SmartNews ranks the 999 most news-literate cities in the country and uncovered Haysville, Kansas is the smartest city in America

Today, SmartNews, a global leader in news discovery, released a comprehensive, nationwide ranking of the smartest and most news-obsessed cities in America, revealing that it’s not the country’s biggest cities leading the charge in intellectual curiosity, but rather small and midsized communities. Based on per capita daily news consumption, the data challenges long-held assumptions about where the most informed Americans live and redefines what it means to be one of the “Smartest Cities in America.”

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“SmartNews research shatters the long-held belief that the largest cities in America have the smartest people. We have found that deeply curious, thoughtful, and intelligent Americans who spend more time reading the news live in smaller communities,” said Jason Alderman of SmartNews. “Far from being insular, these smaller communities are made up of the most engaged news consumers who stay up-to-date locally, nationally, and globally at an astonishing rate.”

SmartNews ranked 999 cities in America and found that Haysville, Kansas, with a population of 11,260, is the smartest city in the country. By comparison, New York City came in at 974 on the list of the smartest cities, with Los Angeles at 923, and Chicago at 912. The full list of the 999 Smartest Cities in America can be found on the SmartNews website.

Smartest Cities in America

1. Haysville, Kansas
2. Valley Center, California
3. Green Valley, Arizona
4. Cottage Grove, Minnesota
5. Sequim, Washington
6. Port Orchard, Washington
7. Hutchinson, Kansas
8. Grants Pass, Oregon
9. Sun City, Arizona
10. Ames, Iowa

Methodology

SmartNews is a news aggregator app used by millions of Americans in every corner of the U.S. and across the political spectrum. This gives SmartNews unique insights into the news consumption of Americans regardless of ideology, economic status, or location. The cities are ranked based on time spent per capita viewing news in the SmartNews app in the first quarter of 2025.

About SmartNews

Founded in 2012, SmartNews is a leading global information and news discovery company, dedicated to delivering quality information to the people who need it. SmartNews provides news that matters to millions of readers using powerful AI discovery, a team of award-winning journalists offering thoughtful curation, and deep partnerships with more than 3,000 trusted global publisher partners.

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