Tired of Heavy Traffic and High Gas Prices? Move to These 30 Cities

Even if you live in the most beautiful place in the world, heavy traffic and high gas prices can ruin the experience. One of the downsides of cities with attractive features is that they inevitably draw a crowd. On top of that, some of the most popular cities in America also carry the burden of high gas prices. When those factors are combined, quality of life in these places takes a hit.
GOBankingRates recently did a survey to determine the best cities in terms of traffic and gas prices by analyzing mean Commute Times in minutes sourced from the American Consumer Survey in U.S. Census, the average gas prices sourced from Gas Buddy, and the total population sourced from American Consumer Survey in U.S. Census in the largest 200 cities in the U.S. by population.
If you’re fed up with either or both of these modern burdens, take a look at this list of cities with the lowest gas prices and the least amount of traffic since owning a car can be expensive enough.
Olathe, Kansas
- Total Population: 140,339 residents
- Gas Prices: $3.21/gallon
- Commute Time: 21.7 minutes
Savannah, Georgia
- Total Population: 147,930 residents
- Gas Prices: $3.27/gallon
- Commute Time: 20.7 minutes
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Mobile, Alabama
- Total Population: 187,445 residents
- Gas Prices: $3.13/gallon
- Commute Time: 22.4 minutes
Birmingham, Alabama
- Total Population: 202,234 residents
- Gas Prices: $3.15/gallon
- Commute Time: 21.7 minutes
Oklahoma City
- Total Population: 673,183 residents
- Gas Prices: $3.14/gallon
- Commute Time: 21.7 minutes
Tallahassee, Florida
- Total Population: 195,057 residents
- Gas Prices: $3.40/gallon
- Commute Time: 21.7 minutes
Macon, Georgia
- Total Population: 156,711 residents
- Gas Prices: $3.20/gallon
- Commute Time: 20.9 minutes
Columbus, Georgia
- Total Population: 204,366 residents
- Gas Prices: $3.24/gallon
- Commute Time: 20.2 minutes
Omaha, Nebraska
- Total Population: 488,059 residents
- Gas Prices: $3.29/gallon
- Commute Time: 19.3 minutes
Des Moines, Iowa
- Total Population: 213,545 residents
- Gas Prices: $3.29/gallon
- Commute Time: 19.1 minutes
Overland Park, Kansas
- Total Population: 195,249 residents
- Gas Prices: $3.21/gallon
- Commute Time: 20.0 minutes
Baton Rouge, Louisiana
- Total Population: 225,539 residents
- Gas Prices: $3.10/gallon
- Commute Time: 21.3 minutes
Fayetteville, North Carolina
- Total Population: 140,590 residents
- Gas Prices: $3.24/gallon
- Commute Time: 19.3 minutes
Metairie, Louisiana
- Total Population: 140,590 residents
- Gas Prices: $3.09/gallon
- Commute Time: 21.1 minutes
Wichita, Kansas
- Total Population: 394,574 residents
- Gas Prices: $3.24/gallon
- Commute Time: 18.7 minutes
Montgomery, Alabama
- Total Population: 201,022 residents
- Gas Prices: $3.12/gallon
- Commute Time: 19.9 minutes
Laredo, Texas
- Total Population: 254,697 residents
- Gas Prices: $3.02/gallon
- Commute Time: 21.0 minutes
Huntsville, Alabama
- Total Population: 210,081 residents
- Gas Prices: $3.14/gallon
- Commute Time: 19.4 minutes
Springfield, Missouri
- Total Population: 168,603 residents
- Gas Prices: $3.23/gallon
- Commute Time: 18.0 minutes
Amarillo, Texas
- Total Population: 200,371 residents
- Gas Prices: $3.18/gallon
- Commute Time: 18.6 minutes
Shreveport, Louisiana
- Total Population: 189,374 residents
- Gas Prices: $3.09/gallon
- Commute Time: 19.6 minutes
Sioux Falls, South Dakota
- Total Population: 189,258 residents
- Gas Prices: $3.31/gallon
- Commute Time: 16.8 minutes
Corpus Christi, Texas
- Total Population: 318,168 residents
- Gas Prices: $3.07/gallon
- Commute Time: 19.5 minutes
Tulsa, Oklahoma
- Total Population: 410,652 residents
- Gas Prices: $3.13/gallon
- Commute Time: 18.6 minutes
Brownsville, Texas
- Total Population: 185,849 residents
- Gas Prices: $2.96/gallon
- Commute Time: 20.3 minutes
McAllen, Texas
- Total Population: 141,941 residents
- Gas Prices: $2.96/gallon
- Commute Time: 20.1 minutes
Jackson, Mississippi
- Total Population: 156,803 residents
- Gas Prices: $2.92/gallon
- Commute Time: 20.6 minutes
Little Rock, Arkansas
- Total Population: 201,893 residents
- Gas Prices: $3.07/gallon
- Commute Time: 18.2 minutes
Columbia, South Carolina
- Total Population: 137,276 residents
- Gas Prices: $3.13/gallon
- Commute Time: 16.6 minutes
Lubbock, Texas
- Total Population: 255,537 residents
- Gas Prices: $3.03/gallon
- Commute Time: 16.0 minutes
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John Csiszar contributed to this article.
GOBankingRates determined the best cities in terms of traffic and gas prices by analyzing the largest 200 cities in the US by population along the following factors; [1] mean commute times in minutes sourced from American Consumer Survey in US Census, [2] average gas prices sourced from Gas Buddy, and [3] total population sourced from American Consumer Survey in US Census. The first two factors are scored and combined to find compare and determine the best cities in terms of traffic and gas prices. All data collected and is up to date as of June 14th, 2023.
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