California Leads Happiest Cities for Young Professionals List

From San Diego to San Francisco, California is home to the happiest young professionals in the nation, CareerBliss data show.

CareerBliss analyzed more than 38,000 employee reviews from 2011 and 2012 to come up with the list, which puts Los Angeles in the top spot for having the happiest young professionals (defined as employees with less than 10 years’ experience).

The reviews measure 10 key factors that affect employee happiness, such as coworkers, room for advancement and job autonomy.

Here’s the full list of the top 20 happiest cities for young professionals:

1. Los Angeles
2. San Jose
3. Sunnyvale
4. Indianapolis
5. San Diego
6. Irvine
7. Atlanta
8. Boston
9. San Francisco
10. San Antonio
11. Las Vegas
12. Seattle
13. Irving
14. Philadelphia
15. Orlando
16. Pittsburgh
17. New York
18. Plano
19. Miami
20. Houston

“This study reveals what really matters to folks in their career,” said Heidi Golledge, CareerBliss co-founder and chief happiness officer. “It is vital for employers and young professionals to understand what factors impact their happiness so the YPs can feel empowered and know where to take their next career step or the employer can start to change their culture to create happiness.”