Buzzy Dallas suburbs Allen and Flower Mound land near the top of WalletHub's 2025 list of the best small cities in America, with many more DFW neighbors earning spots on the list.
The annual survey compared more than 1,300 U.S. cities with populations between 25,000 and 100,000 residents based on 45 livability metrics categorized into five key dimensions: Affordability, economic health, education and health, quality of life, and overall safety. Cities were grouped by percentile, where the 99th percentile represents the best small American cities.
Out of the 19 total U.S. cities that ranked among the 99th percentile of best small cities in America, Carmel, Indiana; Brookfield, Washington; and Apex, North Carolina landed in the top three spots.
In Dallas-Fort Worth, Allen ranked in the 96th percentile while Flower Mound ranked in the 93rd percentile. Both cities have held on to their respective rankings for the second year in a row. Rockwall, which ranked within the 97th percentile last year, was demoted into the 89th percentile for 2025.
Located about 25 miles from downtown Dallas, Allen's overall safety ranked No. 56 in WalletHub's national ranking of the safest small cities. Allen also earned a favorable rankings for its affordability (No. 131), education and health (No. 177), and economic health (No. 181), but it lagged behind for its quality of life (No. 540).
Allen has one of the top 10 best real estate markets for 2025, and its 75013 ZIP code was the No. 1 most popular place for renters place to live in 2024. This techy suburb is also a top destination for remote workers.
Flower Mound is about 29 miles miles northwest of Dallas, and has previously topped a separate national list of the best places to live in the U.S. Personal finance website SmartAsset also ranked Flower Mound one of the top-10 most livable small cities nationwide earlier in 2025.
This popular suburb has had a string of new restaurant openings this year, including fast-casual Indian restaurant Curry Up Now and upscale Mexican eatery Los Caminos. The suburb also recently got a new Nordstrom Rack location.
WalletHub ranked Flower Mound's affordability the 44th best on its national list, but it fell behind in the remaining four categories.
Here's how WalletHub broke down Flower Mound's rank:
- No. 176 – Safety
- No. 256 – Economic health
- No. 503 – Quality of life
- No. 677 – Education and health
According to WalletHub, about 47 percent of Americans say they would prefer to live in a suburb, while less than a quarter (24 percent) would prefer to live in an urban area or a rural community (23 percent).
"Small-city life can be best for those who appreciate more wiggle room, fewer degrees of separation and shorter commutes, to name just a few of its advantages," the report said. "Granted, these little urban areas demand some tradeoffs, too, such as fewer restaurant options or shorter business hours."
Other DFW cities that appeared among the top 50th percentile of the best small American cities include:
- 82nd – Little Elm
- 79th – Southlake and Colleyville (tied)
- 76th – Sachse
- 75th – Keller
- 74th – Coppell and Mansfield (tied)
- 71st – Wylie
- 68th – Grapevine
- 61st – Burleson
- 58th – Waxahachie
- 56th – Weatherford
- 50th – North Richland Hills
Elsewhere in Texas, Austin-area suburbs Leander (97th) and Cedar Park (94th) were the remaining two cities to appear in the 90-99th percentile range. Leander maintained its rank for the second year in a row, but Cedar Park slipped slightly after ranking in the 95th percentile last year.
