Lawrence makes Kansas’s top 10 on 3 lists
Lawrence is ranked on 39 lists against the 158 Kansas towns with 2,500+ residents. It makes the top 10 on 3 and the top quarter on 10.
Fewer kids than 97% of Kansas
Not better or worse, just Lawrence’s character, from the lists where neither end is the “good” one. The most distinctive come first.
The lists Lawrence does best on
Each list ranks every KS town with 2,500+ residents. Tap one to see the whole list with Lawrence marked.
2 spots from the top 10 for a top hospital nearby
Lists where Lawrence sits just outside a milestone, and what it would take to get in.
Lawrence lands in the top half on 16 of 26 lists
Each dot is Lawrence’s spot on one list: the left end is #1 in KS, the right end is last. Areas where Lawrence does best come first.
Lawrence out-ranks every neighbor it can be compared with
Head to head on the lists where both towns are ranked: a point for each list where one town places higher. Tap a town for its own rankings.
Every KS list, and where Lawrence lands
41 lists from Census, school, health, library, crime, climate and land data. Tap any list to see every town on it.
People
Most educated#1 Mission Hills · 87.3%
#10
Youngest#1 Sherlock · 22.5
#13
M
Oldest#1 Monmouth · 54.0
#146
Most residents 65+#1 Minneha · 29.6%
#125
Most kids#1 Sherlock · 45.8%
#153 Outdoors
Most conserved land#1 Winfield · 34.9%
#7
Most trails#1 Iola · 2.4 mi / sq mi
#10
Most walkable#1 Roeland Park · 169 / sq mi
#43 Health
Healthiest#1 Fairway · 98 / 100
#35
F
Lowest obesity#1 Fort Riley · 25%
#12
Fewest smokers#1 Mission Hills · 7%
#18
Most active#1 Fairway · 15%
#17
Fewest uninsured#1 Mission Hills · 4%
#69
Lowest depression#1 Leawood · 17%
#152
Closest to a top hospital#1 Winfield · 0.2 mi
#12 
Libraries
Most-used libraries#1 Girard · 20.0 per resident
#42
Most library borrowing#1 Hesston · 20.9 per resident
#22
Best libraries for kids#1 Hesston · 40.7 per child
#27 Housing
L Vacation-home towns#1 Lincoln · 11.7% #61
Most new homes#1 Maize · 31.5 per 1,000
#46
Fastest-rising home prices#1 Garnett · +85.9%
#65
Housing hasn't kept up#1 Edwardsville · 15.1 per home
Getting around
Shortest commute#1 Norton · 7.4 min
#81 
Safety
Safest#1 Ulysses · 5.6
#49 
The number on the right is Lawrence’s spot. All of Kansas’s rankings, with the map → · National lists and other states: all rankings.
Do the numbers ring true?
The lists count what can be counted. Neighbors know the rest.
Your answer becomes a post in Town Square.
- 2,500+ residents. Census estimates for smaller towns carry margins of error too wide to rank fairly, so they sit out every KS list.
- One town, one row. A city that is both a city and a town in Census data, or a village inside a town, is counted once.
- Ties share a rank. Towns on one weather station, one school district or one CDC estimate share a figure, so they share a spot (T).
- No “worst” lists. Lists rank toward the good end, and share cards are made only for the top half. Age, snow and the like are character, not grades.
U.S. Census Bureau (American Community Survey 5-year, 2010 and 2020 censuses, Building Permits Survey), U.S. Department of Education, FBI Uniform Crime Reporting, CDC PLACES, Medicare Care Compare, IMLS Public Libraries Survey, FHFA House Price Index, NOAA U.S. Climate Normals 1991–2020, USGS PAD-US and OpenStreetMap. Each list explains its own method.