Cincinnati is a mid-sized city with the amenities of a big one, without being crowded. There are a lot of Fortune 500 companies with plenty of high-paying jobs along with a low cost of living. Those companies attract people of all ages, and at all wages. The great jobs vs. low costs is an incredible appealing draw to the city. 

A description of what's great about Cinci from a local: *Cincinnati has a lot of history. We have a lot of wonderful Art Deco and Victorian architecture. We have the second largest cemetery in the country and it is also a historic site and botanical garden (a favorite place to bike and jog) we also have one of the largest urban forests in the country. The water treatment and groundwater management is progressive. This fall I had a wonderful day canoeing the Mill Creek, a former dump site for industrial waste that cuts through the city and has been reclaimed. The parks and the river are lovely. We have a great zoo.*


Easy to get a job

The Best Thing About Cincinnati?

Cincinnatians bemoan the lack of a central subway system and a poor transit system overall. Car ownership is a given, but parking is also hard. And despite the lack of crowds, traffic can get snarled and cumbersome. While you get the amenities of a bigger city it is missing the public transport of one. 

Locals pov on the transport issue: *Will Cincinnati ever have a decent transit system?
I feel like a big limiting factor in Downtown/OTR/West End development is the fact for every desk at an office, table at a restaurant, or seat at a concert space you basically need a parking spot. This means for everything that’s built at least half the space is dedicated to parking. Maybe more depending on the density of use (eg Resturants have a greater people density than apartments)*

*This greatly limits the amount of stuff in Central Cincinnati. Since unless you’re building some mega project it’s going to be a surface lot. And that’s going to waste a lot of space. And I think after Coronavirus a lot of outdoor spaces are going to stay since for 8 months a year it’s really nice. This means competition for street space between Parking and Dining will likely increase. Cincinnati has an amazing urban fabric it’s just can’t really be infilled much without transit.*

Hard to get around.

The Worst Thing About Cincinnati?

The city of Cincinnati is much like any other big-ish city. Lots of young people, going out and enjoying a good social life at a growing bar/club, restaurant scene. Downtown is also home to the shocking, to some, world-class performing arts culture. A Symphony, Pops, Orchestra, Contemporary Arts Center and Art Museum means you can get your fill of culture downtown when you’re in the mood, and you can get your fill of partying if that’s your mood. https://wandercincinnati.com/2019/09/17/gaslight-district-cincinnati/


If you want to get more details on what locals get up to for fun and culture check out the calendar of events: https://www.visitcincy.com/events/

Lifestyle Of Cincinnati

First of all, know that Cinci is “booming”. Other cities like Austin and Nashville get a lot of attention but if you’re looking for work Cincinnati is a great option. An outsized number of Fortune 500 companies (including Proctor & Gamble), major retailers, and two massive hospital systems keeps the economy jumping. Terrible driving is apparently a thing here and there is virtually no strong public transport system, so if you have to commute that will probably be painful. On the other hand many of the companies here as everywhere are going hybrid or wfh so the inexpensive housing and cost of living will make up for those days you do have to make the drive. 


Workstyle Of Cincinnati

Cincinnati is in acceleration mode. The population is growing, the job market is growing, the downtown social and cultural scene are growing. If there is a reason to move here it is centered around the incredible energy and enthusiasm for the city that comes with that growth. Come here because the people that live here love it. 


Growth

Why You Should Move Here Now?

**The Best Thing About Cincinnati?** Easy to get a job

Cincinnati is a mid sized city with the amenities of a big one, without being crowded. There are a lot of Fortune 500 companies with plenty of high-paying jobs along with a low cost of living. Those companies attract people of all ages, and at all wages. 

**The Worst Thing About Cincinnati?** Hard to get around

Cincinnatians bemoan the lack of a central subway system and a poor transit system overall. Car ownership is a given, but parking is also hard. And despite the lack of crowds, traffic can get snarled and cumbersome. While you get the amenities of a bigger city it is missing the public transport of one. 

**How You Living?** Like a city mouse

Cincinnati has a lot of diversity in its neighborhoods. If you’re looking for fancy check out Hyde Park. Have a preference for a mix of beautiful housing and a great social scene? Head to the Clifton Gaslight District. Prefer a downtown nightlife with loft living, and the downtown ballparks nearby? Then you should look at The Banks. Finally, if you’re looking for a cool neighborhood with beautiful historic Victorians check out Columbia-Tusculum. It’s known as the “San Francisco of Cincinnati”.  

**Why You Should Move Here Now?** Growth

Cincinnati is in acceleration mode. The population is growing, the job market is growing, the downtown social and cultural scene are growing. If there is a reason to move here it is centered around the incredible energy and enthusiasm for the city that comes with that growth. Come here because the people that live here love it. 


The Clifton Gaslight District, just north of downtown,  is a cool spot to start your search for a neighborhood to live in. It’s near the UC campus so there’s plenty of bars, good interesting eats, a movie theater and boutique shopping. The housing off of the main commercial streets are really interesting as well. Historic homes that house students, professors and young professionals mean you don’t have to live in a high rise apartment building to call this area home. https://wandercincinnati.com/2019/09/17/gaslight-district-cincinnati/  

Downtown is another interesting option. Close to a lot of the companies in the city, so walking to work becomes your new best friend. It’s also surrounded by bars, restaurants and the stadiums and ballparks of the sports teams, so good choice if you want the social scene but also want an extremely high walkscore for your apartment/condo. 
- Gaslight District
- Downtown


Young Professionals

Gaslight District

East Walnut Hills is a good spot for those who still crave a social scene but are looking for something a bit more upscale and a bit less noisy or crowded. Just ten minutes from downtown, the area has nice restaurants, cocktail bars and breweries, and more chill coffee and neighborhood hangouts when it’s one of those lazy days. 
- East Walnut Hills
- Hyde Park
- Mount Adams


DINKs/SINKs

East Walnut Hills

Northside is the neighborhood in Cincy most noted as welcoming to the LGBTQ+ community. It really started in the 80’s when historic but aging homes in Northside were depressed in prices and LGBTQ+ community started buying them up, renovating and creating infrastructure and support events and groups in the neighborhood. This led to the area hosting the Pride Parade and Festival, and a number of different boutique shops, restaurants and bars that are owned by and cater to the community. https://www.lesbianrealestateagents.com/blog/northside-cincinnati-ohios-progressive-gay-village/
- Northside


LGBTQ+

Northside

Mount Lookout is a great place to start a search for families. The homes are beautiful, but by national city standards, reasonable. It has some of the best schools in the city and maybe more interestingly it has seemingly nonstop festivals for kids and grownups including the big Fall Festival - with pumpkin carving, costumes and prizes! There is also a massive park with trails for biking, hiking and running, playgrounds, ball fields, gardens and stunning views of the city. Right next to Mount Lookout is Hyde Park -  another great option for families. Incredible schools, a great mix of big historic homes and modern condos if you’re looking for something that takes less work, and tons of things for families to do at the parks, playgrounds and Observatory that are all walkable within the neighborhood. 
- Hyde Park
- Oakley
- Pleasant Ridge
- Mount Lookout


Families

Hyde Park

Cincinnati

**What are the pros and cons of living in Cincinnati Ohio?**

Pros:

- Beautiful setting with verdant hills and the Ohio River.
- Great architecture, especially Art Deco highlighted by the magnificent Union Terminal (now Museum Center).
- A variety of urban neighborhood choices, from historic Over The Rhine and Clifton to tony Hyde Park to cozy Mount Lookout.
- A great downtown.
- World-class arts, especially music with the Cincinnati Symphony, Cincinnati Pops, Cincinnati Chamber Orchestra, May Festival, etc. And don’t forget the Contemporary Arts Center, Art Museum, Aronoff Center, Music Hall and College Conservatory of Music at the University of Cincinnati.
- Excellent healthcare and hospitals.
- Generally strong and diverse economy for a Midwestern city.
- Friendly people.

Cons:

- Cincinnati has a history of racial trouble, most recently with the 2001 riots. The city has worked on this but it has a long way to go.
- Pockets of entrenched poverty.
- Icy roads and sidewalks a few times a year.



**What are the pros and cons of living in Cincinnati Ohio?**

If you like biking tough terrain we have lots of hills for you. The cost of living is very affordable. We have pro sports teams and an active cultural scene. We have one of the best library systems in the country and a terrific university. It's a manageable urban environment. You can drive most places in the city in 20 minutes. We dont have a subway but the buses are good. There are more than 100 neighborhoods and they all have their own character and their own economics and politics. Where you live will greatly influence how you feel about living here.

Cincinnati has a lot of history. We have a lot of wonderful Art Deco and Victorian architecture. We have the second largest cemetery in the country and it is also a historic site and botanical garden (a favorite place to bike and jog) we also have one of the largest urban forests in the country. The water treatment and groundwater management is progessive. This fall I had a wonderful day canoeing the Mill Creek, a former dump site for industrial waste that cuts through the city and has been reclaimed. The parks and the river are lovely. We have a great zoo.

The worst thing about the city is the city govts tendency to impede economic progress with indecision and short sighted planning. That, and I-75 has been a mess for the last 10 years. Because it is hilly people drive everywhere so it's easy to put on weight. The city tends to be a bit stodgy but there are pockets of progressive thinking, so it's not hopeless. Because we are in a river valley, some folks experience more allergies here. We have more chili parlors than anywhere in the US but it has Greek and Turkish roots and they dump it on spaghetti. I'm not sure if that's a pro or a con.

**What are the pros and cons of living in Cincinnati Ohio?**

I love Cincy, so this might be a little biased.

Pros:

•A cultural melting pot (Jewish, German, African, you name it)

•A “Safe Haven” city

•Finlay Market

•Headquarters for P&G, Kroger, and a handful of other companies

•UC campus

•Beautiful old architecture (from Gothic to Art Deco) and lots & lots of history

•Flying Pig Marathon

•The Reds baseball team

•Skyline Chili

•Beautiful sports stadiums

•Vine Street and all of its wonders

•Graeter’s ice cream (yes, it's spelled that way!)

•Cincinnati Reds Hall of Fame & Museum

•Ice skating at Fountain Square in the winter

•Cincinnati museum & historic train station

•LaRosa’s pizza

•Annual LGBT+ Pride

•Comic Con at the Duke Energy Convention Center

•Overall a clean, beautiful city

**What's it like to live in Cincinnati?**

The cost of living is cheap compared to most other "major" cities. I have that in quotations because Cincinnati is a large city with a small town feel. I personally like that, but others may not.

You can live well on $50k if you don't have expensive tastes, it's pretty moderate but if you can't get a place where you want chances are there's a neighborhood 10 minutes away that's more budget friendly.

As for activities, lots of bars and breweries, plenty of green spaces and sports activities for almost everything if you're willing to go minor league/college on some. Don't discount that, they're still good teams. I also personally think we punch above our weight class in regards to the arts. We don't get as many concerts though, which is a pain but if it's something you really want, chances are it's within a moderate drive. Places like Columbus, Indy, and Louisville are all approximately 90 minutes away.

**Pros and Cons of Living in Cincinnati, OH.** 
I've lived in the Cincinnati and Northern Kentucky area for over 30 years, and I've surveyed local residents to find what they LOVE and HATE about living in Cincinnati.

Cincinnati, Ohio

A Square Deal

Looklyloo Score: 84