Analysis: Atlanta is second-best U.S. city for Gen Z right now

The City of Atlanta’s relative youth, grand parks, education centers, and strong job market have served it well in a new national ranking of the best U.S. cities for young adults today. 

Atlanta ranked No. 2 among big cities in an analysis published this week by online commercial real estate platform CommercialCafe titled, “Best Cities for Gen Z in 2025 & Beyond: Which Areas Are Most Livable for Young People?”

As Gen Zers enter adulthood (or approach their thirties now), the CommercialCafe analysis aimed to spotlight large U.S. cities best equipped to provide them with “desired affordability and lifestyle amenities.” Attracting or retaining Gen Z residents, in turn, could position each urban center “to reap the benefits of drawing in the nation’s newest generation of professionals and taxpayers,” according to a study recap. 

Gen Z is widely defined as the digital-native generation born from 1997 to 2012, between millennials and Gen Alpha.  

Analysts ranked only U.S. cities with populations of more than 400,000. 

Metrics included: affordability compared to the national average; percentage of young residents; proportion of entry-level and graduate-friendly jobs; parks and greenspace per capita; unemployment rate; educational enrollment; green commuting options; and abundance of recreational opportunities and entertainment venues, among other factors. 

So how’d Atlanta perform? 

The Big Peach ranked behind only Minneapolis (the Big Snowball?) across all metrics, finishing one place above another cold-weather hotspot, Boston. 

Atlanta topped all other cities in the category of park concentration (7.3 parks per 10,000 residents) and was fourth nationally for its share of Zoomer adults (9 percent of the population is age 20 to 24 right now). 

Nearly half (48.7 percent) of ATL’s adult Gen Z population is enrolled in post-secondary education—that’s good for sixth in the country. The city also offers “excellent employment opportunities after graduation,” with nearly 30 percent of jobs being either entry-level or requiring less than four years of experience, per CommercialCafe’s findings. 

The study’s summary of Atlanta’s perks reads as follows, in part: 

“Atlanta’s offering is … one of a vibrant, young community paired with affordability. Its other advantages include a below-average internet cost—essential for an always-online group such as Zoomers—and good showings in the metrics for school enrollment and jobs for recent graduates. Atlanta also scored top marks for its large concentration of parks… [that] provide valuable third spaces for young people to meet, connect, and socialize in.

In particular, areas like the Old Fourth Ward, Midtown, and other central neighborhoods in Atlanta have a long history of fostering creativity and attracting young innovators, and the same is still true today. Of course, the city’s many universities—including Georgia Tech, Emory, Morehouse, Georgia State, and more—as well as the local music, fashion, and tech scenes make Atlanta a quintessential Gen Z city in the South.”

Atlanta actually topped the same CommercialCafe list last year—so in a way, we’re slipping.

“Cities in the Midwest and along the Sun Belt generally fared the best in our ranking,” analysts noted, “thanks (in no small part) to their relative affordability and fun factor.”

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