The Cleanest US Cities Residents And Travelers Say They've Ever Seen

Cleanliness expert Marie Kondo's quote — "The objective of cleaning is not just to clean, but to feel happiness living within that environment" — applies not just to the insides of a home, but to entire cities as well. A clean city isn't just about visual appeal: residents of clean, orderly communities find themselves with a more positive outlook and lower stress levels, underlining just how impactful well-maintained urban environments can be.

When Honolulu was cited as the only US destination to make it among the cleanest cities in the world in a Mercer Eco-City ranking, it sparked a bigger question: What other American cities could vie for the title of the cleanest in the country? Locals and tourists weighed in on their cleanest city picks in Reddit threads such as r/SameGrassbutGreener and r/AskAnAmerican, with litter and trash-free streets, even sidewalks, well-maintained parks and public spaces, pedestrian infrastructure, and clean public transport (among others) being taken into consideration. 

Among the 500-plus comments, certain cities garnered more mentions than the rest, including a Utah city whose locals staunchly advocate for its cleanliness despite opposing opinions, and another in Illinois that's consistently topped Condé Nast Traveler's Best Big City in the U.S. list. Curious to know which cities were deemed the cleanest in the eyes of both residents and travelers? Here's a look at the stand-outs.

Cool neighborhoods, amazing architecture, and a handful of under-the-radar gems earn Chicago a deserving spot on every traveler's itinerary. But more importantly, the backdrop to all these amazing Chicago goings-on deserves a shout-out: its clean city streets. For a big city — it has, after all, topped Condé Nast Traveler's Best Big City in the U.S. list for nine years and counting — Chicago is definitely on top of its cleanliness game, if the overwhelming number of its mentions on the subreddit r/SameGrassButGreener is anything to go by. A native Chicagoan cited that the city's cleanliness was due to its management of its trash bins and city sweeping. 

Housing the largest number of alleys in the country — 1,900 miles in total — these tiny arteries contribute to Chicago's physical and visual cleanliness by keeping the trash tucked away from the city's major streets. They were the overwhelming response Chicagoans answered to a New Yorker asking locals on r/Chicago how they kept their city so clean. "After the Great Fire of 1871, when Chicago was rebuilt, it was rebuilt with alleyways," wrote a Redditor. "The trash is placed into dumpsters in alleys, not in the streets. Newer buildings are required to have either alleys or docks for trash dumpsters." 

Add to that the Department of Streets and Sanitation's efficient team of over 2,000 employees overseeing sanitation, rodent control, street sweeping, and graffiti clean-up, as well as a streamlined grid garbage collection system, and you've got yourself a destination that makes other cities' cleanliness pale in comparison.

Another city whose cleanliness stood out to both locals and visitors was Boston. Though admitting to disliking a lot of things about it, one Redditor called it "undeniably the cleanest city I've ever been to and probably the most aesthetically beautiful in the country." A survey revealed that a staggering 89% of Boston locals found their city to be walkable, propelling it to second place in Time Out's 2025 Most Walkable Cities in the World list. Packed with historic buildings featuring amazing architecture, charming neighborhoods like Charlestown with its waterfront views and storybook streets, and numerous trails and parks that wind through the city, Boston's walkable districts greatly benefit from its clean streets. 

Boston's city codes — covering illegal trash disposal, overfilling of dumpsters, and bins left on the curbside outside trash day hours — are enforced by street patrols on foot, bike, and car; the simple act of littering can cost offenders a $25 fine. In addition to its street cleaning efforts, one Redditor attributed the city's cleanliness to its citizens' cultural desire to maintain a standard they've gotten used to: "People expect things to be clean, behave accordingly that help keep things stay clean, and demand things to get clean when it's not." 

This strong sense of community is evident in cleanliness organizations like the volunteer-led street clean-up program Keep Boston Beautiful (KBB), as well as the street-sweeping Clean Corners program that employs homeless or incarcerated people in Boston's Allston neighborhood. 

The harsh winters of Minneapolis don't seem to faze its residents and visitors. Despite its cold spells, the City of Lakes ranked 30th in 2025's Happy City Index, the second American city on the list after New York in 17th place. It also scored particularly high on the study's City Environment category, which evaluated not just energy efficiency and pollution levels, but also waste management and recycling awareness. Another survey on the cleanest U.S. cities also revealed that 91% of Minneapolis-St. Paul households enjoyed clean, trash-free conditions in their neighborhoods.

While multiple local and visiting commenters praised the city's cleanliness, many admitted that the weather had an impact on it. As one local mused, "It does help that it freezes for a good part of the year which kind of cleanses the place," a sentiment that was confirmed by another Redditor saying "Things may look a bit ratty after the snow melts in the spring and anything that was hidden by the snow will suddenly be exposed, but that tends to get cleaned up pretty quickly." 

A citywide street sweeping initiative, spearheaded by Public Works crews, cleans more than 1,100 miles of Minneapolis streets and 400 miles of alleys twice a year. Trash, debris, and leftover sand from maintenance done during the long winter months are tidied up by the crews during spring; in the fall, leaves and debris are swept away to avoid clogging storm drainage systems, lakes, and rivers.

With numerous enthusiastic votes in a Reddit thread, Irvine, California's cleanliness hasn't escaped attention. If anything, some of the comments even hinted at the Orange County city being too clean. One Redditor wrote, "Weirdly clean and sterile. I felt like I was on The Truman Show or Invasion of the Body Snatchers when visiting there for work." On a work trip to Irvine, a born-and-raised Los Angeles native living in Japan — a country known for its cleanliness — found Irvine to be cleaner than his adopted country, saying, "This place makes Japan look more like L.A. (without the cars, of course)."

But this arguably seems like a good problem to have. In addition to placing fourth in WalletHub's Greenest Cities in America survey in 2025, Irvine was one of the 33 communities that made up Clean California Communities, an acknowledgment of the city's dedication to reducing litter and enhancing the cleanliness of its public spaces. "This achievement reflects the collective efforts of our community, and reaffirms our shared dedication to keeping Irvine a beautiful, sustainable, and welcoming place for all," Irvine mayor Larry Agran declared.

We narrowed down the four cities based on the number of times they were referenced by commenters in various Reddit threads discussing the cleanest cities in the United States. The feedback from commenters — both city residents and travelers — was taken into account and strengthened by examining city-focused Reddit threads about these cities. 

The official city websites of Chicago, Boston, Minneapolis, and Irvine were also consulted, particularly regarding their sanitation and maintenance protocols and campaigns. Finally, we compared the results with studies and surveys on city cleanliness carried out by WalletHub, Insider Monkey, Time Out, and Condé Nast.