Growing stature

Delightful Dallas neighbor blossoms as one of America's most livable small cities in 2022

Flower Mound's wellness and recreational activities earn applause.

Facebook/Flower Mound Parks and Recreation

The mound of accolades keeps piling up for Flower Mound.

The Dallas suburb has been named by personal finance website SmartAsset as one of the most livable small cities in the U.S. This year’s SmartAsset study positions Flower Mound at No. 5, down one spot from its 2021 ranking.

SmartAsset’s analysis compared 286 cities (with populations between 65,000 and 100,000) across 11 metrics related to home affordability, job opportunities, health care accessibility, income equality, and entertainment density.

The study notes that Flower Mound Flower has the eighth lowest poverty rate among the 286 cities (3.8 percent), as well as the 14th lowest income inequality and the 19th lowest housing costs as a share of median household income (17.65 percent).

The Flower Mound Chamber of Commerce describes the city as “a family-oriented community that prides itself on maintaining a small-town atmosphere while embracing and fostering a dynamic economic development environment.” Among the suburb’s attributes are its central location, low tax rate, and top-notch school system, along with an “unsurpassed quality of life” that has garnered national attention, the chamber says.

Aside from the SmartAsset ranking, Flower Mound has collected recognition from several other sources.

For instance, Money magazine last year awarded Flower Mound the No. 4 spot on its list of the 50 best places to live in the U.S.

“Locals say Flower Mound still has a small-town feel, but it’s growing quickly,” Money noted. “The city saw the highest job growth of any place on our list over the last five years. It also comes in second for the highest projected job growth over the next five, just after Round Rock down near Austin.”

Among other honors for Flower Mound is the 2020 Voice of the People Award for Excellence in Recreation and Wellness from the International City/County Management Association along with Polco, an online community polling and survey platform.

“Flower Mound’s leaders work tirelessly to involve residents in planning for the future of recreation and wellness opportunities in their town,” says Damema Mann, director of national engagement at Polco.

Topping the SmartAsset list of small cities again this year is O’Fallon, Missouri, a suburb of St. Louis.

Other North Texas cities ranking high on the SmartAsset list (but not nearly as high as Flower Mound) are Mansfield, No. 35; North Richland Hills, No. 78; and Rowlett, No. 103.

Elsewhere in Texas, cities ranked by Smart Asset are:

Cedar Park (Austin metro area), No. 44.
Georgetown (Austin metro area), No. 63.
Atascocita (Houston metro area), No. 85.
New Braunfels (San Antonio metro area), No. 86.
Missouri City (Houston metro area), No. 90.
Temple (Killeen-Temple-Fort Hood metro area), No. 96.
Harlingen (Brownsville-Harlingen metro area), No. 113.
Victoria (Victoria metro area), No. 146.
Edinburg (McAllen-Edinburg-Mission metro area), No. 172.
Pharr (McAllen-Edinburg-Mission metro area), No. 173.
Bryan (Bryan-College Station metro area), No. 175.

rankings lists

Turkey Day news

Dallas eats up top-5 rank on list of best cities for Thanksgiving

Photo courtesy of Razzoo's

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Dallas is sitting at the head of the table as one of the best places in the country to celebrate Thanksgiving this year, a new study has revealed.

Dallas ranked No. 5 out of 100 of the largest U.S. cities in WalletHub's annual "Best Places to Go for Thanksgiving" report, published November 12. The city made a huge leap over its 2023 ranking as No. 17, and remains the highest-ranking Texas city.

The study analyzed each city based on 18 metrics to determine the best places for Thanksgiving, such as the number of pumpkin patches per capita, the average cost of a Thanksgiving dinner, the number of volunteer opportunities, the average weather forecast, and more. The metrics were then organized into five overall categories to determine the rankings.

The category that Dallas ranked the highest in was the number of celebrations and traditions (No. 2), and the average weather forecast during the holiday period (No. 9), while the lowest-ranked category was for safety and accessibility (No. 82). Other categories that determined Dallas' overall ranking were affordability (No. 60), and a "giving thanks" rank (No. 26).

Dallas restaurants are getting prepared for their big Turkey Day feasts, and CultureMap has rounded up a thorough list of all of the local restaurants hosting holiday feasts, from brunch to dinner.

"The best cities for celebrating Thanksgiving all have an abundance of high-quality restaurants and places to buy festive decorations, and their residents get very excited for the holiday based on their Google search history," said WalletHub analyst Chip Lupo.

By Thanksgiving on November 28, Dallas will be fully decked for the December holidays. Dallasites who will have extended family in town during Thanksgiving weekend can take in of all the marvelous Christmas lights brightening the city. Dallas-Fort Worth goes all out for the most wonderful time of year.

Across North Texas, three Dallas-area cities also made big improvements from their 2023 rankings. Irving moved up 10 spots to claim No. 19 this year, and Garland jumped up 21 spots on the list as No. 34. Arlington made the biggest improvement in the region, moving from No. 78 last year to No. 55 this year.

Meanwhile, Plano and Fort Worth slipped in the rankings, falling into No. 44 and No. 45 in 2024, respectively. Plano previously ranked No. 38 in 2023, and Fort Worth was No. 36.

San Diego, California (No. 1) topped the overall list of best places to go for Thanksgiving this year, followed by its Golden State neighbors San Francisco (No. 3) and San Jose (No. 4). Atlanta, Georgia (No. 2) rounds out the top five.

dallas fort worth thanksgiving wallethub rankings