Best cities for St. Patrick's Day celebrations? Analysis ranks top US spots
More than 31 million people in the U.S. claim Irish ancestry – nearly six times the population of Ireland.
And, as this lucky group of people expanded over the centuries, American St. Paddy’s Day traditions did, as well.
St. Patrick’s Day celebrations in US
By the numbers:
The company WalletHub compared 200 of the largest cities across 15 key metrics to find the best places to wear green and celebrate. Their data set ranged from activities to costs to the weather.
What they're saying:
"St. Patrick’s Day celebrates the Irish, but it’s become a beloved cultural holiday for millions of Americans regardless of their ancestry," Chip Lupo, a WalletHub analyst, said in a statement. "The best cities for St. Patrick’s Day combine rich traditions with tasty and affordable food, safe conditions to celebrate, and good weather. Celebrating in one of these cities will increase your chances of having a memorable holiday, as long as you don’t overdo it."
From Chicago’s dyed green river to elaborate pageants, pub crawls and processions, here’s a look at the top spots to celebrate St. Patrick's Day, according to the data.
Top cities for St. Patrick’s Day celebrations
- Boston, MA
- Reno, NV
- Savannah, GA
- Santa Rosa, CA
- Worcester, MA
- Chicago, IL
- New York, NY
- Henderson, NV
- Buffalo, NY
- Pittsburgh, PA
- St. Paul, MN
- Omaha, NE
- Overland Park, KS
- Des Moines, IA
- Fresno, CA
- Madison, WI
- Minneapolis, MN
- San Francisco, CA
- Olathe, KS
- Columbia, SC
See the full list here.
Boston, Massachusetts ranked as the best city for celebrating St. Patrick’s Day in 2025, offering people plenty of festive activities.
The Chicago River, after members of Plumbers Local 130 U.A. poured environmentally safe orange powder along the Chicago River turning it green for St. Patrick's Day in Chicago, Illinois on March 16, 2019. (Credit: Raymond Boyd/Getty Images)
Boston is known for its St. Patrick’s Day parade, which brings in around a million visitors per year, according to WalletHub. Boston’s parade tradition is also one of the oldest in the U.S., dating back to 1724, before te U.S. was even an independent country!
RELATED: St. Patrick's Day fun facts: Things you may not know about the Irish celebration
In addition, the research found that Irish food and drinks are prevalent in the city. Boston has the sixth-most Irish pubs and sixth-most Irish restaurants per capita.
Boston is also the fifth-most Irish city in the U.S. in terms of ancestry, with over 13% of the city’s residents having a claim to Irish roots.
Boston was followed by Reno, Nevada, which is known for The Reno Leprechaun Crawl, a downtown bar crawl featuring themed events and drink deals, and the Annual Leprechaun Race 5K, a family-friendly race where runners dress in their best St. Paddy's garb.
Savannah, Georgia, rounded out the top three, with the city seeing around half a million visitors during the holiday. Visitors come to the city to experience traditions like its parade,w hich is the seventh-oldest in the country, along with the Celtic Cross Ceremony. St. Patrick’s Day is also heavily associated with drinking, and Savannah has more bars per capita than any other city.
The legacy of St. Patrick’s Day in the US
The backstory:
Celebrating St. Patrick’s Day with parades didn’t originate in Ireland, but instead started and became popular in North American colonies centuries ago.
What began as a Catholic feast day, gained more recognition with colonial celebrations, and today it is one of America’s biggest cultural holidays.
This year, Americans are projected to spend $7.2 billion on the holiday.