The Top 10 Best Cities for Beer in 2023

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By Seamus Roddy Updated May 18, 2023

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Americans everywhere can appreciate a cold beer on a hot day, but some cities take their beer game to the next level.

A new study from Real Estate Witch used data to rank the best beer cities in the U.S. The report analyzed various beer-related metrics, including breweries and bars per capita, average beer price, Yelp ratings, and Google Trends data, among other factors.

So where are these heavenly lands of hops? Read on to learn more about the best cities for beer.

A new study analyzes the top beer cities in the U.S. for 2023.

1. Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania

If you want to crack open a cold one, consider taking a trip to Steel City. The Real Estate Witch study found Pittsburgh to be the best beer city in the U.S., thanks to a high concentration of breweries and below-average prices.

Pittsburgh has 2.3 breweries per 100,000 residents — 77% more than the average American city. There are also 24.2 bars per 100,000 residents — well over the national average of 19 bars per 100,000 residents.

Pittsburghers also save money on their suds, as a beer in the Burgh costs $0.38 less than the national average.

The study found that Pittsburghers care strongly about their beer. Based on Google Trends search data, the city has a beer passion score of nearly 96 out of 100 — meaning that Pittsburghers might like beer even more than their beloved pizza.

2. Cincinnati, Ohio

From Pittsburgh, a beer drinker need only float down the Ohio River to reach the second-best beer city in America — Cincinnati. In Cincinnati, beer drinkers enjoy exceptional prices, as the average price of a beer in the Queen City is $4.15 — well below the national average of $4.78. Cincinnatians also exhibit enthusiasm for beer, with a passion score of 64 out of 100 and a particularly strong search emphasis for the phrase "lager." Based on the study, it’s a good thing that folks in Cincy have good coffee for the morning after.

3. Milwaukee, Wisconsin

America’s third-best beer city is another Rust Belt redoubt: Milwaukee.

Milwaukee has a baseball team appropriately named the Brewers and is the home of the Miller Brewing Company, so go figure that Milwaukee clocked an 88 out of 100 on the study’s beer passion score.

Even better, searching for beer in real life isn’t hard in Milwaukee, as the city has 38 bars per 100,000 residents — twice as many as the average American city.

4. New Orleans, Louisiana

Whether it’s Mardi Gras or not, New Orleans is a great city to grab a beer — fourth-best in the U.S., according to the study. In particular, New Orleans is an easy place to find brew, as it has the most bars per capita in the country with 60 per 100,000 residents. Favorable bar ratings on Yelp have helped New Orleans vault 44 spots from its 2021 ranking in America’s best beer cities and bring its beer up to the level of its brunch.

5. Denver, Colorado

It turns out that being a mile high makes it easier to get a good buzz — at least if you’re in Denver, America’s fifth-best beer city. Along with its renowned food trucks, Denver has a great brewery scene — with the second-most breweries per capita in the U.S. behind Portland, Oregon. No wonder Denver scores a 92 out of 100 on Real Estate Witch’s beer passion metric.

6. Louisville, Kentucky

Like the horses, beer drinkers in Louisville can go off to the races. The home of the Kentucky Derby is also the home of thoroughbred breweries. Louisville has more than double the national average of breweries, and they earn an average of 4.36 stars on Yelp, topping the typical city's rating of 4.24.

7. Indianapolis, Indiana

Indianapolis is a good place to have a good beer. That’s because the study found the music-filled bars in Indianapolis to be some of the best in the country, with an average of 4.23 stars on Yelp — higher than all but six of the 50 cities evaluated.

8. Nashville, Tennessee

You can have a honky-tonk beer-drinking time in Nashville, America’s eighth-best beer city. Nashville, already an awesome BBQ city, also comes through with beer, in part because it’s easy to find: Nashville has 31% more bars than the average city in the study.

9. Charlotte, North Carolina

The beer capital of the Carolinas is Charlotte. This Southern city is a surefire place to find a cold one. Charlotte has 46% more breweries per capita than the national average and the ninth-highest Yelp ratings for breweries in the country.

10. Minneapolis, Minnesota

The winters in Minneapolis might be long, dark, cold, and snowy, but if you visit, you’ll at least have beer to warm you up. The Real Estate Witch Study named Minneapolis as the 10th-best beer city in America.

The average price of beer in Minneapolis is lower than the national average, but the city’s excitement for beer sure isn’t, with a beer passion score that’s 11% higher than the national average.

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