Study: Happiest Cities in Tennessee

By Rebecca Lake

From the pristine beauty of the Great Smoky Mountains to the lip-smacking goodness that is Memphis-style barbecue, residents of Tennessee are happy to be there. In recent years, Tennessee has become a hotspot for retirees, but it's also an excellent choice for anyone who's looking for a low cost of living mixed with a little Southern charm. See if your hometown made the CreditDonkey list for the happiest cities in Tennessee.

Study Methodology

For this study we assigned each city a numerical ranking using U.S. Census data and information from the FBI Uniform Crime Report. The cities that made it to the top 10 are the ones that had the best overall rank in terms of the following:

Restaurants
Crime rate
Commute
Departure time
Income
Divorce rate
Housing

A night out with friends or a family get-together over a good meal can make even the most dismal of days a little brighter. We calculated the number of restaurants per capita for each city to measure how easy it is to socialize.

If you're planning a move to a new city, one of the things you want to consider is how safe residents feel. For that reason, we favored cities that have low odds of making their residents a victim of violent crime.

Heavy traffic is often one of those things you have to put up with when you live in a larger urban area. We wanted to see where residents had the least amount of hassle getting to work, so we considered each city's average commute time.

Researchers believe that getting up earlier in the morning sets the tone for your entire day, potentially adding to how happy you feel. We decided to check out what percentage of residents in each city leave for work before 5 a.m.

When you're not constantly worried about money, it can certainly improve your outlook on life. Each of our cities is ranked based in part on median household income.

If you've tied the knot, you know that marriage usually involves some highs and lows. We wanted to see where married couples seemed to be happiest, so we looked at which ones have the lowest percentages of divorced men and women.

After you've put in a hard day at work, you probably just want to go home and relax, but that can be hard to do if your mortgage or rent payment eats up a lot of your pay. The final piece of information we considered was the percentage of income residents spend on housing.

10 Happiest Cities in Tennessee

10. Kingston

Restaurants per capita: 1 per 392 inhabitants
Odds of being the victim of a violent crime: 1 in 495.5
Average commute time: 20.9 minutes
Percentage of residents leaving for work before 5 a.m.: 3.5%
Median household income: $47,325
Percentage of residents who are divorced: 16% of males, 20% of females
Percentage of income spent on housing: 16.1%

Kingston may be small in size, but that doesn't stop the 5,800 people who live here from wearing some big smiles. This eastern Tennessee city ranks number 10 on our list, but it came in first in terms of housing costs. Residents spend just a little over 16% of their $47,000 median income on their home sweet home. Getting to work doesn't involve a huge investment of your time. And after a long day, RedBones on the River is a great hangout spot.

Did You Know: During an 1807 negotiation of a land treaty with the Cherokee Indians, Kingston served as the state capital for one day.

9. Lexington

Restaurants per capita: 1 per 339 inhabitants
Odds of being the victim of a violent crime: 1 in 66.9
Average commute time: 19.2 minutes
Percentage of residents leaving for work before 5 a.m.: 9.9%
Median household income: $40,269
Percentage of residents who are divorced: 12.5% of males, 19.1% of females
Percentage of income spent on housing: 17.9%

Situated about halfway between Memphis and Nashville, Lexington is another small town that's got plenty of appeal. About 7,800 people make their home here and nearly 10% of them are getting their day going before 5 a.m. The median income is a respectable $40,000, and if you're in the market to buy a home, you shouldn't have too much trouble finding an affordable property.

Did You Know: Lexington's unofficial nickname is the "Barbecue Capital of the Country."

8. Collegedale

Restaurants per capita: 1 per 609 inhabitants
Odds of being the victim of a violent crime: 1 in 835.3
Average commute time: 20.9 minutes
Percentage of residents leaving for work before 5 a.m.: 1.3%
Median household income: $45,634
Percentage of residents who are divorced: 6.7% of males, 11.4% of females
Percentage of income spent on housing: 19.2%

Collegedale is a quiet little suburban community situated to the east of Chattanooga. There are about 9,100 residents living in the area who don't lack for things to love about their hometown. Collegedale offers the second-best violent crime rate in our rankings and a relatively short commute of nearly 21 minutes. Home prices and rental rates are slightly higher than Chattanooga, but housing still takes up less than 20% of income.

Did You Know: Collegedale is home to Southern Adventist University.

7. Maryville

Restaurants per capita: 1 per 325 inhabitants
Odds of being the victim of a violent crime: 1 in 472.4
Average commute time: 20.1 minutes
Percentage of residents leaving for work before 5 a.m.: 3%
Median household income: $51,480
Percentage of residents who are divorced: 11.2% of males, 15.5% of females
Percentage of income spent on housing: 20.1%

Maryville sees a lot of tourist traffic because of its close proximity to the Great Smoky Mountains, but there are about 28,000 happy folks who make their home here full-time. It nabbed the number 7 spot on our list because of its higher median income and relatively brief average commute. There are lots of tasty dishes being served up at Maryville's restaurants, and the Foothills Mining Co. regularly draws a crowd.

Did You Know: Former Tennessee Governor and current U.S. Sen. Lamar Alexander was born in Maryville.

6. Franklin

Restaurants per capita: 1 per 322 inhabitants
Odds of being the victim of a violent crime: 1 in 697.3
Average commute time: 23.5 minutes
Percentage of residents leaving for work before 5 a.m.: 1.9%
Median household income: $79,894
Percentage of residents who are divorced: 7% of males, 11.2% of females
Percentage of income spent on housing: 20.9%

With just over 66,000 residents, Franklin is the most populous city in our rankings and one of Nashville's preferred suburban communities. It has a higher median income of nearly $80,000, and is an excellent choice for working professionals. Families will love it too, considering how safe the neighborhoods are and the lower cost of housing. Franklin also has the best number of restaurants per capita, featuring places like the Red Pony and Puckett's.

Did You Know: In 1864, the city was the site of the Battle of Franklin, cited as one of the worst defeats experienced by the Confederate Army during the Civil War.

5. Collierville

Restaurants per capita: 1 per 596 inhabitants
Odds of being the victim of a violent crime: 1 in 580.4
Average commute time: 23.9 minutes
Percentage of residents leaving for work before 5 a.m.: 2.8%
Median household income: $102,643
Percentage of residents who are divorced: 3.8% of males, 9.2% of females
Percentage of income spent on housing: 20.8%

Part of the Memphis metro area, the city of Collierville is known as an upscale suburban community. Workers earn more than in any other city on our list, with a median income of over $102,000. Home prices are higher than some of our other cities, but residents spend only about a fifth of their pay on housing. Married couples will be happy to learn that Collierville has the lowest combined divorce rate in our rankings, at 13%.

Did You Know: Like Franklin, Collierville was also the scene of several Civil War battles, including one in which Union General William T. Sherman narrowly escaped capture by Confederate troops.

4. Church Hill

Restaurants per capita: 1 per 673 inhabitants
Odds of being the victim of a violent crime: 1 in 451.5
Average commute time: 22.8 minutes
Percentage of residents leaving for work before 5 a.m.: 4.3%
Median household income: $42,467
Percentage of residents who are divorced: 12% of males, 10.9% of females
Percentage of income spent on housing: 16.7%

Church Hill is a secluded little town that sits adjacent to the larger city of Kingsport. It rose to a fourth place ranking based on its moderate housing costs, something its 6,700 residents greatly appreciate. Violent crime isn't as common compared to some of the other cities in our study, and the median payday of $42,000 won't leave you feeling shortchanged.

Did You Know: Church Hill is named for the First United Methodist Church, which sits on a hill along the city's Oak Drive.

3. Signal Mountain

Restaurants per capita: 1 per 856 inhabitants
Odds of being the victim of a violent crime: 1 in 2,572.7
Average commute time: 22.6 minutes
Percentage of residents leaving for work before 5 a.m.: 1.2%
Median household income: $81,302
Percentage of residents who are divorced: 4.5% of males, 10.4% of females
Percentage of income spent on housing: 19%

The serene landscapes and peaceful neighborhoods of Signal Mountain certainly have its 7,700 residents jumping for joy. Located less than 10 miles north of Chattanooga, it's the perfect escape for professionals, families and retirees alike. Workers bring home the big bucks in the form of an $81,000 median salary, and violent crime is rare.

Did You Know: Signal Mountain takes its name from Signal Point, the spot at its top that was once used by local Native American tribes to send smoke signals.

2. McKenzie

Restaurants per capita: 1 per 414 inhabitants
Odds of being the victim of a violent crime: 1 in 296.9
Average commute time: 19.2 minutes
Percentage of residents leaving for work before 5 a.m.: 13.6%
Median household income: $31,778
Percentage of residents who are divorced: 10.5% of males, 17.7% of females
Percentage of income spent on housing: 17.9%

Our number two city is the smallest on our list, with a population of just under 5,400 people. McKenzie earned the best individual ranking based on the percentage of workers leaving before 5 a.m., with almost 14% heading out before the crack of dawn. The city also tied with Lexington for the shortest average commute. If you're in the market to buy a home, you're in luck since median home prices are a bargain.

Did You Know: McKenzie was once divided into two separate cities known as Marietta and Dundas.

1. Oak Ridge

Restaurants per capita: 1 per 451 inhabitants
Odds of being the victim of a violent crime: 1 in 365.3
Average commute time: 19.6 minutes
Percentage of residents leaving for work before 5 a.m.: 3.3%
Median household income: $52,927
Percentage of residents who are divorced: 10.6% of males, 15.3% of females
Percentage of income spent on housing: 16.8%

Life in Oak Ridge is pretty satisfying for the 29,000 or so people who call the city home. Workers don't have to fight too much traffic, making it to work in under 20 minutes on average. The size of their paychecks is nothing to sneeze at, and they fork over less than 17% of it for housing. Plus, the crime rate is better than the state average. More fun to think about is where to grab a bite to eat, and you can't beat restaurants like Big Ed's Pizza and Mediterranean Delight.

Did You Know: Transformers actress Megan Fox was born in Oak Ridge. These days, she is rarely seen smiling, but perhaps that’s because she misses the area.

To be sure, some of Tennessee's larger cities like Memphis and Nashville are attractive for job seekers and people who are raising a family, but for our study, the smaller towns had the edge. The 10 cities that made our final list proved to be a cut above the rest based on the various happiness measures we considered.

The Top 40 Happiest Cities in Tennessee

Rank	City	People per Restaurants and Bars	Violent Crime Odds	Average Commute Time	% Leaving Before 5am	Median Household Income	% Male Divorce¹	% Female Divorce¹	Income Spent on Housing
1	Oak Ridge	451.1	1 in 365.3	19.6	3.3%	$52,927	10.6%	15.3%	16.8%
2	McKenzie	414.1	1 in 296.9	19.2	13.6%	$31,778	10.5%	17.7%	17.9%
3	Signal Mountain	856.0	1 in 2,572.7	22.6	1.2%	$81,302	4.5%	10.4%	19%
4	Church Hill	673.1	1 in 451.5	22.8	4.3%	$42,467	12.0%	10.9%	16.7%
5	Collierville	595.7	1 in 580.4	23.9	2.8%	$102,643	3.8%	9.2%	20.8%
6	Franklin	321.7	1 in 697.3	23.5	1.9%	$79,894	7.0%	11.2%	20.9%
7	Maryville	324.6	1 in 472.4	20.1	3.0%	$51,480	11.2%	15.5%	20.1%
8	Collegedale	609.3	1 in 835.3	20.9	1.3%	$45,634	6.7%	11.4%	19.2%
9	Lexington	338.7	1 in 66.9	19.2	9.9%	$40,269	12.5%	19.1%	17.9%
10	Kingston	391.8	1 in 495.5	20.9	3.5%	$47,325	16.0%	20.0%	16.1%
11	Mount Carmel	1,808.0	1 in 454.8	21.9	1.3%	$51,755	12.0%	5.4%	17.6%
12	Kingsport	310.2	1 in 135.3	17.6	3.0%	$41,111	12.4%	15.2%	17.5%
13	Clarksville	579.3	1 in 157.0	22.7	7.9%	$47,305	9.9%	13.2%	22.8%
14	Hendersonville	570.8	1 in 415.6	25.1	4.2%	$62,434	10.7%	13.2%	21.6%
15	Rockwood	499.5	1 in 179.8	21.4	9.6%	$31,506	9.5%	15.8%	20.1%
16	Bartlett	650.5	1 in 420.5	24.2	2.3%	$75,225	7.4%	10.9%	21.8%
17	Lebanon	291.7	1 in 137.0	22.9	5.9%	$45,047	9.8%	16.6%	22.2%
18	White House	460.3	1 in 420.2	29.1	4.0%	$67,888	7.5%	15.9%	21.2%
19	Union City	308.1	1 in 177.1	13.8	1.8%	$32,887	6.5%	16.0%	19.9%
20	Goodlettsville	321.9	1 in 181.2	23.1	3.7%	$53,979	9.1%	16.3%	23%
21	Martin	326.3	1 in 339.9	16	2.5%	$32,087	8.4%	8.4%	24.5%
22	Soddy-Daisy	588.0	1 in 231.9	22.9	3.1%	$49,286	17.0%	16.8%	17.4%
23	Berry Hill	19.6	1 in 78.6	15.7	1.4%	$43,021	1.5%	19.3%	21.3%
24	Sweetwater	254.4	1 in 183.9	22.7	2.6%	$36,534	13.8%	14.0%	18.1%
25	Atoka	583.1	1 in 848.8	34.4	0.8%	$80,369	6.7%	12.2%	19.1%
26	Johnson City	332.6	1 in 201.7	17.1	1.7%	$38,504	11.4%	14.9%	21.6%
27	Elizabethton	308.8	1 in 395.6	18.6	2.5%	$30,973	10.5%	18.2%	19.9%
28	Gatlinburg	57.0	1 in 134.9	15.7	6.3%	$36,196	15.1%	21.2%	23.3%
29	Alcoa	171.4	1 in 120.9	18.1	5.6%	$38,419	15.3%	17.4%	24%
30	Athens	299.8	1 in 80.2	16.9	5.6%	$32,392	10.1%	18.5%	22.5%
31	Mount Juliet	548.4	1 in 444.0	28	3.0%	$72,743	11.4%	16.1%	21.1%
32	Greeneville	231.1	1 in 131.9	16.5	2.3%	$31,684	10.9%	16.9%	19.5%
33	Clinton	429.2	1 in 150.5	21.2	4.5%	$39,614	20.4%	20.8%	18.3%
34	Spring Hill	915.9	1 in 508.2	32	2.0%	$76,011	7.9%	11.3%	21.8%
35	Munford	668.3	1 in 240.1	29.9	2.9%	$59,080	11.6%	9.1%	21.2%
36	Dayton	228.5	1 in 281.1	19.7	9.2%	$28,535	15.0%	22.3%	23.8%
37	Smyrna	490.6	1 in 389.5	25.2	4.1%	$51,563	12.1%	19.0%	23.4%
38	Portland	789.3	1 in 196.7	28.3	6.2%	$48,461	7.6%	18.7%	22.3%
39	Millington	238.3	1 in 149.9	24.5	2.9%	$48,832	14.7%	14.7%	21.6%
40	Sevierville	173.5	1 in 189.5	20.8	2.3%	$36,919	12.3%	17.1%	22.1%

¹Treated as one combined metric for ranking purposes (at a 50:50 male to female ratio).

Rebecca Lake is a journalist at CreditDonkey, a credit card comparison and reviews website. Write to Rebecca Lake at rebecca@creditdonkey.com. Follow us on Twitter and Facebook for our latest posts.

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