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I live in Philly now but have been to Buffalo many times. Buffalo's location in New York State might meant that it is not technically a Midwestern City but culturally it has a lot more in common with people in Ohio, Michigan, Wisconsin than people in NYC, Boston, Philly, and DC. This includes the accents which are pretty typical great lakes area accents. Buffalo is a small City but it punches above its weight. Has a good beer scene, decent restaurant scene and there is a good amount of civic pride.
Buffalo has some cool walkable neighborhoods like Allentown. However, I think it would be unpleasant to live in Buffalo without a car as it has poor public transportation. It only has one sparsely used "subway" line that is mostly used by UB students. Philly, by contrast, has multiple subway liens, regional riles, trolley lines and the rest of the City is covered by a pretty extensive bus system. Most neighborhoods are walkable and you can easily live without a car. I did it for 6 years and had no complaint.
The people are extremely friendly but there are not a lot of transplants which might make it difficult to meet people.
Philly wins all the of the categories that you list. It has a better and more diverse economy, significantly more culture (any way you measure it), is more fast paced, more walkable, significantly better public transportation. Buffalo may win the "after hours" category as many of the bars stay open until 4am. Buffalo also has better Junk food (love the beef on weck!). The ethnic neighborhoods in Buffalo will mostly be white ethnic; primarily Polish, Irish, and Italian. Philly has those but also has a prominent Chinatown which has Chinese, Vietnamese, Thai, Buremese, Japense, and Korean populations. There are significant Cambodian and Vietnamese areas in South Philly and North Philly, Korean populations in North Philly. NE Philly has significant Russian, Polish, Mongolian, Brazilian areas as well. Neither City, however, is as cosmopolitan as places like NYC or DC.
Sorry for the steam of consciousness. I am happy to answer specific questions.
Buffalo’s Lower West Side is where you will find your SE Asian, African and other recent immigrant/refugee communities. An example of this: The West Side Bazaar
It is an area similar to South Philly, where it was once the center of the local Italian community, which is still there, but has a little bit of everything. Much of the city’s Hispanic/Latino community(mainly Puerto Rican) is concentrated on the West Side too.
which is more suitable for a young female teen studying IT,Love Tall BUILDINGS without a car?
More vibrant culture, lively, after-hours, fast paced, walkable, good transportation, economy, whats the different between those two in specific details?
I do not know what is the difference between a mid western or a east cost feel as I'm not from the US. I'm from Asia
Given what you're asking for, it's Philadelphia by a very large stretch. Buffalo is a wonderful city, but on every thing you've listed, Philadelphia is better and one of the best cities in the entirety of the US for what you're asking for. Philadelphia is a gem of a city when it comes to a lively, walkable city and its both a much larger city and a faster growing city than Buffalo. It's much easier to live in Philadelphia without a car because it's so dense and easily walkable and at the same time has much better public transportation. That contributes to it being more vibrant, lively, and faster-paced. It has much taller buildings than Buffalo as well.
One thing to ask is if you're studying within the city of Philadelphia itself or if you're going to a college further out in the Philadelphia area. If it's between going to school in the suburbs of Philadelphia and going to the University of Buffalo within the city itself, then you might have a closer competition.
Yeah, I love Buffalo but it really isn't a competition. It is like comparing Buffalo to Erie, PA. Buffalo has a lot to offer, but Philadelphia has all of it and more.
which is more suitable for a young female teen studying IT,Love Tall BUILDINGS without a car?
More vibrant culture, lively, after-hours, fast paced, walkable, good transportation, economy, whats the different between those two in specific details?
I do not know what is the difference between a mid western or a east cost feel as I'm not from the US. I'm from Asia
Visit both cities; decide for yourself. Good luck.
Given what you're asking for, it's Philadelphia by a very large stretch. Buffalo is a wonderful city, but on every thing you've listed, Philadelphia is better and one of the best cities in the entirety of the US for what you're asking for. Philadelphia is a gem of a city when it comes to a lively, walkable city and its both a much larger city and a faster growing city than Buffalo. It's much easier to live in Philadelphia without a car because it's so dense and easily walkable and at the same time has much better public transportation. That contributes to it being more vibrant, lively, and faster-paced. It has much taller buildings than Buffalo as well.
One thing to ask is if you're studying within the city of Philadelphia itself or if you're going to a college further out in the Philadelphia area. If it's between going to school in the suburbs of Philadelphia and going to the University of Buffalo within the city itself, then you might have a closer competition.
UB is barely within city limits and its North Campus is in Amherst. I’d say if it is between Canisius or Buffalo State(in the Elmwood Village neighborhood) and say maybe Villanova or West Chester State in terms of an urban versus suburban/satellite city campus, that would be more in line with what you are referring to in the last portion.
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