For those in Los Angeles looking to cozy up with a partner for the holiday season, you’re in luck — a recent study ranked LA as the seventh best city in the nation for singles.
The study, released Nov. 12 by finance website WalletHub, assigned a score to over 180 United States cities based on several parameters, including percentage of single people, gender balance, number of local attractions and price of a date. LA was boosted to the top 10 by its "Dating Opportunities" score but was held back by its relatively low economics ranking.
Several other high-ranking cities on the list had low economic scores, including San Francisco at third and San Diego at fourth. However, all cities in the top 10 enjoyed high rankings from their number of attractions and opportunities for dates.
Other than LA, Southern California cities weren't highly ranked. Huntington Beach was listed at 85th, followed by Long Beach at 92nd and Irvine at 103rd.
Glendale neared the bottom of the list at 180th, with low rankings in all categories.
The high cost of movie tickets in Southern California seemed to weigh down its cities' rankings. Though LA ranked eighth best for dating opportunities, it was on the bottom of the list for its cost of tickets. Four other Southland cities — Long Beach, Huntington Beach, Santa Clarita and Garden Grove — were tied for 176th place in the same category.
However, if the cost of local attractions isn't an issue, the study recommends that singles looking for a good date location seek a city with a good social scene, especially for those who use online dating apps like Tinder.
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"First, when two strangers who have met on an app are trying to get to know one another, just having a conversation can put a lot of stress on the acquaintanceship process. Therefore, centering the date around a social activity can act as a buffer and alleviates the stress on both parties," said Aditl Paul, assistant professor of communication studies at Pace University in the study. "Second, if you are choosing a city that has a handful of bars and you frequent the same bars with different dates, things might get a little awkward."
Atlanta, Georgia was ranked first in the study, while Pearl City, Hawaii was ranked at the bottom of the list of 182 cities, with the second-worst ranking for social recreation and seventh-worst for dating opportunities.
To read the full study, click here.