Guest Columnist
Diana Polk
2026’s Most Diverse Cities in America
As hate crimes showed a slight decline in 2024, the personal-finance company WalletHub released its report on 2026’s Most Diverse Cities in America, as well as expert commentary, to identify the places where people have the most unique blend of perspectives, which brings social and economic benefits.
To determine the places in the U.S. with the most mixed demographics, WalletHub compared the profiles of more than 500 of the largest cities across five major diversity categories: socioeconomic, cultural, economic, household and religious.
Most Diverse Cities in America Least Diverse Cities in America 1. Silver Spring, MD 492. Derry, NH 2. Gaithersburg, MD 493. Dover, NH 3. Arlington, TX 494. Anaconda, MT 4. Germantown, MD 495. Lebanon, NH 5. Houston, TX 496. Morgantown, WV 6. New York, NY 497. Bangor, ME 7. Danbury, CT 498. Brattleboro, VT 8. Charlotte, NC 499. North Platte, NE 9. Los Angeles, CA 500. Keene, NH 10. Orlando, FL 501. Rochester, NH
Key Stats
- Sioux Falls, SD, has the highest income diversity, which is 2.1 times higher than in Hockessin, Delaware, the city with the lowest.
- Germantown, Maryland, has the highest racial and ethnic diversity, which is four times higher than in Hialeah, Florida, the city with the lowest.
- West Valley City, UT, has the highest industry diversity, which is 2.8 times higher than in Rochester, MN, the city with the lowest.
- Hialeah, FL, has the highest occupational diversity, which is 3.1 times higher than in Cambridge, Massachusetts, the city with the lowest.