Pizza is an American staple and there are pizzerias all over the country. However, some cities have more pizza places than others — and some have fewer. 24/7 Tempo has compiled a list of the cities with the fewest pizza places, using data from Yelp API and the US Census Bureau. There are several possible reasons why a city might have relatively few pizza places, including poverty, urban blight, demographics and related food preferences, as well as more popular alternatives.
Our list is headed by Detroit, Michigan and St. Louis, Missouri, both cities with a host of economic challenges. Detroit, in particular, isn’t just short of pizzerias — it has long been associated with urban blight and migration to the suburbs, although it has been making a comeback in recent years. There are other rust-belt states whose cities have suffered from deindustrialization and decay on our list, including Ohio, with four entries.
There are also several cities in California, Florida, and Texas on our list. These are states with large and growing Hispanic populations. Even if they don’t have so many pizzerias they probably have plenty of other great fast-food options, including arepas, burritos, and tacos. (If that’s your preference, this is the best Mexican restaurant in every state.)
Honolulu, Hawaii also features on our list, possibly because of its large Asian population. Whatever the reason the Aloha State has some great dishes that it calls its own — often incorporating local seafood. (These are the best seafood restaurants in America according to Yelp.)
Click here for the American cities with fewest pizza places
Methodology
To identify the cities with the fewest pizza places, 24/7 Tempo reviewed the number of pizza places per 100K from the Pizza Index 2021 for 259 cities around the country. The number of pizzerias was derived from the Yelp API. Total population used to adjust for pizzerias per 100K population was from the US Census Bureau.
50. Baton Rouge, Louisiana
> Pizzerias per 100K: 5.4
> Population: 570,308
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49. Antioch, California
> Pizzerias per 100K: 5.3
> Population: 302,419
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48. Little Rock, Arkansas
> Pizzerias per 100K: 5.2
> Population: 439,815
47. Oklahoma City, Oklahoma
> Pizzerias per 100K: 5.2
> Population: 972,943
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46. Jacksonville, Florida
> Pizzerias per 100K: 4.9
> Population: 1,181,496
45. Charleston, South Carolina
> Pizzerias per 100K: 4.8
> Population: 628,377
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44. Birmingham, Alabama
> Pizzerias per 100K: 4.7
> Population: 739,573
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43. Wichita, Kansas
> Pizzerias per 100K: 4.6
> Population: 482,249
42. Columbus, Georgia
> Pizzerias per 100K: 4.6
> Population: 261,445
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41. Hartford, Connecticut
> Pizzerias per 100K: 4.6
> Population: 905,152
40. Columbia, South Carolina
> Pizzerias per 100K: 4.6
> Population: 560,041
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39. Stockton, California
> Pizzerias per 100K: 4.5
> Population: 397,264
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38. Allentown, Pennsylvania
> Pizzerias per 100K: 4.5
> Population: 683,794
37. Toledo, Ohio
> Pizzerias per 100K: 4.4
> Population: 482,111
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36. Omaha, Nebraska
> Pizzerias per 100K: 4.4
> Population: 847,819
35. Fresno, California
> Pizzerias per 100K: 4.4
> Population: 703,498
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34. Sarasota, Florida
> Pizzerias per 100K: 4.3
> Population: 722,243
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33. Dayton, Ohio
> Pizzerias per 100K: 4.3
> Population: 718,353
32. Augusta, Georgia
> Pizzerias per 100K: 4.3
> Population: 390,809
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31. Buffalo, New York
> Pizzerias per 100K: 4.2
> Population: 914,341
30. Tulsa, Oklahoma
> Pizzerias per 100K: 4.2
> Population: 671,033
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29. Salt Lake City, Utah
> Pizzerias per 100K: 4.2
> Population: 1,098,526
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28. Indianapolis, Indiana
> Pizzerias per 100K: 4.2
> Population: 1,588,961
27. Tucson, Arizona
> Pizzerias per 100K: 4.1
> Population: 888,486
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26. Akron, Ohio
> Pizzerias per 100K: 4.1
> Population: 565,208
25. Milwaukee, Wisconsin
> Pizzerias per 100K: 4.0
> Population: 1,365,787
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24. Providence, Rhode Island
> Pizzerias per 100K: 4.0
> Population: 1,203,230
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23. Chattanooga, Tennessee
> Pizzerias per 100K: 3.9
> Population: 415,501
22. Bridgeport, Connecticut
> Pizzerias per 100K: 3.9
> Population: 924,449
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21. Kansas City, Missouri
> Pizzerias per 100K: 3.9
> Population: 1,636,715
20. Fort Worth, Texas
> Pizzerias per 100K: 3.8
> Population: 909,585
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19. Minneapolis, Minnesota
> Pizzerias per 100K: 3.7
> Population: 2,977,172
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18. Cleveland, Ohio
> Pizzerias per 100K: 3.5
> Population: 1,710,093
17. Miami, Florida
> Pizzerias per 100K: 3.4
> Population: 6,445,545
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16. Tampa, Florida
> Pizzerias per 100K: 3.3
> Population: 2,908,063
15. Flint, Michigan
> Pizzerias per 100K: 3.3
> Population: 332,190
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14. San Antonio, Texas
> Pizzerias per 100K: 3.2
> Population: 2,049,293
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13. Houston, Texas
> Pizzerias per 100K: 3.2
> Population: 5,464,251
12. Virginia Beach, Virginia
> Pizzerias per 100K: 3.0
> Population: 1,478,868
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11. Atlanta, Georgia
> Pizzerias per 100K: 2.8
> Population: 5,449,398
10. Honolulu, Hawaii
> Pizzerias per 100K: 2.7
> Population: 820,987
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9. El Paso, Texas
> Pizzerias per 100K: 2.5
> Population: 843,386
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8. Mission Viejo, California
> Pizzerias per 100K: 2.5
> Population: 590,249
7. Phoenix, Arizona
> Pizzerias per 100K: 2.4
> Population: 4,219,697
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6. Springfield, Massachusetts
> Pizzerias per 100K: 2.4
> Population: 623,401
5. Dallas, Texas
> Pizzerias per 100K: 2.2
> Population: 5,743,938
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4. Sacramento, California
> Pizzerias per 100K: 2.1
> Population: 1,898,019
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3. Concord, California
> Pizzerias per 100K: 2.1
> Population: 652,308
2. St. Louis, Missouri
> Pizzerias per 100K: 1.4
> Population: 2,024,074
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1. Detroit, Michigan
> Pizzerias per 100K: 0.9
> Population: 3,506,126
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