If there was a Zombie Apocalypse, how well is your city prepared to survive?
Inspired by the somewhat tongue-in-check CDC’s Zombie Preparedness 101 guide, Lawn Love dug through the data graveyard to rank 2021’s Best Cities for Surviving a Zombie Apocalypse. The landscaping company compared the 200 biggest U.S. cities on 23 key indicators of zombie-preparedness — from the share of the living population in good health to the share of available homes with basements to hunting-gear access.
Use these rankings and in-depth analysis to know how safe your neighborhood will be when the dead walk, and remember, in the event of a Zombie Apocalypse, do lots of cardio and if you ever encounter an actual zombie, aim for the head!
Results in Depth
Huntington Beach: A Zombie Hunter’s Haven
If any U.S. city has what it takes to beat an army of hungry corpses, it’s Huntington Beach, California, our No. 1 Best City for Surviving a Zombie Apocalypse.
It turns out Surf City USA is more than just your average California beach town. With a high share of healthy residents, especially those who took up jogging in the past year (No. 26 in both metrics), strong Protections (No. 4), and high Mobility (No. 20), this city is best prepared to deal with a wave of zombies.
In the movies, Huntington Beach would be the city where the baddest zombie butt kickers would establish a survivors colony. Better start mapping your journey toward Surf City if you fear the walking dead.
Doubling Down
They say two heads are better than one, and that’s certainly true when it comes to smashing zombie melons.
For the best chance of fending off the living dead, head to neighboring cities in a metro area. The top of our ranking — dominated by cities within a few miles of one another — demonstrates the power of pairing up:
- Bellevue (No. 2) and Seattle, Washington (No. 6)
- Minneapolis (No. 4) and St. Paul, Minnesota (No. 7)
- Vancouver, Washington (No. 5), and Portland, Oregon (No. 11)
- Fort Lauderdale (No. 9) and Hollywood, Florida (No. 10)
Pooling resources has its advantages — just don’t get greedy like Negan.
Western Weaponry
One of the first and most important lessons you’ll learn from any zombie movie is that arms and ammo are essential to human survival.
If you need to stock up during a zombie invasion, you’ll be in luck if you’re in the West. Seven out of our top 10 cities for weapons and ammunition stores per 100,000 living residents are located in this region. They include cities like Fullerton, California (No. 1), Gilbert, Arizona (No. 2), and Spring Valley, Nevada (No. 8).
Good luck if you’re stuck in or passing through one of the biggest cities like Chicago (No. 197), New York City (No. 196), and Los Angeles (No. 193). Guns and bullets are in short supply here — start sharpening those fingernails.How did your city fare? Are you relatively safe from the undead, or should you get out of dodge? You can see the complete listing here.