Santa Rosa ranks near the bottom of WalletHub’s ‘Most Fun Cities in America’ list

Santa Rosa is among the least fun places to live in the United States, according to a report out this week by financial website WalletHub.

The city barely made it onto WalletHub’s list of “2022’s Most Fun Cities in America” and was ranked No. 178 out of 182 cities.

To put together the ranking, WalletHub looked at the 150 most populated cities in the country, plus at least two of the most populated cities in each state, and gathered data related to recreation and entertainment options, nightlife activities and parties, and the cost of the available offerings.

WalletHub graded each city in its study on a 100-point scale, with a score of 100 representing the greatest number and variety of fun and cost-effective activities. Santa Rosa managed only a meager score of 21.77 out of 100, ranking low in both entertainment and recreation (111 out of 182) and nightlife (144 out of 182). Conversely, Santa Rosa was named the second most expensive city for fun, with only New York City being ranked more costly.

Las Vegas, Nevada, topped the list of “2022’s Most Fun Cities in America,” followed by Orlando, Florida; Miami, Florida; Atlanta, Georgia; and New Orleans, Louisiana.

The most fun city in California, according to the study, was San Francisco, ranking No. 6 on the list, ahead of Austin, Texas, Honolulu, Hawaii, New York City and Chicago.

Other cities in California that made the list include: San Diego (No. 16), Los Angeles (No. 20), Sacramento (No. 31), Oakland (No. 80), Anaheim (No. 85) and Bakersfield (No. 86).

Locals can take stock in the fact that Santa Rosa was not the least fun city in the state. Southern California cities Moreno Valley and Oxnard both came in right below Santa Rosa on the list, and were respectively ranked 179 and 180 out of 182 places.

Pearl City, Hawaii — the site of Pearl Harbor — was named the absolute least fun city in America.

WalletHub’s assessment of Santa Rosa marks a stark contrast to one by U.S. News & World Report, which ranked the city 10th on its 2021 list of “30 Most Fun Places to Live in the U.S.” Santa Rosa ranked first in shopping, second in the restaurant category, and 15th in parks and outdoors in that study.