What is the best gay city to live in Rhode Island?
Which city in Rode Island is the top LGBTQ-friendliness while being the most affordable? Find out here on this episode. Then, let us help you reach financial sustainability and independence by eliminating credit card debt with the free 7-Step Credit Card Debt Slasher.
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Which city gets the top best gay city to live in Rhode Island?
Continuing our series coupling affordability with LGBTQ+-friendliness, today we’re covering one of the original 13 colonies and the home of the person who inspired the separation of church and state, Puritan theologian Roger Williams. Which is the most affordable, most LGBTQ+-friendly city in Rhode Island?
1) Cranston
2) East Providence
3) Narragansett
4) Newport
5) Pawtucket
6) Providence
7) South Kingston
8) Warwick
Rhode Island is a state where most of the population lives in the Providence metro area. Rhode Island’s population is 1.1 million people. Providence metro area, however, has 1.2 million people because the metro area spills into Massachusettes. Five of the seven cities we analyzed were in the Providence metro area. The other two are very expensive on the southern coastline, even by US standards, quickly eliminating them from our ranking.
Which Rhode Island city is the runner-up for the most affordable, LGBTQ+-friendly city? Pawtucket!
Why?
Pawtucket has the lowest cost of living of the cities we analyzed in Rhode Island at 101.6%. It has the lowest home values, averaging $315,000 per unit. Pawtucket Rent is also the lowest in the state averaging $1,490 a month.
Pawtucket has the lowest average and median incomes at $65,000 and $470,00, respectively.
Pawtucket tied for #2 at 66 for HRC’s Municipal Equality Index.
Which Rhode Island city is the winner for the most affordable, LGBTQ+-friendly city? Providence!
Why?
Providence is the only Rhode Island city to earn 100 HRC’s MEI. Its cost of living is the second lowest at 108.7%. Home values are also the second lowest at $334,000 on average per unit. Rents are on the higher end at $1,92 a month.
Average and median incomes on also on the lower end at $75,000 and $61,000, respectively.
What makes Providence even better for LGBTQ+ people?
Providence, of course, is Rhode Island’s state capital. It’s the first capital city in the US to have an openly gay mayor, David Cicilline. Providence is the home of Brown University, the Rhode Island Institute of Design, and the prestigious Culinary Arts at Johnson & Wales University and has nearly 1,000 buildings on the National Register of Historic Places.
There are also tons and tons of trendy coffee shops, intimate theatres, innovative restaurants, and great places to grab a drink, which makes our gay little hurts flutter. There are several gay and lesbian bars in Providence, and Providence is just under 3.5 hours from New York City and just over an hour from Boston.
Providence’s Pride is June 17, 2023, this year.
Thank you for listening to another episode. On next Thursday’s Queer Money bonus episode, we’re covering the most affordable and most gay friendly city in the state of John’s home state of Pennsylvania.
If you’d like to see the results of all the cities in each state we’re analyzing, go to queermoneypodcast.com/cities or click the link in your podcast player for a growing analysis.
Previous Bonus Podcast Episodes
- The Best Gay City to Live in South Carolina
- The Best Gay City to Live in South Dakota
- The Best Gay City to Live in Tennessee
Click below to listen to this bonus episode