LA vs Chicago. which is considered more desirable without factoring in cost of living? (crime rate, skyscrapers)
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Not me. Chicago hasn't been the America's "Second City" for decades. LA is way more interesting, varied, captivating and exciting than Chicago in every way. There's a reason why it's been the slowest growing large city for so long now.
Chicago will always be regarded as the 'Second City.' It wasn't ever an official title based on size or population. It's more of a colloquial and defamatory term for describing Chicago as being New-York-lite.
It was the result of the rise of Chicago the and the many innovations that challenged New York's dominance which led to New York annexing Brooklyn, Queens and Staten Island to become a mega-city and hold Chicago at bay. To this day Chicago is the only U.S. city on offer that provides anything even approaching the scale and vibe of Manhattan. L.A. just isn't a city in that traditional sense. San Fransicso is much closer to that type of urbanism but lacks the overwhelming scale.
quality of life - LA
cost of living - Chicago (its flat, cold, midwestern so ofcourse its cheaper )
entertainment - Los Angeles.... Just staring at the scenery is entertaining enough
dining - Los Angeles, chicago has some amazing food, but I enjoy the Mexican food in LA more, and a quick drive up to Malibu and you're eating sushi on a cliff over the ocean...
shopping - LA, not close, at all...
overall vibe - LA, not close either
It's honestly not even close for me... almost anything coastal in California is going to win against Chicago
IMO LA shouldn't even be compared to Chicago, if anything it should be compared to NY...
It depends who you ask.... and a big factor is obviously weather. If you prefer seasons, Chicago will obviously appeal more. If you want sunshine year round, LA.
Both cities can have bad traffic, but LA's traffic is much worse. Also has worse air quality.
Chicago has significantly better public transportation options.
Suburbs? I like Chicago's historic, more walkable suburbs over LA's more sprawly suburb, post-war suburbs. Just MO
Shopping? Tough one to answer, really. But I'd say slight edge to Chicago.
Dining: I would say Chicago wins this, but I could see someone voting for LA here too. LA definitely excels more in Asian food, but both cities are tops in the nation for Mexican eats. Both cities have great "greasy spoon", neighborhood hamburger/hot dog/sandwich spots.
Vibe: Depends who you ask. Both cities have laid-back elements, and fast-paced elements to them.
Entertainment? Probably a draw.
QOL? IMO Chicago
Overall: I pick Chicago. But this is a pretty subjective question, as the two cities are very very different.
QOL - Chicago? No chance. The winter is depressing AF. While your stuck inside in chicago with -15 degree weather, I'm driving up the coast to big sur, which is mesmerizing in itself. Sun + Beach + palm trees + legal weed + perfect weather + mountains + desert = unlimited activities.
quality of life - LA
cost of living - Chicago (its flat, cold, midwestern so ofcourse its cheaper )
entertainment - Los Angeles.... Just staring at the scenery is entertaining enough
dining - Los Angeles, chicago has some amazing food, but I enjoy the Mexican food in LA more, and a quick drive up to Malibu and you're eating sushi on a cliff over the ocean...
shopping - LA, not close, at all...
overall vibe - LA, not close either
It's honestly not even close for me... almost anything coastal in California is going to win against Chicago
IMO LA shouldn't even be compared to Chicago, if anything it should be compared to NY...
Most global city rating agencies strongly disagree with you and have Chicago and L.A. in the same tier.
Museums: Chicago
Education: Chicago
Public Transit: Chicago
Theater: Chicago
Architecture: Chicago
Parks: Chicago
Walkability: Chicago
Dining: Chicago
Urban Core: Chicago
Mountains: L.A.
More beatutiful scenery is subjective. If you compare typical neighborhood streetscapes of each city it would be rather hard to come to the conclusion L.A. is more "beautiful" from an urbanist perspective. L.A. is severely lacking in historic masonary ornamental structures that are common building stock in Chicago. There's also entirely too many single-level buildings lining streets. There's no comparison between the built environments.
Chicago's coastline and lakefront parks are large and beautiful enough that I don't know anyone wishing it were ocean side.
Most global city rating agencies strongly disagree with you and have Chicago and L.A. in the same tier.
Museums: Chicago
Education: Chicago
Public Transit: Chicago
Theater: Chicago
Architecture: Chicago
Parks: Chicago
Walkability: Chicago
Dining: Chicago
Urban Core: Chicago
Mountains: L.A.
More beatutiful scenery is subjective. If you compare typical neighborhood streetscapes of each city it would be rather hard to come to the conclusion L.A. is more "beautiful" from an urbanist perspective. L.A. is severely lacking in historic masonary ornamental structures that are common building stock in Chicago. There's also entirely too many single-level buildings lining streets. There's no comparison between the built environments.
Chicago's coastline and lakefront parks are large and beautiful enough that I don't know anyone wishing it were ocean side.
Saying L.A. is a better food city because you happen to enjoy the Mexican food better is quite the declaration.
LA dining is different than Chicago, but there is fantastic food here. I agree Chicago is a better dining city for fine dining and European/Chinese food, but LA is fantastic at street food and Korean food for example and better than Chicago in that regard.
LA dining is different than Chicago, but there is fantastic food here. I agree Chicago is a better dining city for fine dining and European/Chinese food, but LA is fantastic at street food and Korean food for example and better than Chicago in that regard.
It's arguable for casual/street food depending on your prefernce but Chicago is well-known for its iconic comfort foods. Chicago is 30% Mexican afterall so it's not as if authentic or experimental Mexican cuisine is elusive to the city. I'll give you Korean food is 100% L.A.
As for international cuisines Chicago was ranked #4 in 2018 with 66 different national cuisines offered. L.A. is #9 with 61.
As for fine dining yes, Chicago is a tier above L.A. when it comes to Michelin Star quality restaurants though they notoriously under-rate Chicago establishments.
QOL - Chicago? No chance. The winter is depressing AF. While your stuck inside in chicago with -15 degree weather, I'm driving up the coast to big sur, which is mesmerizing in itself. Sun + Beach + palm trees + legal weed + perfect weather + mountains + desert = unlimited activities.
QOL is completely subjective, so your opinion on which city has better QOL is just as valid as mine.
I think things like LA's sprawl, traffic, smog, crowdedness and other factors reduce COL for me. Chicago is a lot cleaner and less car oriented than LA. I think Chi being more a complete "city" than LA is a big plus. I think Chi's historic neighborhoods and suburbs have a higher QOL than LA's, just MO. Some people would rather enjoy Christmastime in a city where it actually snows.
Also, Illinois has legal weed.
We get it, LA has nice weather and scenery. Those aren't the only factors to judge a city by.
For the record I love LA (have friends/family there), but Chicago is getting dogged on and underrated significantly on this thread.
LA dining is different than Chicago, but there is fantastic food here. I agree Chicago is a better dining city for fine dining and European/Chinese food, but LA is fantastic at street food and Korean food for example and better than Chicago in that regard.
QOL - Chicago? No chance. The winter is depressing AF. While your stuck inside in chicago with -15 degree weather, I'm driving up the coast to big sur, which is mesmerizing in itself. Sun + Beach + palm trees + legal weed + perfect weather + mountains + desert = unlimited activities.
Because it's always -15 degrees, lol. Earthquakes and bad air to breathe? No chance.
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