A new study finds that Detroit, Michigan, is the most stressed city in the United States.
The study was conducted by WalletHub and placed Detroit in the No. 1 spot, followed by Cleveland, Ohio; Baltimore, Maryland; Gulfport, Mississippi and Memphis, Tennessee, from No. 2 to No. 5.
WalletHub took into account 39 different metrics to come up with its findings that included “average weekly work hours to the unemployment rate to divorce and suicide rates,” financial writer Adam McCann wrote.
Detroit ranked 14th, third, second and fourth in work stress, financial stress, family stress and health and safety stress rankings, respectively, among the 182 cities listed in the study.
“Detroit has the most stressed residents in the country. One contributing factor is the fact that the city has the highest unemployment rate in America, at 11.4%,” McCann wrote.
“It also has the lowest median household income after adjusting for the cost of living, at slightly over $38,000,” he added.
GMC Hummer electric vehicles on the production line at General Motors’ Factory ZERO.
Emily Elconin/Bloomberg/Getty Images
McCann also cites high rates of poverty (31.5%), crime, obesity and divorce as other issues plaguing the city. The median credit score of residents at 624 isn’t helping, either.
Detroit used to thrive thanks to the auto industry, but as the Bureau of Labor Statistics showed in 2024, according to CNN Business, there has been a 35% decrease in corporate offices and parts factories since 1990.
“Some of the auto jobs disappeared because of automation,” CNN Business’ Chris Isidore and Tami Luby wrote. “Others evaporated as auto plants moved to Mexico since the passage of NAFTA and as some auto manufacturing shifted to nonunion plants in Southern states.”
When it comes to the least stressed cities in the country, coming in at No. 1 is South Burlington, Vermont, followed by Fremont, California; Sioux Falls, South Dakota; Irvine, California and Burlington, Vermont.
The city with the highest average weekly work hours in the country was a tie between Scottsdale, Arizona and Cheyenne, Wyoming. Scottsdale ranked No. 1 when it comes to lowest job security.
Related: America’s Best Housing Market Named in New Study
Study Names Most Stressed Cities in the U.S. first appeared on Men’s Journal on Jul 26, 2025