Phoenix ranked as a top 10 city for vegans and vegetarians, six other Arizona cities make top 100

PHOENIX – Research into which U.S. cities were the best for vegans and vegetarians found Phoenix in the top 10.

The study from WalletHub looked at the 100 most populated cities and analyzed them on three key components: affordability, diversity and quality, and vegetarian lifestyle.

Arizona’s capital landed as the ninth-best city to live in for vegans and vegetarians, scoring 54.11 points out of 100.

Phoenix ranked as the 14th-best city in affordability, diversity, accessibility and quality. The city was on the bottom half when it came to vegetarian lifestyle, ranking 82nd.

In a category that looked at which cities had the best vegetable nurseries per capita, Phoenix was 4th out of 100 cities.

Other Arizona cities that were found to be vegan and vegetarian-friendly

In total, seven cities from the Grand Canyon State made the list. The cities were Phoenix (9th), Tucson (22nd), Scottsdale (26th), Mesa (35th), Chandler (51st), Gilbert (63rd) and Glendale (68th).

The study found Scottsdale to be one of the best in the state when it came to other categories. The city was tied for first in the percentage of restaurants serving vegetarian and vegan options.

Tucson was right behind Phoenix in cities with vegetable nurseries, coming out fifth best.

On the other end, Chandler was ranked as one of the worst cities in farmers markets and CSA programs per capita, ranking 95th.

Where did other cities rank on the list?

Coming out on top as the best city for vegans and vegetarians was Los Angeles which scored 61.26 points. Orlando (2nd), Portland (3rd), San Diego (4th) and Seattle (5th) rounded out the top five.

Los Angeles was celebrated for its abundance of farmers markets, vegetarian cooking classes and vegan meetups.

The bottom five cities were Anchorage (100th), Chula Vista (99th), San Bernardino (98th), Memphis (97th) and Baltimore (96th).

How did the study achieve its results?

To determine which cities were the best, researchers took the three categories of affordability, diversity and quality, and vegetarian lifestyle. Spread across 17 measurements, each city was graded on a 100-point scale. After scoring each metric, each city was given an overall score.

Here are the three categories and how scores were decided:

• Affordability – 33.33 points
  • Cost of groceries for vegetarians – 11.11 points
  • Availability of affordable, highly rated restaurants serving vegan and vegetarian options – 11.11 points
  • Average meal cost – 11.11 points
• Diversity, accessibility and quality – 33.33 points
  • Share of restaurants serving vegetarian options – 3.33 points
  • Share of restaurants serving vegan options – 3.33 points
  • Farmers markets & CSA programs per capita – 3.33 points
  • Certified organic farms per capita – 3.33 points
  • Juice & smoothie bars per capita – 3.33 points
  • Salad shops per capita – 3.33 points
  • Vegetable nurseries per capita – 3.33 points
  • Community gardens per capita – 3.33 points
  • Access to fresh vegetarian food – 3.33 points
  • Vegetarian cooking classes per capita – 3.33 points
• Vegetarian lifestyle
  • Ranking on Grubhub’s list of cities most likely to order vegetarian or vegan – 8.33 points
  • Vegetable and fruit consumption – 8.33 points
  • Vegan & vegetarian meetups per capita – 8.33 points
  • Availability of vegan & vegetarian festivals – 8.33 points