No surprise, right? Well, at least one of the picks is genuinely unexpected, and so are multiple omissions.
Count down the top ten below, complete with photos and text excerpts from the original Movoto post, which contains more information about how the rankings were determined.
Number 10: Los AngelesThe fact that Los Angeles didn't place higher also came as quite a surprise. As the second-largest city out of the 100 we surveyed (only New York City is larger), it simply couldn't hold up when looked at on a per-capita basis. That didn't keep it from posting an impressive ninth place result for dispensaries, with one for every 10,324 of its 3.8 million residents....Number 9: Sacramento
For a state where marijuana use isn't entirely legal, California's capital sure placed well. In fact, Sacramento placed sixth overall in terms of dispensaries per capita, with one for every 8,141 people who live in the city....Continue to keep counting down the ten highest American cities -- and the three Colorado places on the list. Number 8: San Francisco
Honestly, going into this study we expected San Francisco to place much higher. After all, the City by the Bay is pretty much synonymous with hippie culture, and anyone who's ventured near Hippie Hill in Golden Gate Park, oh, any time of day will tell you that weed culture is going strong in the city. Despite this, and other signs of prolific pot use in the city, it only managed an 11th placed finish for dispensaries with one for every 10,421 residents....Number 7: Irvine, California
Proving that pot smokers come from every walk of life, the uber-affluent Orange County city of Irvine found its way into our top 10. Its placing had more to do with per-capita head shops than dispensaries, though; it has one place to purchase paraphernalia for every 15,395 residents, versus one dispensary for every 43,106 people who call it home....Continue to keep counting down the ten highest American cities -- and the three Colorado places on the list. Number 6: Santa Ana, California
We head back to California, and more specifically Orange County-which, between Santa Ana and our No. 7 city should be renamed Pot-Green County. Santa Ana placed seventh overall in terms of per-capita dispensaries, having one for every 8,903 residents. It also managed a second-place finish for head shops, with one of those for every 10,981 folks who live in the city....Number 5: Aurora, Colorado
The fact that Aurora is the third Colorado city on our list is largely due to the state's legalization of recreational pot use, sure, but medical users of the herb also helped it place this highly. Aurora actually placed first for the number of medical marijuana card holders who live there, a number that's slightly more than 2.1 percent, edging out Denver and Colorado Springs for that distinction....Continue to keep counting down the ten highest American cities -- and the three Colorado places on the list. Number 4: San Bernardino, California
As you've probably already noticed, our top 10 is decidedly West Coast (and California) centric. When it comes to weed in the Golden State, San Bernardino smokes the rest-even if it doesn't have the best munchies, or the most dispensaries. It placed 17th for those, with one for every 23,668 residents....Number 3: Seattle
When your city hosts a three-day festival devoted to marijuana and hemp that's attended by thousands of ganja aficionados, you know it takes pot pretty seriously. When it places fourth out of the nation's 100 largest cities in terms of per-capita dispensaries, that's another big indication. In fact, Seattle has one weed-dealing shop for every 4,850 people who live there-and sales under Initiative 502 aren't even going to start until later in 2014....Continue to keep counting down the ten highest American cities -- and the three Colorado places on the list. Number 2: Colorado Springs
This one wasn't a big surprise, what with Colorado Springs being in Colorado. Still, that wasn't the only reason why the city ranked so highly. Despite being nearly 200,000 residents smaller than Denver, Colorado Springs managed a respectable 13th place ranking for dispensaries per capita. This city, usually associated with recreational activities that don't involve smoking plants, has one dispensary for every 14,213 residents....Number 1: Denver
Here's something that will blow your mind, dude: Denver didn't come in first in terms of the number of dispensaries per capita. Nope, that distinction went to Winston-Salem, NC. Denver was no slouch, with one dispensary for every 3,780 residents-and that's before the more than 100 others recently awarded licenses to sell pot in Colorado have opened up shop. Winston-Salem, however, trumped it with a whopping one dispensary for every 1,560 residents....
Send your story tips to the author, Michael Roberts.
More from our Lists & Weirdness archive circa December 2013: "Photos: Movoto's ten best American cities for 2013 -- and where Denver lands."
