Known as The First State because it was the first to be admitted to the Union, Delaware has an assortment of historic places of interest. This tiny state is the second smallest state in the country, and the sixth least populous, but because it’s so small it is one of the most densely populated. Despite this it is a nice place to live, full of small towns and cities – even the largest city, Wilmington, only has a population of 71,300. Is Delaware a good place to live though? We’ve considered crime ratings, education, employment, cost of living, housing, amenities, and weather when compiling this list of the 10 best cities in Delaware.
10. Elsmere, DE
Source: aaroads.com
Elsmere is not the smallest town in Delaware, but with around 6,130 residents it is pretty small! Rated 10th best city in Delaware, Elsmere comes bottom of our top 10 because of a high crime index and a high cost of living. It’s about average for employment, housing, and weather, and has a good range of amenities.
9. Wilmington, DE
The largest city in the state, and county seat of New Castle County, is Wilmington. Wilmington has an even worse crime rating than Elsmere, and has been cited by Parenting magazine as the most dangerous city in the U.S. on a per capita basis. Cost of living is also high in Wilmington, but being a larger city there’s great access to amenities.
8. Georgetown, DE
The eighth best city in Delaware is Georgetown. The county seat of Sussex County, Georgetown is just a small town of around 6,400 people and was founded in 1791. A high crime index and poor ratings for education and schools keeps Georgetown from ranking any higher, despite a very low cost of living.
7. Milford, DE
Less than 10,000 people live in the city of Milford which is in Kent and Sussex Counties around the center of the state. Milford again has a very poor crime index, with a higher than average incidence of violent crimes. The cost of living is quite low here though, and access to amenities is very good.
6. Seaford, DE
Seaford is the sixth best city in Delaware. It is set on the Nanticoke River in Sussex County, in the south west of the state. Seaford scores well for amenities, weather, housing, and cost of living, but badly for crime and education.
5. New Castle, DE
New Castle takes center spot on our list of the best cities in Delaware. It’s the 10th largest city in the state, and is located 6 miles south of Wilmington. The crime index for New Castle is a slight improvement over some of the earlier cities, but the high cost of living stops it from ranking any higher.
4. Smyrna, DE
The fourth best place to live in Delaware is the town of Smyrna. Home to around 10,000 people, Smyrna is in Kent and New Castle Counties. The town scores well for access to amenities, and average for education, employment, housing, cost of living, and weather. The crime index is
better than most other cities on the list, but still high.
3. Middletown, DE
Middletown has excellent amenities, and scores about average for cost of living, education, housing, and weather. The crime rate is better than average, as is employment, giving the town a rank of third best city in Delaware. Middletown is in New Castle County in the north of the state.
2. Dover, DE
The capital of Delaware, and the state’s second largest city, is Dover, and it’s in Kent County in the heart of Delaware. The crime index is still high in Dover but being among the lowest crime index of our top 10 cities gets Dover the rating as second best city in Delaware. Excellent access to amenities, above average education, and an average cost of living are also good points to the city.
1.Newark, DE
The number one best city in Delaware is Newark! Set right in the north of the state, 12 miles from Wilmington, Newark is a city of around 31,500 people. It takes the top spot on our list because it has good schools, low unemployment, a very stable housing market, good weather, and all the amenities you’d need. The only downsides are an average crime index and above average cost of living.
Photos Source: Wikipedia
