MANHATTAN BEACH, Calif. \u2013 Manhattan Beach and other L.A.-area beach cities scored historic highs on the Gallup National Health and Well-Being Index (WBI) despite national declines, indicating that the Beach Cities continue to be among the healthiest places to live in the nation, the Beach Cities Health District (BCHD) has revealed.<\/p>\n
The combined 2025 score of 69.5 for Manhattan, Hermosa Beach and Redondo Beach was the Beach Cities\u2019 highest ever and substantially outpaced the national average score of 60.1, the BCHD said Feb. 2.<\/p>\n
Notably, Manhattan Beach’s 2025 score of 71.6 was the highest community measurement ever recorded by Gallup among the more than 1,500 community scores since WBI measurement began in 2008. The previous high was also recorded by Manhattan Beach with a 70.6 index in 2023. <\/p>\n
The WBI surveys adults nationwide on five elements of well-being: career, community, financial, physical and social. These five anchors contribute to the overall WBI score; a high score means a life well-lived. The Beach Cities have had improvements in all five elements of well-being in the past 10 years, amid national declines. <\/p>\n
\u201cThe Beach Cities are outpacing the U.S. across most metrics, and their excellent improvement over time \u2013 despite a high starting point \u2013 has been impressive,\u201d Dan Witters, Gallup\u2019s research director of the Well-Being Index, said.<\/p>\n
Gallup, on behalf of Beach Cities Health District (BCHD), has administered the WBI nine times since 2010. The 2025 WBI data was collected last fall and is weighted and adjusted based on demographic statistics and sample size.<\/p>\n
Witters, who has managed the WBI since 2009, presented the WBI findings to the BCHD Board of Directors on Jan. 28.<\/p>\n
The report also showed that awareness and public opinion of BCHD itself has improved over the past five years. Since 2020, awareness of the Health District has improved from 67% to 71%, with 57% expressing a favorable opinion of the District \u2013 a two-percentage point increase since 2020.<\/p>\n