flourishing diversity

2 Dallas-Fort Worth cities make the list of most diverse places in U.S.

Dallas is the No. 8 most diverse city in America.

Living in a multicultural city comes with many benefits. Diverse communities bring new perspectives, greater versatility, and economic boosts, to name a few. And according to a new study by WalletHub, Arlington and Dallas are among the most diverse cities in the nation.

The two Dallas-Fort Worth cities earned top-10 spots in WalletHub's annual ranking of the "Most Diverse Cities in the U.S. (2024)," ranking No. 5 and No. 8, respectively. The report compared 501 U.S. cities across 13 metrics in five categories that encompass "diversity" across socioeconomic, cultural, economic, household, and religious factors.

Arlington earned a score of 72.34 out of a total 100 possible points, following behind Gaithersburg, Maryland (No. 1), Silver Spring, Maryland (No. 2), Germantown, Maryland (No. 3), and Houston (No. 4).

Arlington previously ranked No. 8 in WalletHub's 2021 report, showing that the city has become even more diverse within the last few years.

Arlington performed the best in two overall major categories for cultural and religious diversity, earning a respective rank of No. 31 and No. 41 out of all 501 cities in the study. The suburb's socioeconomic diversity earned it No. 68, while the city fell behind when it came to household and economic diversity, earning No. 251 and No. 121.

More specifically, Arlington performed the best in the rankings for its income diversity (No. 15), racial and ethic diversity (No. 17), and industry diversity (No. 19). But the city fell the farthest behind in the rankings for age diversity (No. 404) and household-type diversity (No. 384).

Here's how Arlington performed within the study's remaining categories out of all 501 cities:

61st – Household-size diversity
63rd – Linguistic diversity
151st – Occupational diversity
176th – Educational-attainment diversity
182nd – Birthplace diversity
272nd – Marital-status diversity
311th – Worker-class diversity

"The most diverse cities demonstrate diversity in many dimensions – not just in race and gender but also everything from residents’ languages and birthplaces to their job types and household sizes," said WalletHub analyst Cassandra Happe in the report. "These cities blend together a multitude of different perspectives, helping people to better understand the world around them and become more empathetic. This exchange of ideas also tends to increase the economic success of diverse cities."

Dallas scored 71.79 out of 100 points, falling behind New York City (No. 6) and Jersey City, New Jersey (No. 7) in the overall rankings, but staying ahead of Charlotte, North Carolina (No. 9) and Danbury, Connecticut (No. 10).

Dallas slipped from its former rank as the fourth most diverse city in the U.S. in 2021, so the city has some work to do to catch up.

Across the study's five key dimensions, Dallas scored within the top 10 for its high socioeconomic diversity (No. 8), and remained within the top 100 for its cultural (No. 50) and religious diversity (No. 68). The city fell outside the top 100 for its ranking in economic (No. 190) and household diversity (No. 207).

Dallas earned top-25 rankings in industry (No. 23) and educational-attainment diversity (No. 24th), but edged out of the top 50 for its racial and ethic (No. 51) and linguistic diversity (No. 57). The city performed the worst when it came to worker-class (No. 398) and age diversity (No. 356).

Here's how Dallas performed within the study's remaining metrics out of all 501 cities:

147th – Income diversity
152nd – Household-type diversity
232nd – Occupational diversity
245th – Birthplace diversity
254th – Marital-status diversity
272nd – Household-size diversity

Elsewhere in North Texas, Fort Worth ranked No. 22 overall, while Plano ranked No. 83.

The only other Texas cities to earn spots in the report include Austin (No. 70), San Antonio (No. 87), Corpus Christi (No. 125), El Paso (No. 253), and Laredo (No. 468).

The full report can be found on wallethub.com.

dallas arlington fort worth wallethub reports rankings diversity

Public transportation news

DART to trim bus routes and change light-rail frequency in Dallas

Photo courtesy of DART

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Dallas Area Rapid Transit (DART) is implementing service changes that include discontinuing several low-performing bus routes and adjusting weekday rail and bus frequencies. The changes take effect Monday February 2.

"These changes reflect what our riders and communities told us last year: 'Minimize disruption while maintaining access'," says Jeamy Molina, DART’s EVP and Chief Communications Officer in a release. “By focusing service where it’s used most and keeping strong connections to rail, GoLink and key bus corridors, we’re helping move North Texas forward."

Directly from the release, here are the changes being made:

Weekday light-rail frequency: DART’s Red, Blue, Green and Orange lines will operate every 20 minutes during weekday peak periods (previously 15 minutes). Off-peak weekday and weekend frequency will not change.

Convention Center Station: The station closed to riders January 5, 2026, due to construction at the Kay Bailey Hutchison Convention Center. Trains will continue to pass through, but riders cannot board or exit there. Bus bays also closed Jan. 5, and stops have been relocated to nearby streets. Updates are available at DART.org/ConventionCenter.

Discontinued bus routes (7): 209 McKinney/Cole; 225 Nursery; 254 Legacy; 255 Story; 305 Addison Express; 378 Red Bird Express; 383 Lake Ray Hubbard Express. Nearby alternatives include rail, GoLink and connecting bus routes.

Bus frequency reductions: Routes 13, 15, 16, 17, 18, 20, 22, 23, 25, 27, 30, 38 and 57 move to 20-minute peak service. Routes 28, 41 and 47 move to 20-minute peak and 30-minute off-peak service and will be renumbered to 128, 141 and 147. Routes 101, 102, 103, 104, 106, 108, 109, 114, and 122 move to 20-minute peak and 30-minute off-peak service. Express Route 306 shifts to 20-minute frequency.

Schedule updates: Minor timing adjustments will be made on Routes 1, 218, 233, 235, 237, and 241 to improve connections. Route 883 UTD Comet Cruiser will operate about every 12 minutes on weekdays and 20 minutes on weekends, with no change to destinations.

Bus bay reassignments: Riders should watch for updated boarding locations at Addison Station; CBD West Transfer Center; Dallas College North Lake Campus Station; Downtown Irving/Heritage Crossing Station; Forest Lane Station; Lake Ray Hubbard Transit Center; Market Center Station; Northwest Plano Park & Ride; Parker Road Station; Red Bird Transit Center; SMU/Mockingbird Station; Southwestern Medical District/Parkland Station; and University of Dallas Station.

Riders can review new schedules and route details on DART’s service change landing page at www.DART.org/ServiceChange. Updated timetables will also be available through DART’s trip-planning tools and at select locations, and riders can contact DART Customer Service for help planning trips, finding alternate service, and confirming updated boarding locations.

"The changes were informed by a series of public hearings last summer and feedback from member cities and approved by the DART Board of Directors in September 2025," DART says. "In addition to the services scheduled to change on February 2nd, the DART Board also approved fare changes, GoLink expansion, and two potential site-specific shuttle partnerships. Those changes are set to take effect later this year."