A couple pose for a photo with Love’s h|Edge installation at Times Square ahead of Valentine’s Day on Feb. 9 2023 in in New York City. (Photo by Liao Pan/China News Service/VCG via Getty Images)
Liao Pan/China News Service/VCG via Getty Images
Which aspects of your city make the single life more or less enjoyable?
Nearly half of the U.S. population aged 15 and older isn’t married, according to the Census Bureau. This figure includes those who have never been married, are divorced or are widowed. This trend isn’t new, either: Marriage rates have been declining for decades. A 122-year survey revealed rates peaked in 1920 at 92.3% and had dropped 54% by 2022. These numbers consistently decreased between 1970 and 2010, the latter of which saw a historic low that has stabilized.
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While not entirely responsible, the nation’s economic landscape may be partly to blame for the lack of love in the air. Costs associated with dating activities continue to rise. To determine how this varies from city to city, WalletHub analyzed 182 U.S. cities across 35 key measures of dating-friendliness — from the share of the population that’s single to the number of online dating opportunities to the average price for a two-person meal.
“The already difficult process of finding the perfect partner can be made even tougher when cities lack the conditions necessary to make dating successful,” WalletHub analyst Chip Lupo said. “The best cities for singles have large, gender-balanced single populations, along with a wide variety of indoor and outdoor, daytime and nighttime activities. They also have reasonable prices for dating activities or high average incomes to help ease the sting of inflation.”
Do you live in an ideal single hub? Here’s how Texas cities measured up.
Texas cities sacrifice opportunities for low costs
Judging by the latest WalletHub study, Lone Star State cities are mixed bags for singles. A handful ranked especially high in one subcategory but particularly low in another. Where Texas cities lacked single-friendly experiences, they made up for with generally lower costs. This is particularly evident in Brownsville, which ranked lowest overall and for dating opportunities but managed to rank in the top 40% in economics.
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Austin leads Texas cities in overall rankings as No. 6. Unlike most others in the state, it scored relatively low in economics (No. 118). However, it also ranked higher in fun and recreation as well as dating opportunities categories.
A couple walks alongside retail stores on June 17, 2025 in Austin. The Texas capital was deemed the No. 6 best U.S. city for singles.
Brandon Bell/Getty Images
Plano had the third-smallest share of singles, behind Fremont, Calif. (No. 1) and Gilbert, Ariz. (No. 2). However, the Texas city also had the second-most online dating opportunities, behind Gilbert.
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Although Garland had the fewest nightlife activities per capita in the country, it also had the lowest cost for restaurant meals — four times cheaper than Charleston, S.C., which had the priciest meals.
Three of the five U.S. cities with the lowest costs to see a movie can be found in Texas: Corpus Christi (No. 1), Amarillo (No. 2) and Lubbock (No. 5). Seeing a movie in Corpus Corpus costs half as much as doing so in Long Beach, Calif., which has the most expensive movie theater costs.
Lubbock also ranked No. 3 in the economics category, behind North Las Vegas (No. 1) and Overland Park, Kan. (No. 2).
Laredo (No. 2) and El Paso (No. 5) also had among the lowest costs in the country associated with beauty salon visits.
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Total score: 60.71
Economics rank: 118
Fun & recreation rank: 16
Dating opportunities rank: 25
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Total score: 54.85
Economics rank: 120
Fun & recreation rank: 25
Dating opportunities rank: 101
Total score: 54.01
Economics rank: 3
Fun & recreation rank: 138
Dating opportunities rank: 62
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Total score: 52.88
Economics rank: 12
Fun & recreation rank: 116
Dating opportunities rank: 87
Total score: 52.67
Economics rank: 125
Fun & recreation rank: 45
Dating opportunities rank: 93
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Total score: 51.87
Economics rank: 33
Fun & recreation rank: 56
Dating opportunities rank: 127
Total score: 51.55
Economics rank: 166
Fun & recreation rank: 33
Dating opportunities rank: 94
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Total score: 50.13
Economics rank: 7
Fun & recreation rank: 133
Dating opportunities rank: 142
Total score: 48.96
Economics rank: 83
Fun & recreation rank: 63
Dating opportunities rank: 152
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Total score: 48.11
Economics rank: 80
Fun & recreation rank: 165
Dating opportunities rank: 99
Total score: 47.50
Economics rank: 47
Fun & recreation rank: 104
Dating opportunities rank: 154
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Total score: 46.60
Economics rank: 51
Fun & recreation rank: 72
Dating opportunities rank: 169
Total score: 44.69
Economics rank: 8
Fun & recreation rank: 159
Dating opportunities rank: 164
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Total score: 43.08
Economics rank: 103
Fun & recreation rank: 158
Dating opportunities rank: 160
Total score: 41.94
Economics rank: 65
Fun & recreation rank: 161
Dating opportunities rank: 175
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Total score: 37.09
Economics rank: 72
Fun & recreation rank: 166
Dating opportunities rank: 182
10 best US cities for singles, 2025
Atlanta
Las Vegas
Tampa, Fla.
Seattle
Denver
Austin, Texas
Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
Orlando, Fla.
St. Louis
Portland, Ore.
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10 worst US cities for singles, 2025
Brownsville, Texas
Pearl City, Hawaii
Yonkers, N.Y.
Hialeah, Fla.
Port St. Lucie, Fla.
Grand Prairie, Texas
Pembroke Pines, Fla.
Glendale, Calif.
Little Rock, Ark.
Jackson, Miss.