The 50 Most Technologically Advanced Cities in America – Detroit Places 31st

Article courtesy of Click Insights

Detroit, Michigan, ranks 31st, with an overall score of 48.2
The city has a 55% average graduation rate at computer institutes and 1,955 tech jobs
The study measured factors including WiFi hotspots, graduation rates for computer studies, the number of institutes offering tech and computing programs, tech job availability and high-rated tech companies in the area

A new study has revealed the most technologically advanced cities in America, with Detroit, Michigan, taking the 31st spot.

The study by SEO software company Click Insights analyzed cities in America with a population count of over 300,000 across the following metrics:

1. Number of institutes offering computer programs

2. Average graduation rate for tech courses

3. Number of WiFi hotspots in the city

4. Total number of tech jobs available in the city

5. Total number of tech companies that are rated three stars or higher on Glassdoor

These factors were then weighted and put into an index to establish which cities in America are really the most technologically advanced.

Michigan’s Findings

Detroit, Michigan, is the 31st-most technologically advanced city in the country.

Detroit has 4 institutes offering computer programs, an average tech graduation rate of 55%, 567 WiFi hotspots, 1,955 tech jobs, and 935 tech companies rated three stars or higher on Glassdoor.

Top 5 Technologically Advanced Cities in America

1. Washington, District of Columbia

Washington, DC, ranks as the nation’s most technologically advanced city. This is due to the city ranking highly in every factor assessed. Notably, Washington, DC, has the highest number of tech jobs available in the city at 17.350 according to Glassdoor. The city also ranks second among all states for the number of institutes offering computer programs, at 10 (which is tied with Los Angeles). When it comes to highly rated tech companies in the area, Washington, DC, ranks fourth overall with 2,924 companies that are tech-based in the area receiving three or more stars on Glassdoor. The factor that Washington ranks lowest at is the graduation rate for tech courses at 65%, which is above average, however, 17th overall.

2. St. Paul, Minnesota

St.Paul in Minnesota ranks as the second most technologically advanced city in the United States. Despite not being the top-ranking city in any metric, its highest placement for a factor studied is for the graduation rate of tech courses, where it’s the fifth-highest rate in the country at 62%. It also ranks within the top 15 cities for the number of institutes in the city offering computing courses at the twelfth highest rate (7 institutes).

3. Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania

The third most technologically advanced city in America is Pittsburgh in Pennsylvania. Pittsburgh’s best performing category was the graduation rate of tech courses, with 64% – the third highest rate in the country. However, where Pittsburgh falls short and prevents it from being higher on the list is due to the availability of tech jobs, where there are only 1,565 in the city being advertised, which ranks 33rd out of all cities assessed.

4. Miami, Florida

Miami is the first of three Floridian cities on the top 50 list, ranking as the fourth most technologically advanced city in America. There are 3,895 WiFi hotspots across the city, the fourth highest number of any city analyzed. There are also 1,167 tech companies in Miami that are ranked three stars or higher on Glassdoor which is the 20th best rate of any city assessed. Its lowest position for a factor is 30th which is for the availability of tech jobs in the city, which are 2,108.

5. Irvine, California

Irvine is the most technologically advanced city in California and fifth in the country. Irvine has the best graduation rate in the country, with 67% overall, giving Irvine its high rating in the final study. The city also ranks seventh for highly rated tech companies, with 2,211 companies in Irvine securing a three-star or higher rating from employees on Glassdoor. There are also 2,369 jobs available in the tech sector across Irvine, the 23rd highest rate of any city and above the national average.

Speaking on the findings, James Owen, Co-Founder of Click Insights, commented,

“This ranking highlights more than just graduation factors and WiFi hotspots, it indicates where the next Silicon Valley may be. It’s worth assessing these findings and considering that these locations may just be where investors are going to put their money next.

With various policy changes happening from the current administration, it’s worth keeping an eye on how this affects businesses, as some may relocate because of costs of labor and tax implications for corporations and it would be wise for business owners to consider the cities that appear at the top of this ranking.”

50 Most Technologically Advanced Cities in America

Rank	City Name	State	Number of Institutes Offering Computer Programs	Average Graduation Rate at Computer Institutes	Number of WiFi Hotspots	Total Number of Tech Jobs (Glassdoor)	Number of Information Tech Companies Above 3 Stars (Glassdoor)	Overall Index Score (/100)
1	Washington	District of Columbia	10	65%	1,237	17,350	2,924	78
2	St. Paul	Minnesota	7	62%	395	2,159	998	76
3	Pittsburgh	Pennsylvania	7	64%	405	1,565	665	73.8
4	Miami	Florida	6	61%	3,895	2,108	1,167	73.1
5	Irvine	California	5	67%	300	2,369	2,211	73
6	Atlanta	Georgia	9	56%	1,020	5,646	1,853	72.8
7	Newark	New Jersey	3	54%	614	4,466	4,278	71.6
8	Boston	Massachusetts	12	56%	1,035	4,846	1,518	68.5
9	Baltimore	Maryland	11	55%	468	6,455	1,118	67.1
10	Cincinnati	Ohio	4	55%	909	1,450	548	62.7
11	Minneapolis	Minnesota	7	52%	544	2,160	998	62.6
12	Arlington	Texas	1	57%	859	6,001	2,285	62.6
13	Orlando	Florida	5	42%	1,209	1,213	578	60.6
14	Anaheim	California	3	53%	207	2,723	2,211	58.4
15	San Francisco	California	6	52%	1,661	5,890	1,906	57.9
16	Seattle	Washington	7	46%	1,345	8,937	1,271	57.3
17	Long Beach	California	2	49%	4,900	2,211	—	57.1
18	Dallas	Texas	8	61%	1,920	7,142	2,285	56.3
19	Portland	Oregon	6	63%	1,618	1,137	618	56.3
20	Tampa	Florida	4	44%	913	2,191	900	55.8
21	Riverside	California	5	59%	450	436	265	55.4
22	Raleigh	North Carolina	6	51%	340	2,214	906	53.9
23	Oakland	California	3	29%	743	6,975	1,906	52.7
24	Cleveland	Ohio	3	55%	591	981	466	52
25	Kansas City	Missouri	5	51%	959	1,352	562	51.9
26	Denver	Colorado	5	46%	1,185	3,658	1,062	50.5
27	San Jose	California	4	44%	1,278	10,974	1,441	49.1
28	New Orleans	Louisiana	7	48%	337	349	188	48.8
29	Austin	Texas	5	49%	1,664	4,319	1,181	48.6
30	Milwaukee	Wisconsin	5	58%	675	874	478	48.6
31	Detroit	Michigan	4	55%	567	1,955	935	48.2
32	Columbus	Ohio	7	54%	1,175	2,072	831	47.6
33	Santa Ana	California	1	32%	339	2,420	2,211	47.3
34	Sacramento	California	6	52%	460	819	479	47.1
35	Aurora	Colorado	2	29%	591	3,471	1,062	45.8
36	Greensboro	North Carolina	4	46%	469	288	170	45
37	Fort Worth	Texas	3	48%	1,063	2,791	2,285	44.9
38	Los Angeles	California	10	60%	10,496	3,821	2,211	44.3
39	San Diego	California	12	49%	1,677	2,474	885	43.8
40	Colorado Springs	Colorado	5	43%	630	803	284	42.6
41	Virginia Beach	Virginia	5	38%	382	685	501	41.4
42	Omaha	Nebraska	3	51%	736	518	283	41.2
43	New York	New York	18	60%	12,038	8,343	4,278	40.3
44	Tulsa	Oklahoma	3	51%	626	353	172	40.1
45	Chicago	Illinois	21	42%	2,574	4,070	2,147	39.6
46	Memphis	Tennessee	6	46%	863	382	294	39.2
47	Henderson	Nevada	2	31%	672	628	402	39
48	San Antonio	Texas	12	49%	1,812	1,403	626	39
49	Philadelphia	Pennsylvania	11	60%	216	2,754	1,440	38.7
50	Charlotte	North Carolina	3	43%	915	2,335	874	38.3

Sources

nces.ed.gov, wifimap.io, glassdoor.com

Methodology

A total of 5 factors were used to compile the index. The raw data for each factor was cleaned, checked, and standardised on the same scale from 0 to 10, where 0 and 10 represent the worst and best values present in the data, to allow for accurate comparison between factors. Factors for which a high score would be negative were subtracted from 10 to invert their scoring.

A weighting was then assigned to each factor reflecting its importance within the analysis.

Once the weightings were assigned, the total score for the factors was calculated, producing an overall index score out of 100 for each entry, upon which the final ranking is based.