Vehicle Ownership in U.S. Cities Data and Map

Some cities and areas of the country are much more auto-dependent than others.

One way to assess a city's reliance on cars is to compare shares of households without access to vehicles. An estimated 8.7 percent of U.S. households were without vehicles in 2016. Car-free households are generally much more common in densely-populated urban areas and high poverty neighborhoods where residents can't afford vehicle ownership. Research also suggests younger families and one-person households are more likely to not own a car.

Another useful measure of vehicle ownership for cities is the number of vehicles per household. According to Census survey estimates, there were about 1.8 vehicles available per U.S. household in 2016.

Both vehicle statistics are shown below for jurisdictions with populations exceeding 100,000:

Jurisdiction	2015 Households Without Vehicles	2016 Households Without Vehicles	2015 Vehicles Per Household	2016 Vehicles Per Household
New York, New York	54.5%	54.4%	0.63	0.63
Newark, New Jersey	39.2%	40.3%	0.86	0.89
Jersey City, New Jersey	40.1%	37.1%	0.81	0.85
Washington, District of Columbia	36.2%	37.3%	0.89	0.86
Boston, Massachusetts	35.4%	33.8%	0.94	0.94
Cambridge, Massachusetts	30.9%	36.8%	0.90	0.86
Paterson, New Jersey	33.6%	33.0%	1.05	1.00
Hartford, Connecticut	30.3%	32.6%	1.00	0.99
San Francisco, California	31.2%	29.9%	1.07	1.10
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania	31.1%	29.5%	1.03	1.05
New Haven, Connecticut	30.4%	29.2%	1.01	1.10
Baltimore, Maryland	30.7%	28.9%	1.08	1.08
Buffalo, New York	30.0%	28.2%	1.03	1.08
Syracuse, New York	26.4%	29.2%	1.09	1.08
Elizabeth, New Jersey	28.3%	25.8%	1.08	1.17
Chicago, Illinois	26.5%	27.5%	1.11	1.12
Rochester, New York	26.8%	26.5%	1.10	1.14
Detroit, Michigan	25.3%	24.7%	1.13	1.15
Yonkers, New York	24.6%	23.5%	1.26	1.25
Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania	23.9%	23.4%	1.18	1.16
Cleveland, Ohio	23.5%	23.7%	1.15	1.19
Springfield, Massachusetts	20.8%	22.2%	1.31	1.26
Berkeley, California	19.8%	23.1%	1.29	1.23
Bridgeport, Connecticut	22.1%	20.1%	1.37	1.42
Dayton, Ohio	22.2%	19.0%	1.32	1.39
Waterbury, Connecticut	20.4%	20.6%	1.36	1.32
Cincinnati, Ohio	19.3%	21.2%	1.27	1.30
Providence, Rhode Island	21.7%	18.0%	1.21	1.27
Worcester, Massachusetts	19.6%	19.3%	1.30	1.30
New Orleans, Louisiana	18.8%	20.2%	1.28	1.26
Miami, Florida	19.9%	18.6%	1.19	1.24
St. Louis, Missouri	19.7%	18.5%	1.25	1.27
Milwaukee, Wisconsin	17.9%	18.7%	1.30	1.34
Allentown, Pennsylvania	19.2%	16.9%	1.31	1.33
Minneapolis, Minnesota	18.2%	17.1%	1.33	1.35
Lowell, Massachusetts	17.6%	16.9%	1.35	1.52
Richmond, Virginia	16.4%	18.0%	1.39	1.42
Oakland, California	17.3%	16.7%	1.44	1.45
Honolulu, Hawaii	16.6%	17.2%	1.40	1.40
Seattle, Washington	16.6%	17.1%	1.40	1.39
Peoria, Illinois	16.5%	15.4%	1.44	1.45
Atlanta, Georgia	15.2%	16.4%	1.31	1.28
Paradise, Nevada	15.2%	15.4%	1.41	1.50
Portland, Oregon	14.7%	13.7%	1.49	1.49
Birmingham, Alabama	15.8%	12.3%	1.41	1.48
Toledo, Ohio	14.7%	13.3%	1.45	1.43
Savannah, Georgia	13.9%	13.7%	1.45	1.43
Akron, Ohio	14.5%	12.9%	1.42	1.46
St. Paul, Minnesota	13.3%	13.5%	1.52	1.52
Macon-Bibb County, Georgia	13.2%	13.3%	1.55	1.60
Arlington, Virginia	13.4%	12.7%	1.38	1.40
Tucson, Arizona	14.4%	11.7%	1.49	1.54
South Bend, Indiana	12.5%	13.6%	1.44	1.43
Lansing, Michigan	12.6%	13.4%	1.41	1.45
Norfolk, Virginia	10.6%	15.0%	1.58	1.54
Rockford, Illinois	11.9%	13.4%	1.54	1.46
East Los Angeles, California	13.0%	12.0%	1.60	1.75
Everett, Washington	13.2%	11.6%	1.64	1.65
Hialeah, Florida	12.6%	12.2%	1.53	1.58
Shreveport, Louisiana	11.0%	13.6%	1.53	1.50
Grand Rapids, Michigan	12.5%	12.0%	1.51	1.56
Los Angeles, California	12.1%	12.2%	1.59	1.62
Memphis, Tennessee	11.8%	12.5%	1.49	1.47
Ann Arbor, Michigan	12.4%	11.5%	1.45	1.44
Eugene, Oregon	12.3%	11.6%	1.54	1.64
Fresno, California	11.4%	12.4%	1.64	1.63
North Charleston, South Carolina	12.7%	10.7%	1.52	1.46
Columbia, South Carolina	12.9%	10.4%	1.47	1.55
Evansville, Indiana	11.7%	11.5%	1.54	1.48
Glendale, California	11.7%	11.4%	1.65	1.67
Sunrise Manor, Nevada	11.0%	11.8%	1.60	1.66
Kansas City, Missouri	11.4%	11.3%	1.55	1.58
San Bernardino, California	11.7%	11.1%	1.71	1.80
Louisville/Jefferson County, Kentucky	11.7%	10.9%	1.60	1.61
Springfield, Illinois	11.9%	10.6%	1.52	1.52
Madison, Wisconsin	11.2%	11.2%	1.51	1.50
Chattanooga, Tennessee	11.8%	10.6%	1.53	1.54
Topeka, Kansas	9.7%	12.4%	1.57	1.52
Gainesville, Florida	10.4%	11.4%	1.48	1.44
Baton Rouge, Louisiana	10.4%	11.4%	1.54	1.55
Manchester, New Hampshire	8.1%	13.5%	1.60	1.56
Tampa, Florida	11.4%	10.1%	1.48	1.49
Clearwater, Florida	10.6%	10.9%	1.49	1.45
Stockton, California	10.5%	10.8%	1.80	1.83
Salt Lake City, Utah	10.6%	10.6%	1.60	1.62
Winston-Salem, North Carolina	11.3%	9.9%	1.63	1.68
Pasadena, California	9.7%	11.4%	1.62	1.54
Hollywood, Florida	11.4%	9.7%	1.52	1.53
Columbus, Georgia	12.4%	8.6%	1.52	1.68
Knoxville, Tennessee	9.7%	11.3%	1.57	1.59
Reno, Nevada	10.0%	10.8%	1.64	1.73
Las Vegas, Nevada	10.2%	10.5%	1.62	1.63
Tempe, Arizona	11.1%	9.4%	1.57	1.65
Long Beach, California	10.4%	10.1%	1.64	1.69
Spokane, Washington	10.9%	9.4%	1.68	1.66
Athens-Clarke County, Georgia	11.2%	9.0%	1.52	1.67
Alexandria, Virginia	10.1%	10.0%	1.38	1.34
Pueblo, Colorado	12.0%	8.1%	1.63	1.67
Stamford, Connecticut	11.0%	8.9%	1.67	1.63
Richmond, California	11.7%	8.1%	1.68	1.89
Inglewood, California	9.8%	9.8%	1.63	1.69
Montgomery, Alabama	8.5%	11.0%	1.68	1.62
Dallas, Texas	10.2%	9.1%	1.56	1.59
Indianapolis, Indiana	10.5%	8.7%	1.54	1.63
Columbus, Ohio	9.8%	9.4%	1.54	1.55
El Monte, California	10.2%	8.9%	1.83	2.05
West Palm Beach, Florida	8.6%	10.4%	1.46	1.43
El Cajon, California	10.4%	8.6%	1.67	1.73
Denver, Colorado	9.6%	9.4%	1.58	1.62
Tacoma, Washington	9.7%	9.3%	1.71	1.70
Springfield, Missouri	9.7%	9.3%	1.56	1.56
St. Petersburg, Florida	9.6%	9.3%	1.49	1.52
Kansas City, Kansas	10.1%	8.6%	1.78	1.72
Lafayette, Louisiana	10.6%	8.0%	1.60	1.60
Wilmington, North Carolina	10.1%	8.5%	1.63	1.56
Sacramento, California	10.0%	8.6%	1.61	1.65
Jackson, Mississippi	11.0%	7.6%	1.60	1.68
Durham, North Carolina	9.8%	8.7%	1.56	1.63
Arden-Arcade, California	8.8%	9.6%	1.53	1.58
Augusta-Richmond County, Georgia	9.3%	9.1%	1.68	1.69
Gresham, Oregon	9.8%	8.5%	1.68	1.87
Des Moines, Iowa	8.5%	9.6%	1.70	1.71
Tulsa, Oklahoma	9.3%	8.8%	1.63	1.62
Mobile, Alabama	9.7%	8.3%	1.60	1.65
Newport News, Virginia	9.5%	8.4%	1.63	1.69
High Point, North Carolina	8.7%	9.1%	1.65	1.66
Waco, Texas	8.7%	8.8%	1.62	1.67
Orlando, Florida	9.4%	8.2%	1.45	1.50
Phoenix, Arizona	9.1%	8.4%	1.66	1.71
Omaha, Nebraska	8.2%	9.2%	1.68	1.66
Glendale, Arizona	8.4%	9.0%	1.66	1.72
Lancaster, California	9.6%	7.7%	1.78	1.77
Brownsville, Texas	7.6%	9.6%	1.73	1.73
Little Rock, Arkansas	8.2%	8.9%	1.59	1.58
Green Bay, Wisconsin	8.6%	8.5%	1.61	1.66
Fort Lauderdale, Florida	8.8%	8.2%	1.45	1.49
Jacksonville, Florida	8.3%	8.7%	1.62	1.62
Davenport, Iowa	9.5%	7.4%	1.70	1.66
Rochester, Minnesota	7.8%	8.9%	1.68	1.68
San Antonio, Texas	8.4%	8.3%	1.68	1.71
Vallejo, California	9.0%	7.6%	1.94	2.01
Beaumont, Texas	8.8%	7.7%	1.57	1.62
Corpus Christi, Texas	8.5%	7.9%	1.75	1.77
Houston, Texas	8.3%	8.1%	1.58	1.59
Burbank, California	7.6%	8.7%	1.65	1.71
Fayetteville, North Carolina	8.9%	7.0%	1.65	1.64
El Paso, Texas	7.4%	8.4%	1.79	1.82
Fargo, North Dakota	7.0%	8.8%	1.66	1.67
Kent, Washington	7.0%	8.7%	1.98	1.85
Wichita Falls, Texas	8.7%	6.8%	1.75	1.63
Charleston, South Carolina	8.2%	7.2%	1.64	1.55
Albuquerque, New Mexico	8.5%	6.9%	1.69	1.75
Tallahassee, Florida	8.4%	6.9%	1.54	1.65
Boulder, Colorado	8.1%	7.3%	1.63	1.72
Modesto, California	8.1%	7.2%	1.82	1.86
Pompano Beach, Florida	7.8%	7.5%	1.49	1.44
Salem, Oregon	8.3%	7.0%	1.70	1.71
Warren, Michigan	7.8%	7.2%	1.65	1.73
Daly City, California	6.4%	8.6%	1.96	1.95
Lexington, Kentucky	7.2%	7.4%	1.64	1.70
Columbia, Missouri	9.0%	5.5%	1.66	1.68
Sandy Springs, Georgia	6.9%	7.6%	1.57	1.57
Hampton, Virginia	6.7%	7.8%	1.75	1.69
McAllen, Texas	6.9%	7.6%	1.72	1.72
Wichita, Kansas	7.7%	6.7%	1.73	1.80
San Angelo, Texas	8.2%	6.1%	1.64	1.66
Las Cruces, New Mexico	6.1%	8.2%	1.75	1.73
Mesa, Arizona	7.4%	6.8%	1.67	1.78
Fort Wayne, Indiana	8.0%	6.0%	1.65	1.69
Concord, California	6.9%	7.0%	1.94	1.86
Nashville-Davidson, Tennessee	7.9%	5.9%	1.66	1.72
Joliet, Illinois	7.2%	6.6%	1.83	1.91
Cedar Rapids, Iowa	7.8%	5.9%	1.72	1.75
Aurora, Colorado	7.4%	6.3%	1.82	1.85
Palmdale, California	8.1%	5.6%	1.95	2.02
Escondido, California	8.0%	5.7%	1.88	1.95
Columbia, Maryland	8.6%	5.0%	1.72	1.81
Hillsboro, Oregon	7.6%	5.9%	1.70	1.86
Metairie, Louisiana	6.3%	7.2%	1.60	1.60
Greensboro, North Carolina	6.1%	7.3%	1.64	1.61
Abilene, Texas	5.4%	8.0%	1.71	1.69
Charlotte, North Carolina	7.4%	6.0%	1.65	1.71
Independence, Missouri	7.5%	5.8%	1.70	1.70
San Buenaventura, California	7.2%	6.1%	1.85	1.91
Victorville, California	6.5%	6.6%	1.92	1.95
Tyler, Texas	6.7%	6.4%	1.61	1.63
Vancouver, Washington	5.5%	7.6%	1.72	1.75
Santa Ana, California	7.3%	5.7%	2.21	2.25
San Diego, California	6.6%	6.3%	1.76	1.80
Anchorage, Alaska	6.8%	6.1%	1.84	1.95
Huntsville, Alabama	6.6%	6.3%	1.68	1.70
Lubbock, Texas	7.3%	5.6%	1.67	1.74
Austin, Texas	6.9%	6.0%	1.65	1.65
Visalia, California	6.9%	5.9%	1.75	1.84
North Las Vegas, Nevada	7.0%	5.6%	1.84	1.89
Killeen, Texas	6.3%	6.2%	1.72	1.79
Lakeland, Florida	7.0%	5.6%	1.53	1.54
Laredo, Texas	6.5%	5.9%	1.87	1.85
Bellevue, Washington	5.5%	6.9%	1.74	1.81
Fairfield, California	4.8%	7.4%	2.03	2.01
Sioux Falls, South Dakota	6.6%	5.6%	1.79	1.82
Lincoln, Nebraska	6.3%	5.8%	1.74	1.78
Lakewood, Colorado	5.5%	6.5%	1.85	1.84
Salinas, California	6.0%	5.8%	1.96	2.09
Pomona, California	6.5%	5.3%	2.07	2.27
Miami Gardens, Florida	6.5%	5.3%	1.75	1.71
Santa Clara, California	6.0%	5.8%	1.87	1.81
Hayward, California	6.0%	5.7%	2.08	2.12
Oklahoma City, Oklahoma	6.0%	5.7%	1.78	1.82
Santa Maria, California	6.2%	5.5%	2.00	1.98
Bakersfield, California	5.5%	6.1%	1.93	1.92
Pasadena, Texas	5.8%	5.7%	1.78	1.88
Billings, Montana	4.9%	6.7%	2.05	1.91
Renton, Washington	5.5%	6.0%	1.78	1.87
Greeley, Colorado	5.7%	5.8%	1.92	1.92
Santa Rosa, California	5.3%	6.2%	1.86	1.88
Raleigh, North Carolina	5.3%	6.0%	1.69	1.74
Spring Valley, Nevada	6.1%	5.2%	1.64	1.62
Norman, Oklahoma	7.0%	4.3%	1.83	1.87
Fullerton, California	5.6%	5.5%	1.96	2.02
College Station, Texas	4.7%	6.3%	1.78	1.86
Rialto, California	6.5%	4.5%	2.22	2.22
Fort Worth, Texas	6.1%	4.8%	1.80	1.83
Anaheim, California	5.7%	5.2%	2.01	2.05
Riverside, California	5.4%	5.3%	2.05	2.04
Torrance, California	5.4%	5.2%	1.91	1.95
San Jose, California	5.5%	5.1%	2.07	2.12
Sunnyvale, California	5.6%	4.9%	1.83	1.78
Westminster, Colorado	5.9%	4.6%	1.96	1.91
Pembroke Pines, Florida	6.0%	4.3%	1.83	1.83
Colorado Springs, Colorado	5.8%	4.5%	1.80	1.85
Roseville, California	6.1%	4.2%	1.87	1.95
San Mateo, California	5.2%	5.1%	1.84	1.87
Brandon, Florida	3.7%	6.6%	1.75	1.69
Amarillo, Texas	6.1%	4.2%	1.73	1.81
Norwalk, California	4.6%	5.5%	2.21	2.27
Peoria, Arizona	5.6%	4.5%	1.85	1.91
Garden Grove, California	5.3%	4.6%	2.23	2.19
Elgin, Illinois	4.8%	5.1%	1.85	1.95
Chula Vista, California	4.9%	4.9%	1.99	2.01
Jurupa Valley, California	4.8%	4.9%	2.39	2.32
Fremont, California	4.5%	5.2%	2.10	2.12
Davie, Florida	6.5%	3.2%	1.81	1.90
Odessa, Texas	4.4%	5.2%	1.83	1.78
Clovis, California	5.5%	4.0%	1.92	1.98
Midland, Texas	5.7%	3.7%	2.05	1.93
Irving, Texas	4.5%	4.9%	1.72	1.75
Sterling Heights, Michigan	5.1%	4.2%	1.85	1.89
Boise City, Idaho	4.7%	4.6%	1.81	1.70
West Valley City, Utah	5.0%	4.3%	2.16	2.10
West Covina, California	4.1%	5.2%	2.30	2.22
Coral Springs, Florida	4.1%	5.1%	1.88	1.81
Fort Collins, Colorado	4.4%	4.8%	1.89	1.86
Palm Bay, Florida	6.2%	3.0%	1.60	1.75
Oceanside, California	5.6%	3.6%	1.89	1.92
Irvine, California	5.0%	4.0%	1.77	1.83
Antioch, California	5.7%	3.3%	2.14	2.24
Costa Mesa, California	6.0%	3.0%	1.79	2.00
Chesapeake, Virginia	4.5%	4.4%	2.02	1.99
Garland, Texas	4.6%	4.4%	1.99	2.04
Oxnard, California	4.3%	4.6%	2.20	2.10
Scottsdale, Arizona	4.4%	4.5%	1.67	1.70
Orange, California	3.7%	5.0%	2.12	2.16
Spring Hill, Florida	3.9%	4.7%	1.65	1.75
Ontario, California	4.6%	3.9%	2.04	2.15
Chandler, Arizona	4.2%	4.2%	1.82	1.85
Mesquite, Texas	4.7%	3.7%	1.92	1.96
Arlington, Texas	4.7%	3.7%	1.85	1.89
Provo, Utah	3.9%	4.5%	2.11	2.17
Lewisville, Texas	4.1%	4.3%	1.76	1.78
Virginia Beach, Virginia	4.9%	3.4%	1.93	1.98
Denton, Texas	4.9%	3.1%	1.78	1.80
Moreno Valley, California	5.0%	2.9%	2.22	2.32
Aurora, Illinois	4.0%	3.8%	1.98	1.94
Henderson, Nevada	2.8%	5.0%	1.79	1.74
Naperville, Illinois	3.3%	4.4%	1.89	1.91
Lehigh Acres, Florida	3.5%	4.2%	1.85	1.81
Santa Clarita, California	4.0%	3.7%	2.06	2.15
Murfreesboro, Tennessee	3.8%	3.8%	1.82	1.96
The Woodlands, Texas	3.3%	4.1%	1.97	1.90
Richardson, Texas	3.7%	3.7%	1.91	1.84
Arvada, Colorado	3.7%	3.6%	2.04	2.07
Olathe, Kansas	4.6%	2.7%	2.01	2.01
Grand Prairie, Texas	3.8%	3.3%	2.03	2.03
Clarksville, Tennessee	4.7%	2.4%	1.78	1.84
Overland Park, Kansas	3.9%	3.2%	1.85	1.85
Enterprise, Nevada	2.2%	4.3%	1.87	1.85
Thousand Oaks, California	3.3%	3.2%	2.07	2.09
Thornton, Colorado	3.5%	3.0%	2.10	2.14
Vista, California	3.1%	3.3%	2.15	2.14
Simi Valley, California	2.3%	4.1%	2.26	2.29
Broken Arrow, Oklahoma	3.2%	3.0%	2.03	2.00
McKinney, Texas	3.8%	2.4%	1.89	1.95
Corona, California	3.5%	2.6%	2.17	2.29
Port St. Lucie, Florida	3.6%	2.6%	1.76	1.79
Cape Coral, Florida	3.0%	3.0%	1.72	1.78
Fontana, California	3.1%	2.7%	2.37	2.27
Downey, California	3.7%	2.1%	2.11	2.19
Rancho Cucamonga, California	2.7%	3.0%	2.15	2.12
Round Rock, Texas	2.8%	2.7%	1.93	1.99
Carlsbad, California	2.2%	3.0%	1.99	2.01
Elk Grove, California	3.4%	1.8%	2.16	2.21
Plano, Texas	2.8%	2.4%	1.90	1.93
Huntington Beach, California	2.6%	2.2%	1.98	1.99
Miramar, Florida	2.5%	2.3%	1.97	2.00
Carrollton, Texas	2.2%	2.5%	1.91	1.91
Centennial, Colorado	2.6%	1.7%	2.10	2.15
Murrieta, California	3.5%	0.7%	2.12	2.36
Highlands Ranch, Colorado	2.7%	1.5%	2.07	2.04
Cary, North Carolina	2.4%	1.4%	1.94	1.89
Pearland, Texas	2.4%	1.4%	1.99	2.18
Surprise, Arizona	2.4%	1.3%	1.87	1.87
League City, Texas	2.6%	1.0%	2.04	2.15
Gilbert, Arizona	1.9%	1.7%	2.04	2.08
West Jordan, Utah	1.9%	1.3%	2.14	2.30
Frisco, Texas	1.1%	2.0%	2.05	2.00
Temecula, California	1.0%	2.0%	2.24	2.25

Source: Governing calculations of 2015 and 2016 one-year Census American Community Survey estimates. Note that one-year estimates have high margins of error for smaller cities.

Cars Per Household for U.S. Cities Map

The following map shows numbers of vehicles per household, calculated using two-year averages from 2015 and 2016 Census survey estimates. Data is shown for the 200 most populated cities, with cities having more vehicles shaded dark orange.

Click a city to display its measures. Zoom in to view cities clustered together, or pan the map for Alaska and Hawaii.