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Study Reveals America’s Funniest Cities

a woman laughing

Smiles are contagious, and if you have the perfect smile —– whether naturally or with cosmetic teeth covers — you want every excuse to show it off. However, humor tends to be relative and often regional, so we set out to discover which cities in the U.S. are the funniest.

We analyzed a range of information to create a “funny score” for the 25 most populous U.S. cities and all 50 states to find out which locations have the best senses of humor. Each location was given a score out of 100 based on these factors: 

  • Residents per comedy club (40 points):
  • Residents per comedy festival (30 points)
  • Residents per comedy special host city (only for city; 20 points)
  • Residents per top comedian’s home state (only for state; 20 points)
  • Search volume per city/state (10 points)

With the criteria in place to measure the funniest locations in America, it’s time to unveil the results. Get ready to laugh out loud as we declare America’s funniest cities and states!

Key Findings

  • Boston, Los Angeles, and San Francisco rank as America’s funniest cities.
  • The funniest states are Massachusetts, New York, and Illinois.
  • Eddie Murphy’s Raw and Delirious are the top two nationally searched comedy specials.

America’s Funniest Cities

Taking the crown as the funniest city in the country is none other than Boston, with a score of 94 out of 100. Boston ranks #1 due to high scores across all the factors: 20/20 in “residents per comedy special,” 27/30 in “residents per festival,” 37/40 in “residents per club,” and 10/10 for search volume.

Los Angeles and San Francisco aren’t far behind, tying for second place with a score of 79, but interestingly, even though LA and San Fran call California home, the Golden State doesn’t crack our top 5 funniest states.

Boston and Philadelphia are the only two cities that have a “very high” search volume for the most popular comedy specials. So although Philly does not quite make our top 5 overall, its residents’ interest in comedy could create a need for more comedy clubs and festivals in the future. With a score of 53, placing the city at #9 overall, and an apparent keen interest in comedy, the people of Philly could potentially spark a surge in demand for the art form, leading to a higher score in future rankings.

map of the US with emphasis on funniest cities

The Most Hilarious States to Call Home

We crunched the numbers and the results are in: Massachusetts, New York, and Illinois are the top three funniest states in the U.S. 

When it comes to the “comedian’s home state” factor, New York, Missouri, and Massachusetts are our top states, meaning they are the home states to the largest number of popular comedians. With New York boasting the highest number of comedians from any state, with 21 total, it’s no wonder the Empire State landed in our #2 spot overall. From Amy Schumer to Eddie Murphy, the state has produced some of America’s most beloved comedians.

But let’s not forget about Illinois. They came in at a solid #3 on our overall list. And the state has something to brag about: One of the greatest comedians of all time, Richard Pryor, was born and raised in Illinois. 

map of the US with emphasis on funniest states

Boston is the Most Interested in Comedy Specials 

Boston, Philadelphia, and Chicago are the top scoring cities for search volume of popular comedy specials, indicating a high interest in comedy specials in these locations, but it’s not just the cities. The states of Massachusetts, Illinois, and Connecticut also have a high search volume per capita. To determine these city and state findings, we compiled a list of the 33 most popular comedy specials and compared Google keyword search data for those specials to the total population of each location. This way, a higher search volume and smaller population created a higher score and vice versa.

It’s worth noting that although Boston takes the top spot in the search volume category, it only has six specials filmed there out of the 33 we analyzed. Meanwhile, New York City may have ranked #8 in our overall funniest cities scoring, but it’s our top contender in this smaller category with 25 specials filmed.

Boston Has the Largest Number of Residents Per Comedy Club

The top scoring cities for “residents per comedy club” are Boston, Las Vegas, and Los Angeles. This means that in these cities, there are more comedy clubs per capita compared to other cities in the United States. In all, we compared the number of comedy clubs to the total population of the city or state and gave this factor the most weight in our analysis, which was a total of 40 points. 

Not only did we find the top scoring cities for comedy clubs per capita, but we also discovered the top scoring states. The top scoring states in this category are South Dakota, Massachusetts, and Illinois. Who knew that South Dakotians were hiding such a thriving comedy scene?

When looking at just the number of comedy clubs per city without comparing it to population, Los Angeles came out on top with a whopping 25 clubs, followed by the Big Apple (19) and Chicago (15). But when compared with total population, only Los Angeles made the overall cut for “residents per comedy club.”

But California doesn’t just have the highest number of clubs in one city. The Golden State also comes out on top with 53 clubs in total. New York State and Illinois come in second and third with 29 and 23 clubs, respectively, in regard to total clubs per state.

San Francisco Has the Most Comedy Festivals Per Capita

San Francisco, Boston, and Austin take the top spots for “residents per comedy festival,” meaning these cities have high concentrations of comedy festivals relative to their population. Meanwhile, Vermont, Alaska, and Rhode Island are the top scoring states for this factor, showing that even smaller states can pack a punch when it comes to comedy.

While New York City is home to the largest number of comedy festivals with 22 in total, it doesn’t make it into our top 3 cities when compared with population. Without population considered, California takes the lead when it comes to the number of festivals per state, with 50 total festivals, followed by New York State with 31. Texas also has a high number of festivals with 14 in total, but it has a larger population compared to other top scoring states, earning it only a 7 out of 30 points for “residents per comedy festival.”

Conclusion

From the sparkling wit of Boston to the grin-inducing humor of Los Angeles, our funniest cities know how to bring the laughs. But what if you’re not comfortable flashing your smile when the jokes start rolling? We don’t want that to hold you back. With our simple, at-home veneer solution, you can enhance your smile and boost your confidence in no time. Our veneers are a comfortable alternative to braces as well as a more affordable alternative to dental implants. So go ahead, add these comedic destinations to your travel plans and get ready to laugh out loud. Shiny Smile’s snap-on veneers can give you that picture-perfect smile worthy of the most hilarious comedy show laughs.

Methodology

  • The 5 factors we used for scoring the funniest cities and states are:
    • Residents per comedy special host city/filmed (only for city; out of 20 points)
    • Residents per top comedian (only for state; out of 20 points)
    • Residents per comedy festival (out of 30 points)
    • Residents per comedy club (out of 40 points)
    • Search volume per city/state (out of 10 points)
  • To find out where comedy specials were filmed, we referenced IMDB.
  • To understand the top comedy festivals in the U.S., we referenced Vulture.
  • To find out how many comedy clubs are in each state, we referenced Badslava.
  • When analyzing searches per capita, we compiled a list of comedy specials from several other available lists and used Google Keyword Planner to determine which cities/states search for the specials the most.

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