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The best cities for running clubs

Two ways to read “best.” By raw count, big metros win — more people, more crews. Austin, Texas tops the list with 18 running clubs. But per resident, mid-size running towns punch far above their weight: Boulder, Colorado has 5.62 clubs per 100,000 residents — the densest running-club scene in the country. Both rankings are below. Last updated 2026-07-19.

Most running clubs (by count)

The cities with the largest number of running clubs in our directory.

#CityClubsPopulationPer 100k
1 Austin, TX 18 993,588 1.81
2 Houston, TX 17 2,390,125 0.71
3 New York, NY 15 8,478,072 0.18
4 Portland, OR 13 635,749 2.04
5 San Francisco, CA 13 827,526 1.57
6 Tampa, FL 13 414,547 3.14
7 Atlanta, GA 12 520,070 2.31
8 Brooklyn, NY 12 — —
9 San Diego, CA 12 1,404,452 0.85
10 Chicago, IL 10 2,721,308 0.37
11 Jacksonville, FL 10 1,009,833 0.99
12 Seattle, WA 10 780,995 1.28
13 Baton Rouge, LA 9 220,907 4.07
14 Fort Worth, TX 9 1,008,106 0.89
15 Long Beach, CA 9 450,901 2
16 Nashville, TN 9 — —
17 Sacramento, CA 9 535,798 1.68
18 Boston, MA 8 673,458 1.19
19 Washington, DC 8 702,250 1.14
20 Alexandria, VA 7 159,102 4.4
21 Birmingham, AL 7 196,357 3.56
22 Charlotte, NC 7 943,476 0.74
23 Dallas, TX 7 1,326,087 0.53
24 Denver, CO 7 729,019 0.96
25 Knoxville, TN 7 198,722 3.52
26 New Orleans, LA 7 362,701 1.93
27 Orlando, FL 7 334,854 2.09
28 Philadelphia, PA 7 1,573,916 0.44
29 Phoenix, AZ 7 1,673,164 0.42
30 Santa Monica, CA 7 90,729 7.72
31 Bakersfield, CA 6 417,468 1.44
32 Boulder, CO 6 106,803 5.62
33 Bronx, NY 6 — —
34 Chattanooga, TN 6 191,496 3.13
35 Columbia, SC 6 144,788 4.14
36 Durham, NC 6 301,870 1.99
37 El Paso, TX 6 681,723 0.88
38 Grand Rapids, MI 6 200,117 3
39 Honolulu, HI 6 — —
40 Indianapolis, IN 6 900,896 0.67

Most running clubs per capita

Clubs per 100,000 residents — the real measure of a running town. Cities of 100,000+ residents with at least three clubs.

#CityPer 100kClubsPopulation
1 Boulder, CO 5.62 6 106,803
2 Davie, FL 4.46 5 112,052
3 Alexandria, VA 4.4 7 159,102
4 New Braunfels, TX 4.29 5 116,477
5 Clearwater, FL 4.28 5 116,811
6 Columbia, SC 4.14 6 144,788
7 Baton Rouge, LA 4.07 9 220,907
8 Boca Raton, FL 3.91 4 102,238
9 Chico, CA 3.89 4 102,911
10 Fayetteville, AR 3.88 4 103,134
11 Birmingham, AL 3.56 7 196,357
12 Concord, NC 3.56 4 112,395
13 Springfield, IL 3.54 4 112,949
14 Knoxville, TN 3.52 7 198,722
15 Allen, TX 3.52 4 113,746
16 Miami Gardens, FL 3.44 4 116,173
17 Gainesville, FL 3.36 5 148,720
18 Milton, IL 3.34 4 119,838
19 Billings, MT 3.29 4 121,483
20 Topeka, KS 3.19 4 125,467
21 Tempe, AZ 3.16 6 190,114
22 Tampa, FL 3.14 13 414,547
23 Chattanooga, TN 3.13 6 191,496
24 Columbia, MO 3.06 4 130,900
25 Grand Rapids, MI 3 6 200,117
26 Deltona, FL 2.98 3 100,513
27 Georgetown, TX 2.96 3 101,344
28 Albany, NY 2.96 3 101,317
29 Dayton, OH 2.93 4 136,346
30 Wichita Falls, TX 2.93 3 102,372

Methodology & download

Club counts come from our directory of 3,801 US running clubs (public map/business listings, the RRCA member directory, and organic discovery of Meetup/Strava/Facebook-only crews), filtered to genuine running clubs. Population figures are 2024 US Census place estimates; the per-capita ranking is limited to cities of 100,000+ residents with at least three clubs so a two-club town can’t top the chart. Big cities can list clubs under neighborhood or suburb names, so a metro’s true total may be higher than shown.

Download per-state data (CSV) See the full state rankings