Study: Which U.S. cities are the ultimate hubs for wellness in 2025?

Prioritizing health and wellness isn't always easy, especially when some cities offer more opportunities than others. To find the best wellness hubs in the United States, we analyzed the 80 most populous cities based on five key factors: personal care services, healthy food options, fitness facilities, health and fitness recovery locations, and local search interest in wellness topics.

These rankings highlight where wellness culture is strongest and where there's room to grow.

By identifying where wellness services are thriving, where gaps exist, and which areas have the highest demand, this analysis serves as a practical guide for brands aiming to align with consumer interests and seize emerging opportunities.

Some cities make it easy to focus on well-being, offering plenty of spaces for relaxation, fitness, and healthy eats. From spas to yoga studios, these wellness hubs provide the right mix of resources for a balanced lifestyle.

Looking at their total overall scores, the top 5 cities for wellness in the U.S. are:

With many highly rated spas, salons, gyms, and health retreats, these locations support a culture of self-care and healthy living. Looking at only inland cities, these are the top 5 non-coastal wellness hubs in the U.S.:

Many inland cities offer top-tier fitness centers, recovery spaces, and personal care services, making it easy for residents to prioritize health and well-being. These non-coastal hubs show how local businesses can shape a community's wellness culture, no matter the geography.

Wellness looks different for everyone. Some prioritize personal care, others focus on fitness, and many seek out massages or healthy food options. By breaking down the data by each of our study's five categories, we can see which cities lead in each area.

Irvine, California, stands out in two categories. It ranks highest for personal care locations, including hair salons and spas. The city also leads in health and fitness recovery spots, such as massage parlors, meditation centers, and cryotherapy clinics.

Riverside, California, leads the way in healthy eating, with more juice bars, salad bars, and vegan restaurants per capita than any other city. For those focused on fitness, Newark, New Jersey, comes out on top, offering the most gyms and yoga studios. Meanwhile, Orlando, Florida, shows the highest interest in wellness, with residents searching for health, fitness, and self-care topics more than anywhere else over the past 12 months.

In some cities, interest in wellness is high, but access to services doesn't quite keep up. These areas present opportunities for businesses looking to meet the growing demand.

Houston, Texas, has the largest gap between wellness interest and available services, making it a prime location for new businesses. Other top cities where demand outpaces supply include:

For entrepreneurs in the beauty and wellness industry, these cities represent untapped potential. Each sees strong search interest in wellness-related topics, suggesting a local market eager for more options. Expanding services in high-demand areas can give residents better access to the experiences they're searching for and help businesses grow.

Every wellness category tells its own story. From Irvine leading in personal care to Orlando’s avid search interest in wellness topics, the data underscores the diverse ways that consumers connect with wellness.

Brands should use these insights to tailor their services and marketing strategies. For instance, a fitness brand can capitalize on Newark's strong gym culture, while a health-focused beverage company might find Riverside’s leadership in healthy eating a natural fit. Aligning your offerings with local trends ensures your business resonates with specific community needs.

Wellness culture is thriving in cities across the United States, but access to services varies widely. While some cities, like Irvine and Long Beach, offer plenty of options, others struggle to keep up with rising demand. This creates opportunities for wellness businesses to expand into underserved areas and provide more ways for people to prioritize their health. Investing in communities like these can make wellness more accessible for everyone.

For wellness professionals and brands, this data isn’t just informational; it’s directional. Whether you’re seizing opportunities in top-ranked markets, addressing service gaps in high-demand cities, or customizing offerings based on local trends, every insight counts.

By strategically aligning your efforts with where and how wellness culture is thriving, your brand doesn’t just grow in size but also in purpose, becoming a meaningful contributor to thriving, health-conscious lifestyles across the U.S.

For this study, we developed a meta-ranking to determine which U.S. cities are the ultimate hubs for wellness in 2025. Specifically, we assessed the 80 most populous U.S. cities based on the following factors, and each weighted evenly:

In order to assess which cities offer the top wellness growth opportunities, we leveraged the total wellness locations per capita and the wellness search interest per capita over the last year to develop a ratio; the smaller the ratio, the more growth opportunities, as it means there are less wellness locations given the interest.

Zenoti provides an all-in-one, cloud-based software solution that empowers salons, spas, medspas, barbershops, and fitness studios to seamlessly manage every aspect of the business in a comprehensive mobile solution.

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