Best, Worse Places To Raise A Family In GA Ranked: New Study

A new study shows where Georgia towns lie among the best and worse places to raise a family in 2026 - and spoiler alert, they're not in the top 20.

Three Georgia cities landed on WalletHub's latest survey, published Tuesday, with one town cracking the top 50. There were a total of 182 cities on the list.

“Finding the best place to raise a family is difficult, between balancing an affordable cost of living with good educational opportunities, safety and enough recreation to keep kids entertained," WalletHub analyst Chip Lupo said in the report.

"On top of all of these factors, people also often want to raise their children close to their extended family. Therefore, current or prospective parents can benefit from narrowing down their choices to a few of the best cities that are within a reasonable drive of their family.”

Source: WalletHub

Analysts considered playgrounds, ice skating rinks, mini golf locations, walkability, bike rental facilities, attractions and other factors to determine a town's family fun level.

To compile their full list, they also examined air and water quality, infant mortality, schools, summer learning opportunities, cost of living and divorce and unemployment rates.

In the end, experts found Fremont, California to be the best town for raising families. Detroit was deemed the worst city behind Memphis, Cleveland (Ohio), Gulfport (Mississippi) and Baltimore.

Here's how Georgia towns fared:

Atlanta, No. 41 (up from 52nd)

• Total Score: 57.73
• Family Fun Rank: 12
• Health and Safety Rank: 127
• Education and Child Care Rank: 48
• Affordability Rank: 23
• Socio-economics Rank: 154

Columbus, No. 144 (down from 139th)

• Total Score: 46.23
• Family Fun Rank: 89
• Health and Safety Rank: 128
• Education and Child Care Rank: 110
• Affordability Rank: 146
• Socio-economics Rank: 135

Augusta, No. 172 (down from 170th)

• Total Score: 40.39
• Family Fun Rank: 131
• Health and Safety Rank: 169
• Education and Child Care Rank: 119
• Affordability Rank: 153
• Socio-economics Rank: 160

The new ranking gives a more in-depth look at Georgia cities than WalletHub's assessment in January, when experts evaluated states as a whole. The Peach State was positioned at No. 41 among the 50 states.

RELATED: GA Ranked Among Worst States To Raise A Family

While the City of Atlanta could arguably be the soul of Georgia, its entire metropolitan area houses millions of people. In 2025, the Atlanta Regional Commission estimated 5,285,474 million people lived in the metro's 11 counties and City of Atlanta. This means tons of families are calling metro Atlanta home.

Atlanta is also home for major sports teams, including the Falcons, Hawks, Braves and United. The Dream, Atlanta's only WNBA team, is currently on a 4-1 run and holds the No. 1 spot in the league.

If heading to a ball game is not in a family's schedule, they can also visit the Georgia Aquarium, Zoo Atlanta, the Atlanta Botanical Garden or hike one of Georgia's multitude of trails.

Families can also venture outside of Georgia and travel to one of these top 10 places to raise a family, per WalletHub:

1. Fremont, California
2. Overland Park, Kansas
3. Irvine, California
4. Plano, Texas
5. Columbia, Maryland
6. Bismarck, North Dakota
7. South Burlington, Vermont
8. Charleston, South Carolina
9. Seattle, Washington
10. Boise, Idaho

>> See WalletHub's full methodology: Best and Worst Places to Raise a Family (2026).