In this article, we discuss the 23 most gay friendly cities in the US. You can skip our detailed analysis of gay rights in the US and head directly to 10 Most Gay Friendly Cities in the US.
There’s a significant population of gay individuals and couples in the US. A Census Bureau report shows that that there were nearly a million homosexual couple households in the US in 2017 and 51.7% of them belonged to female homosexual couples.
The US has been relatively slower to recognize same-sex marriage. In 2015 a supreme court ruling legalized same-sex marriages in all US states. For comparison, the same-sex marriage has been legal in the Netherlands since the year 2000. However, sexual acts between people of the same-sex have been legal since 2003 in the US which was a direct result of the ruling of the famous case of Lawrence vs Texas.
The supreme court made some critical rulings ensuring the LGBT people could freely marry in the same-sex and would not be discriminated against for employment, based on their sexual orientation, among others. However, despite constitutional legalization, many homosexual individuals continue to experience social discrimination in some parts of the country, especially in the relatively conservative and religious south.
There are many aspects of social life where gay people face discrimination such as housing. According to American Progress, LGBT youth make up 5–10% of the American youth population but make up 20–40% of homeless youth. While some states have protection for the LGBT community in terms of housing, other states are still relatively behind the curve.
The social dynamics seem to be working in favor of homosexuality in general. According to a Pew survey, there has been a rising acceptance of homosexuality in the US, with 72% Americans in favor of acceptance in the year 2019, up from 51% in the year 2002.
However, current problems faced by the homosexual community has caused many to relocate within the country to more friendly states and cities. This has caused demographics to dramatically change in some parts of the country with gay people representing significant percentage of the population in these areas.
There are interesting correlations between the gay population density as well as the cities’ diversity and and the general political leanings. To give you an example, the more diverse and liberal a city, the more gay people being part of their populations according to a paper published in the Journal of Sex Reserach.
These cities are usually also far more industrialized which allows for inclusive economic opportunities regardless of race, ethnicity or sexual orientation. For example, companies like Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ: GOOG), Amazon.com, Inc. (NASDAQ: AMZN), The Charles Schwab Corporation (NYSE: SCHW) and International Business Machines Corporation (NYSE: IBM) are known for their inclusive hiring of employees regardless of race, gender or sexual orientation. So liberal and more industrialized cities play in favor of the LGBT community, particularly homosexuals.
The purpose of this article is to list the 23 most gay friendly cities in America.
23 Most Gay Friendly Cities in the US
Pixabay/Public Domain
Methodology
Our core axiom is that cities with the highest gay populations is an indirect indicator of the respective cities' friendliness towards them. So we have ranked cities based on number of same-sex couples per 1000 households in ascending order. We have used data from Williams Institute. It is a policy research institute with a focus on sexual orientation and gender identity. It is based at the Law School at University of California, Los Angeles.
We have also mentioned the cities’ populations to give readers a general idea about the population of homosexuals around the US. The source for US cities’ population is from the US Census Bureau.
We've additionally used another metric to broaden reader-perspective. It’s the 2022 scores from Human Rights Campaign’s Municipal Equality Index (MEI) for different cities. The MEI of Human Rights Campaign (HRC) assigns scores to different cities based on the levels of non-discriminatory legislations and social equality among many other equality metrics for LGBT community.
Let’s move down to the list of 23 gayest cities in the US.
23. Hartford, Connecticut
Number of Same-Sex Couples per 1000 Households: 1.66
Hartford is the capital city of the state of Connecticut. The city has a population of 123,088. The city scores 100 out of 100 when it comes to the inclusion of gays and other LGBT community members in the larger society in the city according to HRC’s MEI. It is one of the most LGBT-friendly cities in America.
22. Dallas, Texas
Number of Same-Sex Couples per 1000 Households: 1.68
Dallas is a city in Texas. It has a population of 1.3 million. Contrary to many other cities in Texas, Dallas is ahead of the curve in gay rights, making it one of the most gay friendly cities in all of America. Dallas scores a 100 out of 100 on HRC’s MEI. Companies like Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ: GOOG), Amazon.com, Inc. (NASDAQ: AMZN), The Charles Schwab Corporation (NYSE: SCHW) and International Business Machines Corporation (NYSE: IBM) inclusively hire in the city.
21. Raleigh, North Carolina
Number of Same-Sex Couples per 1000 Households: 1.71
Raleigh happens to be the capital city of the state of North Carolina. The city has a population of 464,485. The city scores 85 out of 100 in HRC’s MEI for the inclusion of homosexuals and other LGBT communities in the city’s larger society. Its score on MEI has improved by 21 points since 2020.
20. Phoenix, Arizona
Number of Same-Sex Couples per 1000 Households: 1.77
Phoenix is the capital of Arizona and the 5th largest city in the US by area. It has a total population of 1.6 million. The city has its share of gay bars and pubs. It scores a 100 out of 100 on MEI. City offices of companies like Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ: GOOG), Amazon.com, Inc. (NASDAQ: AMZN), The Charles Schwab Corporation (NYSE: SCHW) and International Business Machines Corporation (NYSE: IBM) do not place employment restrictions on the LGBT community.
19. Houston, Texas
Number of Same-Sex Couples per 1000 Households: 1.83
Houston is another Texan city to make it to the list of 23 best cities for gay couples in the US. It is famous for being the world capital for space exploration. Houston has a population of 2.31 million residents. Houston Public Media reports that the city is doing better than the national average in LGBT friendy policies. Houston gets a score of 73 out of 100 on HRC’s MEI.
18. Chicago, Illinois
Number of Same-Sex Couples per 1000 Households: 1.84
Chicago is the most populous city in Illinois. Its population stands at 2.71 million people. Anti-discrimnatory ordinance was passed by the City Council in Chicago in 1988, granting social equality to homosexuals along with other members of the LGBT community. Chicago gets a 100 out of 100 on MEI.
17. Columbus, Ohio
Number of Same-Sex Couples per 1000 Households: 1.90
Columbus is a city in Ohio. The city has a total population of 878,553 residents. Columbus has a score of 53 out of 100 on MEI.
16. Tampa, Florida
Number of Same-Sex Couples per 1000 Households: 1.93
Tampa is a major city in Florida. It has a population of 387,916 residents. The city scores a 100 out of 100 on HRC’S MEI for its inclusion of homosexuals and other LGBT community members in its society.
15. Miami, Florida
Number of Same-Sex Couples per 1000 Households: 1.96
Miami is another Floridian city to make it to the list of 23 most gay-friendly cities in America. It is one of the most vibrant cities in Florida. Known for its crystal clear beaches and nightlife, the city doesn’t take offense for living life the way you see fit. Miami’s acceptance of its gay community is natural for these reasons. However, the city has yet to reform its institutions when it comes to LGBT community as a whole. For example, according to the Human Rights Campaign’s Municipal Equality Index, the city doesn’t do as well as others on the list in terms of creating a transgender inclusive framework in healthcare as of 2020. However, since then, the score has increased and it is 89 out of 100 on HRC’s MEI in 2022.
14. Orlando, Florida
Number of Same-Sex Couples per 1000 Households: 2.07
Orlando is yet another city in Florida to make it to the list of top cities in America by gay population. It’s known for its vibrant theme parks. The city has a population of 280,832. Orlando is very liberal in gay rights. The city has a lots of gay pubs and nightclubs for homosexuals. Orlando scores a 100 out of 100 on Human Rights Campaign’s Municipal Equality Index which measures how inclusive a city is for its LGBT residents.
13. Denver, Colorado
Number of Same-Sex Couples per 1000 Households: 2.09
Denver is the capital as well as the most populous city of the state of Colorado. It is home to 705,576 residents. Denver scores a 100 out of 100 on HRC’s MEI. City offices of companies like Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ: GOOG), Amazon.com, Inc. (NASDAQ: AMZN), The Charles Schwab Corporation (NYSE: SCHW) and International Business Machines Corporation (NYSE: IBM) do not place employment restrictions on the LGBT community.
12. New York City, New York
Number of Same-Sex Couples per 1000 Households: 2.11
New York City is one of the most liberal cities in America. The city has a total population of 8.4 million. New York City is known to be very liberal among US cities. LGBT community is widely accepted by the city’s populace. Homosexual couples are not discriminated against based on their sexual orientation. New York scores a 100 out of 100 on HRC’s MEI as well.
11. Portland, Oregon
Number of Same-Sex Couples per 1000 Households: 2.31
Portland is the most populous and the largest city in Oregon by area. It is home to a total of 645,291 residents. Portland scores a 100 out of 100 on Human Rights Campaign’s Municipal Equality Index.
