The Best U.S. Cities for Playground Access 2025 (Dream Garden Global Study)

 

🌈 Introduction

At Dream Garden, we believe playgrounds are more than just places to burn energy — they are where confidence, coordination, and creativity begin to grow.
A well-designed play space helps children move freely, connect with others, and develop essential physical and social skills. Whether outdoors in local parks or indoors in community play centers, accessible playgrounds shape healthier, happier childhoods.

That’s why Dream Garden analyzed how well U.S. cities make space for kids to play, combining local park accessibility with the number of playgrounds available for families.

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🏆 Where Kids Have Room to Play

According to Dream Garden’s new analysis of 99 major U.S. cities, Cincinnati, Las Vegas, and Madison lead the nation in playground accessibility.

The study compared:

• the number of playgrounds per 10,000 children, and

• the percentage of residents within a 10-minute walk of a park,

to create a Playground Access Score reflecting both availability and proximity.

Cincinnati tops the list with nearly 48 playgrounds per 10,000 children and 91% of residents living within a short walk of a park.
Las Vegas, despite its desert climate, boasts the highest playground density in the country (56 per 10,000 children).
Madison, where 98% of residents live within a 10-minute walk of a park, demonstrates how thoughtful city planning makes communities family-friendly.

Other top performers — Irvine, San Francisco, Sacramento, Minneapolis, Boston, Chicago, and Pittsburgh — show that both warm and cold climates can support accessible, inclusive outdoor play through public investment and planning.

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🥇 Full Ranking: 2025 U.S. Playground Access Index

Rank	City	Playgrounds (count)	Playgrounds per 10k children	Residents within 10-min walk (%)	Playground Access Score
1	Cincinnati, OH	349	47.61	91	85.80
2	Las Vegas, NV	906	56.09	70	79.17
3	Madison, WI	192	32.6	98	76.58
4	Irvine, CA	220	28.53	94	69.98
5	San Francisco, CA	281	23.98	100	69.88
6	Sacramento, CA	346	27.14	89	65.21
7	Minneapolis, MN	175	19.42	99	64.91
8	Boston, MA	200	17.05	100	63.38
9	Chicago, IL	1033	18.33	98	63.20
10	Pittsburgh, PA	120	20.93	94	62.86
11	Denver, CO	276	18.73	96	62.18
12	St. Paul, MN	125	15.46	99	61.20
13	Norfolk, VA	165	30.62	78	60.83
14	Milwaukee, WI	278	17.9	95	60.71
15	St. Louis, MO	91	15.41	98	60.46
16	Portland, OR	261	21.89	89	60.28
17	Seattle, WA	157	12.48	99	58.40
18	Washington, DC	147	11.23	99	57.23
19	Oakland, CA	167	18.96	88	56.84
20	New York, NY	1926	10.75	99	56.78
21	Lincoln, NE	138	18	89	56.64
22	Richmond, VA	108	22.26	81	55.08
23	Atlanta, GA	218	21.27	82	54.84
24	Albuquerque, NM	183	14.53	91	54.77
25	Jersey City, NJ	36	5.48	100	52.53
26	Spokane, WA	86	15.61	86	52.31
27	Plano, TX	130	19.15	81	52.16
28	Cleveland, OH	115	13.54	88	51.76
29	Miami, FL	97	12.22	89	51.21
30	Philadelphia, PA	275	7.69	95	51.13
31	Buffalo, NY	81	11.39	90	51.13
32	St. Petersburg, FL	91	20.06	78	50.93
33	Baltimore, MD	133	10.96	88	49.34
34	Boise, ID	113	20.92	74	48.96
35	Henderson, NV	97	13.01	84	48.48
36	Toledo, OH	90	13.6	83	48.34
37	Omaha, NE	195	14.91	81	48.18
38	Aurora, CO	86	8.26	89	47.50
39	Virginia Beach, VA	245	22.66	69	47.12
40	Corpus Christi, TX	144	17.9	75	46.82
41	San Jose, CA	320	14.39	79	46.31
42	Newark, NJ	34	4.05	92	45.64
43	Detroit, MI	168	9.95	84	45.61
44	Dallas, TX	381	11.87	81	45.33
45	New Orleans, LA	101	12.05	80	44.81
46	Anchorage, AK	90	12.5	77	43.14
47	Long Beach, CA	81	8.22	82	42.60
48	Arlington, VA	168	15.99	71	42.25
49	Arlington, TX	168	15.99	71	42.25
50	Colorado Springs, CO	137	11.43	77	42.14
51	San Diego, CA	222	7.71	81	41.43
52	Reno, NV	77	12.02	75	41.31
53	Chula Vista, CA	100	13.89	70	39.59
54	Glendale, AZ	74	10.84	73	38.81
55	Stockton, CA	75	8.03	75	37.56
56	Chesapeake, VA	175	26.63	49	36.95
57	Orlando, FL	62	8.55	72	35.97
58	Kansas City, MO	132	10.64	69	35.84
59	Honolulu County, HI	147	6.66	74	35.58
60	Tulsa, OK	139	13.05	64	34.63
61	Austin, TX	217	10.05	68	34.60
62	Tucson, AZ	137	11.29	66	34.37
63	Fort Worth, TX	253	8.96	69	34.27
64	Fremont, CA	47	8.09	70	34.15
65	El Paso, TX	208	11.85	64	33.51
66	Frisco, TX	50	7.1	70	33.22
67	Irving, TX	79	11.58	63	32.56
68	Greensboro, NC	108	14.54	59	32.56
69	Santa Ana, CA	36	4.56	72	32.23
70	Lexington-Fayette County, KY	102	12.99	60	31.80
71	Chandler, AZ	97	13.6	59	31.68
72	Tampa, FL	92	9.86	64	31.64
73	Gilbert, AZ	24	2.78	72	30.56
74	Anaheim, CA	60	7.36	65	29.99
75	Houston, TX	502	8.78	63	29.93
76	Fresno, CA	79	4.87	66	28.35
77	Laredo, TX	80	9.84	59	28.15
78	Garland, TX	41	6.34	63	27.64
79	North Las Vegas, NV	53	6.56	62	27.16
80	Mesa, AZ	75	5.79	63	27.13
81	Los Angeles, CA	393	4.99	62	25.68
82	Durham, NC	109	15.65	46	24.57
83	Santa Clarita, CA	55	9.7	51	22.46
84	Wichita, KS	85	8.11	51	20.97
85	Lubbock, TX	57	7.89	51	20.76
86	Phoenix, AZ	276	6.33	52	20.00
87	Nashville-Davidson County, TN	166	10.17	44	18.04
88	Louisville-Jefferson County, KY	210	14.06	38	17.52
89	Raleigh, NC	122	11.01	42	17.44
90	Scottsdale, AZ	39	10.54	41	16.31
91	Bakersfield, CA	132	10.54	41	16.31
92	San Antonio, TX	218	5.97	47	16.19
93	Riverside, CA	40	4.85	48	15.83
94	Memphis, TN	112	6.98	45	15.74
95	Oklahoma City, OK	139	7.35	40	12.62
96	Jacksonville, FL	236	9.96	35	11.60
97	Charlotte-Mecklenburg County, NC	195	6.7	39	11.32
98	Winston-Salem, NC	49	7.58	36	10.06
99	Port St. Lucie, FL	27	5.22	28	2.29

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🚗 Where Play Is Harder to Find

At the lower end of the ranking, cities such as Port St. Lucie (FL), Winston-Salem (NC), and Charlotte (NC) scored lowest for playground access. Families there often depend on car travel for outdoor recreation.
Large cities like Los Angeles and Houston also face accessibility challenges due to vast, car-dependent layouts.

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🗺️ Regional Patterns

Midwestern and West Coast cities perform better overall thanks to long-standing park systems and strong local recreation budgets.
California demonstrates remarkable consistency, placing six cities in the Top 25 despite dense populations.

By contrast, Southern metros lag behind due to suburban sprawl and limited investment in public green space.
Hotter climates further restrict outdoor play, making indoor playgrounds and recreational centers essential for safe, year-round activity.

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💬 Why Playground Access Matters

“Cities that make it easy for kids to be active year-round — whether outdoors in local parks or indoors at play centers — are giving them a real head start,”
says Stefan Zhang, CEO and Founder of Dream Garden Amusement Equipment.

“The CDC recommends at least one hour of movement each day, but many children fall short when weather or schedules keep them indoors.
Having both outdoor and indoor playgrounds nearby makes play a consistent part of life, not just something that happens when the sun’s out.”

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🧠 About the Study

The 2025 Dream Garden U.S. Playground Access Ranking draws on data from the Trust for Public Land’s ParkServe database and the National Recreation and Park Association (NRPA).

Indicators:

• Number of playgrounds per 10,000 children

• Percentage of residents living within a 10-minute walk of a park

Both were normalized and averaged to produce the Playground Access Score, representing how easily families can reach and enjoy play spaces.

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🌈 Supporting Active Childhoods

Dream Garden designs and manufactures indoor playground equipment for schools, community centers, and family entertainment venues worldwide.
Through studies like this, the company aims to highlight how access to play — whether in public parks or safe indoor spaces — helps children grow stronger, happier, and more connected to their communities.

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Source: Dream Garden 2025 U.S. Playground Access Study
Website: https://www.toymakerinchina.com/news-show/how-uschina-tariffs-are-redefining-playground-access-dream-gardens-2025-study-on-where-kids-play-and-how-factories-adapt.html