Life is good

This upbeat Dallas suburb is one of the happiest cities in America in 2020

The city has earned a reputation as a great place for families.

Residents of Plano have plenty to smile about. Their city ranks second on a new list of the happiest cities in the country.

In a study released March 9, personal finance website WalletHub looks at 30 happiness-related metrics for 182 U.S. cities — the 150 most populated U.S. cities, plus at least two of the most populated cities in each state.

The study places data into three buckets: emotional and physical well-being, income and employment, and community and environment. Plano’s best showing among those three is a No. 6 ranking in the category of emotional and physical well-being. It grabs the No. 9 spot for income and employment, and the No. 16 spot for community and environment.

Plano performs particularly well on one metric: No. 5 for the lowest separation and divorce rate.

On its website, the Plano Chamber of Commerce boasts that the city “has earned a national reputation as one of the best places in the United States for families to live and work.”

For Plano, there is one thing to be a tiny bit sad about in this year’s WalletHub ranking. In the 2019 happiest-cities study, Plano sat atop the list. This year’s No. 1 is Fremont, California, a San Francisco suburb. In 2018, Plano ranked fifth.

WalletHub analyst Jill Gonzalez says the methodology for the study was changed this year, meaning an apples-to-apples comparison shouldn’t be made between the 2019 and 2020 rankings.

“However, the second happiest city is still a great place to be. Plano’s top marks this year include a low depression rate, and the smallest percentage of adults who are limited in their activities because of illness or disability,” Gonzalez says. “In terms of income and employment, almost 60 percent of households in Plano earn annual incomes above $75,000, and the poverty and unemployment rates are some of the lowest in the country.”

Here’s how other large cities in Dallas-Fort Worth rank this year:

Grand Prairie, No. 27
Irving, No. 35
Garland, No. 43
Fort Worth, No. 60
Arlington, No. 61
Dallas, No. 76

Aside from Dallas and Fort Worth, here’s how the state’s largest cities rank:

Austin, No. 22
San Antonio, No. 110
Houston, No. 111

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Beep Beep

Texas cruises to middle of 2026 ranking of best states for drivers

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Texas lands right in the middle as the 26th best state for drivers

Texas residents love to debate which cities have the best — and worst — drivers in our own state, but which states boast the best conditions for drivers overall? As it turns out, Texas is only average.

SmartAsset's new study "Best and Worst States for Drivers" ranked states based on auto insurance premiums as a share of annual household income, the price of a 15-gallon tank of gas as a share of weekly household income, traffic fatalities per 100 million vehicle miles traveled, and the share of interstate highway pavement rated "good."

Texas ties with Colorado as the 26th best state for drivers. Massachusetts tops the list.

According to the report's findings, 65 percent of Texas' interstate highways are in "good condition," and there are about 1.2 auto fatalities per 100 million miles traveled in the state.

Additionally, the cost of a 15-gallon tank of gas in Texas represents 3.47 percent of a resident's median weekly income, and insurance premiums eat up 2.05 percent of earnings, the study calculated.

Considering how much gas prices have soared over the last several months, commuting to work or driving around town is taking a bigger chunk out of Texas residents' wallets than it was before. At least Dallasites have DART to get around the city, and shuttle services like Shutto or Vonlane for traveling to other Texas cities.

"Between loan payments, maintenance, fuel and auto insurance, the cost of owning and operating a vehicle now averages more than $11,000 per year," the report said. "Even as U.S. cities and counties increase investment in public transportation, more than 90% of American households own or lease at least one vehicle."

For comparison, South Dakota has better quality interstate highways than the rest of the nation – at 84 percent – while only 15 percent of Hawaii's highways are in good condition. Rhode Island has the lowest auto fatality rate in the U.S. at 0.5 deaths per 100 million vehicle miles traveled, and West Virginia has the highest auto fatality rate at 1.6 deaths.

After Massachusetts, the remaining top 10 best states for drivers are Minnesota (No. 2); New Jersey and North Dakota (tied for No. 3); Utah (No. 5); Connecticut (No. 6); New Hampshire (No. 7); Wisconsin (No. 8); and Indiana and South Dakota (tied for No. 9).

You might want to pump the brakes in the 10 worst states for drivers: Louisiana (No. 50); Mississippi (No. 49); Hawaii and West Virginia (tied for No. 47); Montana (No. 46); Arizona and Oregon (tied for No. 44); Maine (No. 43); New Mexico (No. 42); and Arkansas (No. 41).

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