Best and worst cities for sleeping in the US

The best and worst US cities for sleeping have been revealed

 

Boston ranked as the best US city for sleeping

Our quality of sleep is really important. It keeps our mind and body healthy and gives us time to recharge. Without enough sleep we can feel cranky, anxious and have trouble focusing on our daily tasks.

Our 2024 US Sleep Index has looked at the most visited cities in the US and analyzed factors that contribute to a good night's sleep.

The data revealed that Boston is the best city for a good night sleep and Los Angeles is the worst. 

 

 

How did we rank the cities?

We looked at the US’ busiest cities and ranked them on their visitation numbers, noise pollution, light pollution, chances of sunshine and the amount of adults not getting at least seven hours of sleep per night. 

High visitation numbers means more tourists who are usually up early and stay out late to make the most of their trip, this is probably going to keep you awake if you live in these cities and near tourist attractions.

Noise and light pollution are two other factors that can have a direct impact on your sleep. Noise from bars and restaurants or traffic can disrupt your sleep and make it harder to drift off. 

The same goes for light pollution which is usually high in busier cities where there are more people. Light pollution comes from all sorts of things from street lights and billboards to buildings and cars.

It was also important to look at the average sleep of the residents that live in these cities to give us a good indication of the kind of sleep people are likely to get. We looked at the percentage of people who reported not getting at least seven hours of sleep, the recommended amount for adults.

 

The results

Boston, Massachusetts

After looking at our cities against these factors, Boston was revealed to be the best overall for a good night's sleep.

‘Beantown’ has the lowest numbers for visitation in 2023 at 1,152,000 meaning people would be less disrupted by busy tourists late at night and early hours of the morning. 

The majority of Bostonians also get a good night's sleep – only 32.9% struggle to get at least seven hours of sleep per night.

 

Honolulu, Hawaii

Honolulu was the next best spot for a good sleep thanks to its low levels of noise and light pollution. Noise levels in Honolulu are 45 dBA (decibels A) and light pollution is 2.7 mcd/m2 (luminance per square meter).

 

San Francisco, California

Adults in San Francisco get the best sleep with just 29.4% reporting they do not get at least seven hours a night. 

Despite this San Francisco still ranked fourth due to having the highest levels of noise pollution at 61.7 dBA.

 

Los Angeles, California

Los Angeles was named the worst city for sleeping after having the third highest number of visitors in 2023 (3,603,000). 

It also ranks second for having the most light pollution (12.8 mcd/m2) and third for noise pollution (56.2 dBA). 

 

New York City, New York

The most visited city is New York City with a massive 8,890,000 visitors in 2023 alone. Despite being such a busy destination, only 33% of adults in New York City report not getting at least seven hours sleep. New York City ranked sixth overall.

 

Rankings

Sleep is really important and it's interesting to see which popular US cities are the best and worst for a good night's sleep.

Boston has come out on top and this could be thanks to its low levels of visitation numbers in 2023.

Los Angeles ranked as the worst city for sleep and also ranked in third place for the most visitors which shows us that the constant flow of tourists in a city can certainly disrupt your quality of sleep.

 

Why is sleep important? 

The brain

A good night's sleep is essential not only for our bodies but our mind too. While we sleep our brains process and organize information throughout the day which is key in helping us to learn and remember things.

Lack of sleep can cause trouble concentrating and making simple daily decisions. Over longer periods of time sleep deprivation can make it harder for us to control our emotions and lead to stress and anxiety.

The body 

Sleeping allows your body to heal and repair itself and it supports growth in children and teenagers. It also supports the immune system so if you lack sleep, you’re probably more likely to struggle to fight common illnesses like colds.

A good and consistent sleep schedule will keep you healthy and reduce your risk of health problems in the future like heart disease and blood pressure issues.

 

How to fall asleep? 

If you’re struggling to sleep there are certainly things you can do to help:

• Create a relaxing evening routine

Unwind by creating a consistent and stable evening routine to signal to your body that it's almost bedtime. Try taking a relaxing shower, keep all lights dim in your room and limit any strenuous tasks 

• Limit screen time

Limit your use of screens and exposure to blue light before bedtime. Avoid using your phone or laptop a few hours before heading to sleep. Instead try reading, journaling or listening to relaxing music.

• Avoid certain foods

Greasy, heavy and spicy meals can be harder to digest and sit in our stomachs for longer, making it harder to fall asleep. Try to eat at least three hours before bedtime and avoid caffeine after 5pm.  

 

 

Methodology:

Sources correct as of August 2024

 

Most visitied cities - https://www.worldatlas.com/cities/america-s-10-most-visited-cities.html

Light pollution - brightness on the map mcd/m2, correct as of 08/08 - https://www.lightpollutionmap.info

Noise pollution, scene viewer selected, correct as of 20/08 - https://www.arcgis.com/home/item.html?id=29d9fc21fce543c7a841664945263e00

Sunlight, annual possible sunglight. Orlando was not available, Tampa was used in replacement as it was the closest city on the list to Orlando. Correct as of 20/08 - https://www1.ncdc.noaa.gov/pub/data/ccd-data/pctposrank.txt

Average sleep, % of adults not getting at least 7 hrs sleep per night. Washington Spokane used in replacement of Washington DC - https://www.nasdaq.com/articles/americans-sleep-least-in-these-u.s.-cities-2024-study

 

 

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