In this article, we look at the 20 most educated cities in the US. You can skip our detailed analysis on educational attainment in metropolitans of the country, and head over directly to the 5 Most Educated Cities in the US.
In February last year, the US Census Bureau released its findings on educational attainment in the United States in 2021. Over the decade studied, the percentage of people in the country aged 25 or above, who had completed a bachelor’s degree or higher, rose from 30.4% in 2011 to 37.9% in 2021. Of these, 23.5% had bachelor’s as their highest degree, while 14.4% had a master’s or professional degree.
Boulder, in Colorado, ranks as the most educated city in the US, with 62.5% of the population aged 25 and above having completed a bachelor’s degree or higher. Among large metropolitans that have a population in excess of one million, the Washington Metropolitan Area tops the charts of the most educated cities in the US with 53.4% of the population having at least a bachelor’s degree. Hanford, Corcoran, and El Centro in California are among the least educated cities in the US, where higher education attainment levels remain 13.5% or less. If interested, you can also take a look at our recent research about the 20 Most Educated States in America and the 20 Least Educated States in America.
The Bureau of Labor Statistics in 2022 identified a direct relationship that exists between education levels and earnings. Individuals having an education less than high school diploma had median incomes of $682 per week in comparison with $1,432 for bachelor’s degree holders, $1,661 for master’s, while over $2,000 for those who had completed their doctoral degrees.
Many large corporations in the United States such as Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT), Amazon.com, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMZN), and International Business Machines Corporation (NYSE:IBM) are striving to make education more cost effective and have also undertaken initiatives to equip students with the skills required in the job market in the future.
Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT)’s TechSpark program is aimed at providing digital access and skills to communities in rural areas. It has worked wonders in Northeast Wisconsin where now 88% of the schools offer education in computer sciences. Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT) is also providing cybersecurity training to at least 100 students at the Jackson State University in Jackson, Mississippi. Moreover, Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT) offers students and instructors of educational institutions free access to its services such as Word, Excel, Publisher, Outlook, PowerPoint, and Teams if they sign up for Office 365 Education.
In 2021, International Business Machines Corporation (NYSE:IBM) announced an ambitious initiative to provide 30 million people with the skills required by the job market in 2030. International Business Machines Corporation (NYSE:IBM)’s P-TECH program, on the other hand, is enabling youth, especially those in schools, with the academic knowledge and technical skills required to excel in the 21st century.
Amazon.com, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMZN)’s Project Kuiper is aimed at launching more than 3,000 satellites into orbit to provide affordable broadband to communities that are underserved. It is hoped that easy and cheap access to the internet will allow millions of young students to gain academic and technical knowledge at lower costs. Amazon.com, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMZN)’s AWS service is also providing digital infrastructure support to a number of online education institutions across the world and in the US.
20 Most Educated Cities in the US
Joseph Sohm/Shutterstock.com
Methodology
The 20 most educated cities in the US have been ranked using data from the American Community Survey 2021 released by the Census Bureau. First, we identified the metropolitans in the country that had a population in excess of one million. Then those cities were sorted in ascending order of percentage of their populations aged 25 and above that had attained bachelor’s degree or higher. In the case where two or more cities were level on percentage, the one with the higher population outranked the other.
Let’s now head over to the list of the 20 most educated cities in the US.
20. Pittsburgh (Pittsburgh, PA Metro Area)
Population aged 25 and above with bachelor’s degree or higher: 38.1%
Pittsburgh is located in western Pennsylvania. It ranks among the most educated cities in the US. Carnegie Mellon University located in the city is well renowned for its science and technology programs.
19. Dallas (Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington, TX Metro Area)
Population aged 25 and above with bachelor’s degree or higher: 38.3%
Dallas is the third largest city in the state of Texas. It ranks 19th on the list of the most educated cities in America. A number of prominent educational institutions are based out of the Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington metropolitan area, including the University of Texas at Arlington.
18. Columbus (Columbus, OH Metro Area)
Population aged 25 and above with bachelor’s degree or higher: 39%
Columbus is the capital city of Ohio. An estimated 39% of the city’s population aged 25 and above have attained higher education. Columbus ranks amongst the most educated cities in the US.
17. Milwaukee (Milwaukee-Waukesha, WI Metro Area)
Population aged 25 and above with bachelor’s degree or higher: 39.2%
Milwaukee is a city in the US state of Wisconsin that is known for its beer industry. Not only does the Milwaukee-Waukesha metropolitan area have a high percentage of people with a bachelor’s degree or above, the city also has one of the highest number of college students per capita in the country.
16. Charlotte (Charlotte-Concord-Gastonia, NC-SC Metro Area)
Population aged 25 and above with bachelor’s degree or higher: 39.3%
The Charlotte metropolitan area has a population of over 2.7 million people, according to the Census Bureau’s 2021 findings. 39.3% of those aged 25 and above hold a bachelor’s degree or higher, making Charlotte one of the most educated cities in the US.
15. Kansas City (Kansas City, MO-KS Metro Area)
Population aged 25 and above with bachelor’s degree or higher: 39.5%
Kansas City in Missouri is one of the most educated cities in the US, with an estimated 39.5% of its population holding a bachelor’s degree or higher. The city borders the state of Kansas, which is one of the 20 Most Educated States in America.
14. Richmond (Richmond, VA Metro Area)
Population aged 25 and above with bachelor’s degree or higher: 40.2%
Richmond is one of the United States’ oldest cities, and is the capital of the southeastern state of Virginia. The state is ranked as the seventh most educated state in America, and therefore it is no surprise that Richmond finds a place among the most educated cities in the US.
13. Nashville (Nashville-Davidson-Murfreesboro-Franklin, TN Metro Area)
Population aged 25 and above with bachelor’s degree or higher: 40.2%
The Nashville metropolitan area, also called the Nashville-Davidson-Murfreesboro-Franklin metropolitan area, is one of the most educated in the United States, with a number of schools, colleges, and universities offering high quality education. 40.2% of the population aged 25 and above hold a bachelor’s degree or higher. This is the same percentage as Richmond, but Nashville outranks it due to its larger population size.
12. Chicago (Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN-WI Metro Area)
Population aged 25 and above with bachelor’s degree or higher: 40.6%
Chicago is the largest city in Illinois state. The Chicago metropolitan area, which also comprises Naperville and Elgin, is ranked 12th among the most educated cities in America with over 40% of the population aged 25 and above attaining at least a bachelor’s degree.
11. Hartford (Hartford-East Hartford-Middletown, CT Metro Area)
Population aged 25 and above with bachelor’s degree or higher: 41.4%
Connecticut is the sixth most educated state in America. 41.4% of the population in Connecticut’s capital city Hartford hold a bachelor’s degree or higher, making the city one of the most educated in the United States.
10. Philadelphia (Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington, PA-NJ-DE-MD Metro Area)
Population aged 25 and above with bachelor’s degree or higher: 41.9%
Philadelphia is home to some of the world’s top universities, including the University of Pennsylvania which is ranked 13th in the 2023 QS World Rankings for Universities. There are several other quality institutions as well in the Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington metropolitan area.
9. Atlanta (Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Alpharetta, GA Metro Area)
Population aged 25 and above with bachelor’s degree or higher: 42.2%
Georgia is one of the 20 Wealthiest States in America, based on the number of millionaires in the state. Atlanta is the capital city of the state. The Atlanta metropolitan area is among the most educated in the country, with over 42% of the population aged 25 and above having attained a bachelor’s degree or higher.
8. Baltimore (Baltimore-Columbia-Towson, MD Metro Area)
Population aged 25 and above with bachelor’s degree or higher: 42.9%
Baltimore is the largest city in Maryland, and is one of the most educated cities in the US. John Hopkins University, one of the best research institutions in the world, founded in 1876, is located in Baltimore. Nearly 43% of the city’s population hold an undergraduate or higher degree.
7. New York (New York, NY-NJ-PA Metro Area)
Population aged 25 and above with bachelor’s degree or higher: 43.6%
New York ranks seventh in the list of the most educated cities in the US. The New York metropolitan area, which also includes New York City, has a high number of quality educational institutions. 43.6% of the city’s population has at least a bachelor’s degree.
6. Minneapolis (Minneapolis-St. Paul-Bloomington, MN-WI Metro Area)
Population aged 25 and above with bachelor’s degree or higher: 44.7%
The Minneapolis-St. Paul metropolitan area is the cultural, political, and economic center of the state of Minnesota. The University of Minnesota, University of St. Thomas, and St. Catherine University are some prominent educational institutions in the area. Minneapolis ranks 6th among the most educated cities in America.
