2022’s Best Cities to Own a Swimming Pool

Group of young people sitting in and around a backyard pool

With summers getting hotter than ever, there’s no better time to have an in-ground swimming pool in your backyard to help you cool off.

That’s not ideal — or even possible — in some parts of the U.S., though.

To find the most “pool-ready” cities in America, LawnStarter ranked 2022’s Best Cities to Own a Swimming Pool.

We compared nearly 200 of the biggest U.S. cities based on climate, yard size, access to pool installation and maintenance, as well as costs.

We also looked at the share of homes with pools in each real estate market to gauge how well the city embraces pool culture.

Dive into our ranking below, followed by some highlights, lowlights, and expert tips.

City Rankings
Highlights and Lowlights
Ask the Experts
Behind the Ranking
Splashing Through Summer

City Rankings

See how each city fared in our ranking:

Overall Rank (1=Best)	City	Overall Score	Pool-Readiness Rank	Installation Rank	Maintenance Rank	Climate Rank
1	Fort Lauderdale, FL	65.32	4	16	50	6
2	Scottsdale, AZ	63.91	1	27	5	87
3	Cape Coral, FL	62.60	3	59	44	1
4	Plano, TX	62.31	27	32	15	13
5	Frisco, TX	62.23	68	22	14	13
6	McKinney, TX	62.21	18	35	21	10
7	Austin, TX	60.50	66	57	8	5
8	Cary, NC	59.14	29	38	20	30
9	Hollywood, FL	58.81	31	26	147	6
10	Alexandria, VA	58.28	143	10	60	40
11	Pembroke Pines, FL	58.14	82	24	116	6
12	Gilbert, AZ	56.46	20	36	6	87
13	Dallas, TX	56.35	84	79	23	11
14	Arlington, VA	56.05	165	20	39	35
15	Tallahassee, FL	56.01	9	97	130	16
16	Denton, TX	55.60	51	68	70	18
17	Port St. Lucie, FL	55.55	45	73	93	4
18	Murfreesboro, TN	55.42	11	92	64	36
19	Orlando, FL	55.01	30	55	42	45
20	Houston, TX	55.01	153	90	11	22
21	Chandler, AZ	54.96	13	37	10	87
22	Nashville, TN	54.49	34	88	57	32
23	Raleigh, NC	54.40	43	76	47	34
24	Arlington, TX	54.26	59	96	71	18
25	Phoenix, AZ	54.24	35	86	2	87
26	Fort Worth, TX	54.21	128	93	32	12
27	Little Rock, AR	53.93	69	118	4	55
28	Macon, GA	53.65	5	150	158	20
29	Pasadena, CA	53.51	19	1	17	172
30	San Antonio, TX	53.39	108	131	37	3
31	Garland, TX	53.25	116	85	76	15
32	Miami, FL	53.07	56	58	45	48
33	Atlanta, GA	52.71	81	43	30	59
34	McAllen, TX	52.56	73	140	102	2
35	Shreveport, LA	52.52	10	158	153	24
36	Tampa, FL	52.47	37	41	19	76
37	Tulsa, OK	52.30	49	121	87	29
38	Naperville, IL	52.22	103	29	24	78
39	Durham, NC	52.22	52	108	82	31
40	Tempe, AZ	52.20	6	51	42	87
41	Jersey City, NJ	52.19	194	5	77	70
42	Baton Rouge, LA	51.99	54	123	115	25
43	Midland, TX	51.93	33	44	31	74
44	Jacksonville, FL	51.47	44	77	55	54
45	Columbus, GA	51.33	58	137	136	17
46	Pasadena, TX	50.99	134	113	107	23
47	Irving, TX	50.98	115	49	72	52
48	Peoria, AZ	50.70	38	47	28	87
49	St. Petersburg, FL	50.66	168	54	48	46
50	Charlotte, NC	50.62	72	75	34	58
51	Lubbock, TX	50.50	136	129	106	21
52	Omaha, NE	50.35	144	110	3	69
53	Winston-Salem, NC	50.20	25	155	118	37
54	Mobile, AL	50.12	32	161	146	27
55	Huntsville, AL	49.98	23	102	73	60
56	Mesa, AZ	49.67	41	94	12	87
57	Bellevue, WA	49.51	50	34	18	120
58	Glendale, AZ	49.31	22	81	35	87
59	Greensboro, NC	49.26	53	147	126	37
60	Savannah, GA	49.20	98	138	145	28
61	Glendale, CA	48.88	55	4	26	172
62	Grand Prairie, TX	48.83	152	67	75	53
63	Killeen, TX	48.35	131	165	139	9
64	Oklahoma City, OK	48.23	64	114	84	56
65	Rancho Cucamonga, CA	47.88	7	23	58	151
66	Mesquite, TX	47.78	104	109	123	51
67	Corona, CA	47.30	60	11	62	155
68	Virginia Beach, VA	47.29	26	71	56	101
69	Overland Park, KS	46.83	97	48	29	111
70	Lexington, KY	46.74	94	111	61	65
71	El Paso, TX	46.68	142	154	111	42
72	St. Louis, MO	46.62	148	152	131	39
73	Las Vegas, NV	46.33	87	117	1	147
74	Jackson, MS	45.87	76	176	177	26
75	Lincoln, NE	45.85	78	127	79	67
76	Chicago, IL	45.61	187	87	105	43
77	Chattanooga, TN	45.61	74	134	112	64
78	Joliet, IL	45.49	91	99	97	79
79	Elk Grove, CA	45.35	105	39	100	114
80	Olathe, KS	45.21	123	56	36	111
81	Louisville, KY	44.86	129	139	74	63
82	Minneapolis, MN	44.85	137	89	103	75
83	Aurora, IL	44.74	158	72	89	79
84	Hialeah, FL	44.73	154	80	189	48
85	Columbus, OH	44.70	167	160	113	44
86	San Francisco, CA	44.64	193	30	52	96
87	Henderson, NV	44.59	62	64	9	147
88	Escondido, CA	44.58	2	18	138	180
89	Springfield, MO	44.52	83	183	171	33
90	Santa Clarita, CA	44.43	16	19	53	172
91	Laredo, TX	44.19	162	151	148	47
92	Kansas City, KS	44.17	86	178	172	41
93	Sunnyvale, CA	44.16	180	9	16	169
94	Riverside, CA	44.10	17	53	54	155
95	Chesapeake, VA	43.95	65	69	139	101
96	Orange, CA	43.95	80	2	59	187
97	Sacramento, CA	43.88	96	101	37	114
98	Madison, WI	43.86	149	103	68	86
99	Sioux Falls, SD	43.83	114	124	98	81
100	Corpus Christi, TX	43.69	135	120	66	83
101	Ontario, CA	43.68	28	25	156	151
102	Clarksville, TN	43.55	8	145	134	107
103	Memphis, TN	43.33	139	162	132	57
104	Fullerton, CA	43.20	71	3	99	187
105	Torrance, CA	43.07	159	7	51	172
106	Birmingham, AL	42.99	36	173	168	61
107	Cincinnati, OH	42.97	90	164	133	62
108	Amarillo, TX	42.60	75	130	108	100
109	Fort Wayne, IN	42.21	79	168	143	71
110	Seattle, WA	42.07	173	70	40	120
111	Boise, ID	41.79	132	98	88	108
112	Montgomery, AL	41.70	70	143	149	97
113	Knoxville, TN	41.70	12	169	142	106
114	Grand Rapids, MI	41.70	63	167	135	84
115	Wichita, KS	41.48	77	149	101	103
116	San Jose, CA	41.41	156	33	13	169
117	Irvine, CA	41.36	61	8	41	187
118	Tucson, AZ	40.93	15	171	46	143
119	Kansas City, MO	40.75	122	116	109	117
120	Richmond, VA	40.71	102	126	121	116
121	Yonkers, NY	40.44	181	42	159	123
122	Fremont, CA	40.13	89	17	25	184
123	Albuquerque, NM	40.04	141	132	154	98
124	New Orleans, LA	39.97	176	125	129	95
125	Los Angeles, CA	39.92	42	62	22	171
126	San Diego, CA	39.72	107	52	7	180
127	Portland, OR	39.65	163	135	65	113
128	Reno, NV	39.64	92	106	84	144
129	St. Paul, MN	39.54	117	115	127	132
130	Fayetteville, NC	39.52	14	179	164	110
131	Augusta, GA	39.48	93	163	162	99
132	Baltimore, MD	39.40	185	136	166	66
133	Fontana, CA	39.29	151	50	86	151
134	Huntington Beach, CA	39.02	120	12	33	187
135	Bakersfield, CA	38.92	48	112	27	168
136	Honolulu, HI	38.86	106	122	163	50
137	Spokane, WA	38.82	110	186	125	72
138	Moreno Valley, CA	38.78	95	66	128	155
139	Pomona, CA	38.57	127	13	170	172
140	Indianapolis, IN	38.56	112	157	94	133
141	Santa Rosa, CA	38.41	46	60	141	166
142	Brownsville, TX	38.31	126	181	165	77
143	Vancouver, WA	38.30	150	166	91	109
144	Paterson, NJ	38.16	183	31	191	126
145	Newport News, VA	38.08	118	156	169	104
146	Rockford, IL	38.04	21	172	161	134
147	Boston, MA	37.96	190	82	90	122
148	Norfolk, VA	37.84	160	142	160	104
149	Des Moines, IA	37.78	125	159	122	128
150	Oceanside, CA	37.70	101	28	92	180
151	Providence, RI	37.61	184	153	175	73
152	Denver, CO	37.60	177	65	49	162
153	Salt Lake City, UT	37.33	155	83	67	158
154	Anaheim, CA	37.31	57	15	114	187
155	Garden Grove, CA	37.29	121	6	167	187
156	Modesto, CA	37.24	39	107	174	150
157	Anchorage, AK	37.18	140	63	104	145
158	Palmdale, CA	37.04	24	78	119	172
159	Fort Collins, CO	36.96	145	95	79	162
160	Tacoma, WA	36.59	130	170	124	131
161	Lakewood, CO	36.44	188	84	78	164
162	Thornton, CO	36.23	182	74	69	159
163	Salinas, CA	36.17	47	91	176	165
164	Colorado Springs, CO	36.15	161	105	63	161
165	Salem, OR	35.71	111	182	150	119
166	Hayward, CA	35.58	157	21	95	184
167	Fresno, CA	35.46	40	146	120	167
168	Santa Ana, CA	35.24	113	14	155	187
169	Chula Vista, CA	35.22	147	40	83	180
170	North Las Vegas, NV	34.97	172	133	81	147
171	Stockton, CA	34.74	100	118	188	146
172	Eugene, OR	34.72	146	184	152	118
173	Philadelphia, PA	34.66	191	174	180	68
174	Aurora, CO	34.58	175	104	117	160
175	San Bernardino, CA	34.06	88	141	179	151
176	New York, NY	33.92	192	100	185	125
177	Bridgeport, CT	33.55	171	148	190	127
178	Long Beach, CA	33.46	164	61	137	179
179	Worcester, MA	33.20	119	174	181	137
180	Pittsburgh, PA	33.13	174	177	110	142
181	Lancaster, CA	33.06	67	128	144	172
182	Rochester, NY	32.52	109	194	182	85
183	Akron, OH	32.43	85	185	183	140
184	Oakland, CA	31.74	179	45	96	184
185	Milwaukee, WI	31.52	170	180	177	135
186	Springfield, MA	31.20	133	189	157	129
187	Dayton, OH	30.95	99	188	186	130
188	Toledo, OH	30.31	124	187	187	136
189	Oxnard, CA	29.89	166	46	151	187
190	Newark, NJ	29.61	189	144	194	123
191	Detroit, MI	28.35	186	192	193	82
192	Syracuse, NY	27.59	138	193	184	141
193	Buffalo, NY	27.53	178	191	172	139
194	Cleveland, OH	26.17	169	190	192	138

Infographic showing the best cities to own a swimming pool, a ranking based on yard size, pool installation and maintenance access and costs, and climate

Highlights and Lowlights

Making a Splash in the Sun Belt

Sunny, sandy states — Arizona, Florida, and Texas — are thirsty for cool water. All three states dominated the top of our ranking and have experienced extreme heatwaves this summer.

Three Sunshine State cities floated to the top, with Fort Lauderdale taking home the gold. Pools aren’t a rare sight in Cape Coral (No. 3) or Hollywood (No. 9), either — these cities have the ideal climate for swimming.

A hot climate and affordable pool cleaning brought wealthy areas of the Dallas-Fort Worth metro, including Plano (No. 4), Frisco (No. 5), and McKinney (No. 6), to the top, alongside Austin (No. 7).

Scottsdale swam to second place overall and beat all 193 other cities in Pool-Readiness. Despite the Colorado River short ag e and severe drought plaguing the Southwest, Scottsdale is a wealthy city that can afford pool expenses (though going to a community pool instead might help conserve water).

Northern Cities Nosedive

You’re better off finding a community pool than building your own in colder-climate cities.

We expected cities in the upper latitudes to sink in our ranking, but we didn’t predict Great Lakes-adjacent cities to hit the bottom of the pool. They include Cleveland in last place, followed by Buffalo (No. 193), Syracuse (No. 192), and Detroit (No. 191).

Lack of yard space, expensive installation and maintenance, and scarce sunshine anchored these cities to the bottom. Thankfully, they aren’t too far from thousands of miles of water to splash around in Lake Erie and Lake Ontario.

Costly Cali Cannonballs

Poolside escapes may seem like a Californian dream, and they are for many Oxnard (No. 189) or Oakland (No. 184) residents who don’t have large yards.

Rancho Cucamonga (No. 65), Escondido (No. 88), and even Lancaster (No. 181) are pool-ready, and many homes currently for sale in these cities come with a pool already installed. Unfortunately, expensive pool cleaning and poor climate due to drought risk dragged these cities down in the ranking.

Ask The Experts

Before getting knee-deep in your upcoming pool project, it’s important to know what pitfalls to expect and how the addition of a giant water feature in your backyard might affect the value of your home.

We reached out to a pool of experts for insights and tips to help you avoid costly mistakes. Read their thoughts below.

What are your three best tips for new pool owners?
What is one unexpected challenge homeowners might face while building or planning a pool?
What is the most important way to avoid a pool leak?
Does a swimming pool add value to a home? Why or why not, and if so, how much?
What are the top three factors that can affect the pool’s chemical balance?
What’s one potential pitfall homeowners should avoid while building or maintaining a pool?
Who should and shouldn’t own a swimming pool?

Gerald J. Wang

Assistant Professor of Civil and Environmental Engineering & Chemical Engineering (by courtesy) and Mechanical Engineering (by courtesy)

Salil Sarkar

Professor of Finance and Real Estate

Gerald J. Wang

Assistant Professor of Civil and Environmental Engineering & Chemical Engineering (by courtesy) and Mechanical Engineering (by courtesy)

Carnegie Mellon University

Gerald J. Wang

Assistant Professor of Civil and Environmental Engineering & Chemical Engineering (by courtesy) and Mechanical Engineering (by courtesy)

Carnegie Mellon University

What are your three best tips for new pool owners?

1. It is critical to clean your pool regularly.

2. It is important to test your pool water on a regular basis — don’t forget to measure nitrates.

3. It is easy to forget that pool ownership is a two-way street: Not only does the owner choose the pool, but the pool must also choose the owner. Both sides of this relationship must be cultivated.

What is one unexpected challenge homeowners might face while building or planning a pool?

A frequent cause of unexpected challenges is not investing in high-quality pool surfacing materials. You can save money in the short term, but it will cost more in the long run.

A less frequent cause of unexpected challenges is malicious water spirits getting into your pool. I have to emphasize that this is rare, but if you find yourself with a malicious water spirit infestation, let’s just say you’ll wish you’d spent more on high-quality pool surfacing materials.

What is the most important way to avoid a pool leak?

I might sound like a broken record at this point, but high-quality pool surfacing materials are seriously underrated, especially when it comes to avoiding pool leaks.

Does a swimming pool add value to a home? Why or why not, and if so, how much?

This is a tricky question, and the answer is ultimately “it depends.” In general, a well-maintained swimming pool improves home value: They are pleasing to the eye, provide hours of family-friendly entertainment, and even have a mild deterrent effect against animals with late-stage rabies.

But your mileage may vary. I’ve heard from pool owners who have been struggling for years with malicious water spirits that have taken over their pools. A lot of them say the water spirits are a nightmare when prospective buyers tour the home. To be clear, most prospective buyers eventually make a full recovery.

What are the top three factors that can affect the pool’s chemical balance?

The two most important factors that control pool pH are the hydrogen ion concentration and the hydroxide ion concentration. It’s a common misconception that pH is also affected by water spirits. Malicious or not, all water spirits are neutral pH.

What’s one potential pitfall homeowners should avoid while building or maintaining a pool?

Paperwork is important. It’s critical to take care of all relevant permits before beginning pool construction. This is especially true in states like California, where you should expect to deal with a lengthy permitting process at the level of the municipality, the state, and the local Council of Water Spirits.

Who should and shouldn’t own a swimming pool?

If you have a house that you want to make a home, get a swimming pool, and then you will have a swimming pool. But if you are in arrears with payments to your local Council of Water Spirits, think twice about getting a pool. Landscaping might be a better way to boost your home value.

Salil Sarkar

Professor of Finance and Real Estate

University of Texas at Arlington

Salil Sarkar

Professor of Finance and Real Estate

University of Texas at Arlington

What are your three best tips for new pool owners?

The property tax, water bill, electric bill, and insurance bill are going to increase in addition to the cost and maintenance of the pool.

What is one unexpected challenge homeowners might face while building or planning a pool?

The easement rights already existing in the backyard may drastically reduce the available area.

What is the most crucial way to avoid a pool leak?

Keep the sprinkler system on year-round to keep consistent moisture in the ground around the pool.

Does a swimming pool add value to a home? Why or why not, and if so, how much?

It depends on the neighborhood: If the home is the only house without a pool, adding a pool will avoid the additional discount while selling. If the residents don’t care for a swimming pool, the property taxes would be low without the pool.

What are the top three factors that can affect the pool’s chemical balance?

1. The usage of the pool, if it is used every day or seldom

2. The number and the average age of children

3. Average sunlight on the pool

What’s one potential pitfall homeowners should avoid while building or maintaining a pool?

The size and depth of the pool as the volume of water depends on these parameters.

Who should and shouldn’t own a swimming pool?

If the mandatory HOA (homeowners association) provides a swimming pool and the home is close to the HOA swimming pool, one can avoid owning a swimming pool.

Behind the Ranking

For each of the 200 biggest U.S. cities, we first gathered publicly available data on the factors listed in the table below.

We then grouped those factors into four categories: Pool-Readiness, Installation, Maintenance, and Climate.

Next, we calculated weighted scores for each city in each category.

Finally, we averaged the scores for each city across all categories. We eliminated six cities lacking sufficient data in a single category, resulting in a total sample size of 194 cities.

The city that earned the highest average score is considered “Best” (No. 1), while the city with the lowest is “Worst” (No. 194).

Metric	Weighting	Min. Value	Max. Value	Best
Pool-Readiness
Average Yard Square Footage	3	776	19,855	Max. Value
Share of Homes with Pools on the Market	3	1.0%	62.7%	Max. Value
Installation
Pool Installers within 10 Miles (per Number of Single-Family Detached Homes)	4	0	0.013	Max. Value
Average Minimum Pool Installation Cost (as % of Average Annual Household Income)	5	19.7%	87.4%	Min. Value
Maintenance
Number of Pool Cleaners	3	0	211	Max. Value
Average Per-Visit Pool Cleaning Cost (as % of Average Weekly Household Income)	4	0.0%	3.1%	Min. Value
Climate
Historical Average Number of Extremely Hot Days	1	2	169	Max. Value
Historical Average Number of Extremely Cold Days	1	0	192	Min. Value
Historical Average Monthly Percentage of Sunshine	1	42%	85%	Max. Value
Drought Risk Score	3	0	3	Min. Value
Heatwave Risk Score	3	1	3	Max. Value
Natural Hazards Index	0.5	9	20	Min. Value
Forced Water Cuts Due to Drought (1=Yes, 0=No)	3	0	1	Max. Value

Sources: BuildZoom, Federal Housing Finance Agency, HomeBlue, National Center for Disaster Preparedness, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, PoolCost.com, Realtor.com, and Yelp

Splashing Through Summer

Heatwaves have been cooking cities across the country, leaving many citizens desperate for a dip in the pool.

Swimming is not only refreshing after a hot day, but is also entertaining and good for you. Regular aerobic activity (like swimming) can lower your risk of chronic illness and improve overall health. Swimming is a relaxing way to get your body moving in the sun, thus improving your mental health, too.

Add some personality to your backyard by landscaping around the pool. Whether you already have or want to install an in-ground, semi-inground, or above-ground pool, you can enhance your swimming experience by adding flowers, lighting, and hardscaping around your pool. Landscaping elements like fences and hedges can also increase poolside privacy.

Pool pests and waterbugs like backswimmers and water striders can be prevented by performing regular cleaning and maintenance and installing a pool enclosure.

Research plenty before installing a pool in your backyard. Maintenance and pool service costs can definitely sink your finances if you’re not careful.

Need help implementing your dream poolside landscape? LawnStarter’s local pros can help with all your landscaping and lawn care needs.

Main Photo Credit: Shutterstock