they have at least two neighbors they can rely on to water their plants or pick up their mail if they go out of town.

Did your city make the list?

View the full study here.