Laramie and UW Rank Highly on Best College Towns in America List
Published October 22, 2025
UW students enjoy country swing dancing in downtown Laramie during Laramie Jubilee Days. The city ranks No. 5 on WalletHub’s list of the best small college cities in America. (UW Photo)
The home of the University of Wyoming continues to receive recognition as one of the
best college towns in the country.
Laramie ranks as the nation’s fifth-best small college city in a new list released
by the personal finance website WalletHub, up one spot from two years ago. WalletHub compared more than 400 U.S. cities based
on 31 indicators of academic, social and economic opportunities for students. The
data set ranges from the cost of living and the crime rate to the quality of higher
education in the city.
“Picking the right college is crucial, but it’s also important to make sure that the
surrounding college town will be a place where you’ll truly love spending your college
years,” says WalletHub analyst Chip Lupo. “Towns with a low cost of living, plenty
of activities and large student populations can make your college experience a lot
less stressful and a lot more enjoyable. In addition, cities with a great economic
environment can make it easier to get a job during or immediately after college.”
In particular, Laramie ranked highly for its unemployment rate, students per capita,
crime rate, job opportunities, cost of living and city accessibility -- the share
of people who bike, walk or use public transportation.
Among small college cities on the WalletHub list -- those with populations smaller
than 125,000 -- Laramie ranks behind only Ann Arbor, Mich.; Charlottesville, Va.;
Berkeley, Calif.; and West Lafayette, Ind. Among all 400-plus college cities, Laramie
ranks 27th.
In 2024, a website called TheTravel put Laramie at the top of its list of the “10 Best College Towns in America in 2024,” after looking at factors that include campus offerings, vibrant downtown areas,
a strong sense of community and outdoor recreation.
Additionally, the website RentCafe ranked Laramie and UW seventh on its “Top 20 Best College Towns in the U.S. in 2024” list, with this description: “Serene charm: mountain tranquility meets academic excellence.” The website also cited Laramie and UW’s relatively low cost of living, diverse academic offerings and plentiful opportunities for student engagement.
