The 10 Best Cities For Hippies In Idaho For 2024


The hippiest cities in Idaho are Sandpoint and Middleton for 2024 based on Saturday Night Science.

You might think that the whole hippie movement has faded away, but the truth is, there are plenty of hippies out there in Idaho.

While they aren’t necessarily in your face all the time with war protests, and the next Woodstock isn’t being planned any time soon, we thought it would be fun to look at which cities in the Gem State where the most hippies would live.

And, after crunching the data, you know what? It was spot on.

How do you decide where the most hippies live? By the number of yoga studios, organic markets, and most importantly, where the liberals live in droves.

Using those criteria, it’s not hard to scrape the internet, run some scientific data on where hippies might live in Idaho, and then put out a list.

So, put on your tie-dye shirt and sandals as you go through this list with us.


Table Of Contents: Top Ten | Methodology | Summary | Table


The 10 Cities In Idaho With The Largest Hispanic Population For 2024

  1. Sandpoint
  2. Middleton
  3. Chubbuck
  4. Hayden
  5. Payette
  6. Ammon
  7. Hailey
  8. Moscow
  9. Coeur d’Alene
  10. Lewiston

Best Places For Hippies In Idaho Map

What’s the hippiest city in Idaho? The hippiest city in Idaho is Sandpoint.

Read on below to see where your town ranked, Young Flower Child.

Sandpoint, ID

Source: Wikipedia User Mitchazenia | CC BY-SA 4.0
Overall SnackAbility

8
/10

Population: 7,497
% Liberal: 35.1%
More on Sandpoint: Data | Crime | Cost Of Living | Real Estate

Middleton, ID

Source: Wikipedia User | CC BY-SA 4.0
Overall SnackAbility

6
/10

Population: 5,898
% Liberal: 30.0%
More on Middleton: Data | Crime | Cost Of Living | Real Estate

Chubbuck, ID

Source: Wikipedia User Ken Lund | CC BY-SA 2.0
Overall SnackAbility

8
/10

Population: 14,117
% Liberal: 37.5%
More on Chubbuck: Data | Crime | Cost Of Living | Real Estate

Hayden, ID

Source: Wikipedia User Nancy Reilly Young | CC BY-SA 3.0
Overall SnackAbility

6
/10

Population: 13,588
% Liberal: 31.5%
More on Hayden: Data | Cost Of Living | Real Estate

Payette, ID

Source: Wikipedia User Ian Poellet | CC BY-SA 4.0
Overall SnackAbility

5
/10

Population: 7,447
% Liberal: 26.7%
More on Payette: Data | Crime | Cost Of Living | Real Estate

Ammon, ID

Source: Wikipedia User Sociotard | CC BY 3.0
Overall SnackAbility

7
/10

Population: 14,257
% Liberal: 22.9%
More on Ammon: Data | Cost Of Living | Real Estate

Hailey, ID

Source: Public domain
Overall SnackAbility

8
/10

Population: 7,961
% Liberal: 58.8%
More on Hailey: Data | Crime | Cost Of Living | Real Estate

Moscow, ID

Source: Wikipedia User cheryl.reed | CC BY 2.0
Overall SnackAbility

8
/10

Population: 24,406
% Liberal: 49.5%
More on Moscow: Data | Crime | Cost Of Living | Real Estate

Coeur D'Alene, ID

Source: Wikipedia User | CC-BY-SA-3.0
Overall SnackAbility

8
/10

Population: 45,848
% Liberal: 31.5%
More on Coeur D’alene: Data | Crime | Cost Of Living | Real Estate

Lewiston, ID

Source: Wikipedia User Iidxplus at English Wikipedia | GFDL
Overall SnackAbility

6
/10

Population: 32,178
% Liberal: 38.3%
More on Lewiston: Data | Crime | Cost Of Living | Real Estate

Methodology: How we determined the most beatnik city in Idaho

In order to rank the best cities for hippies in Idaho, we used Saturday Night Science to determine what criteria defines a hippie.

We threw a lot of criteria at this one in order to get the best, most complete results possible. Using the Google Places API, the Census’s 2018-2022 American Community Survey, and Voter Registration data, this is the criteria we used:

  • Number of yoga studios per capita
  • Number of organic markets per capita
  • Number of pet adoption centers per capita
  • Number of vegan restaurants per capita
  • Number of thrift stores per capita
  • Each city’s liberal voting population

For the sake of getting reliable numbers on places, we counted any place within a ~4.5 mile radius of a city’s center. The average city in the United States is about 18 square miles.

All of these results are listed in a per capita basis, meaning number of stores per person in a city. Additionally, we limited the analysis to non-CDPs that have over 5,000 people.

We ranked each place with scores from 1 to 31 in each category, where 1 was the most hippie.

Next, we averaged the rankings for each place to create a hippie index.

And finally, we crowned the city with the highest hippie index the “Best City for Hippies In Idaho.” We’re looking at you, Sandpoint.

Read on below to learn more about what it’s like to live in hippie central. Or skip to the end to see the list of all the places in the state from hippiest to most square.

Summary: The Hippies Of Idaho

If you’re measuring the locations in Idaho where there are lots of liberals, and there are many options for vegan food, yoga and thrift stores, this is an accurate list.

The most hippie cities in Idaho are Sandpoint, Middleton, Chubbuck, Hayden, Payette, Ammon, Hailey, Moscow, Coeur d’Alene, and Lewiston.

If you’re curious, here are the most square places in Idaho:

  1. Rupert
  2. Kuna
  3. Preston

For more Idaho reading, check out:

Detailed List Of The Most Hippie Cities In Idaho

Rank City Population % Liberal
1 Sandpoint 7,497 35.1%
2 Middleton 5,898 30.0%
3 Chubbuck 14,117 37.5%
4 Hayden 13,588 31.5%
5 Payette 7,447 26.7%
6 Ammon 14,257 22.9%
7 Hailey 7,961 58.8%
8 Moscow 24,406 49.5%
9 Coeur D’alene 45,848 31.5%
10 Lewiston 32,178 38.3%
11 Meridian 81,025 42.7%
12 Caldwell 48,114 30.0%
13 Twin Falls 45,362 26.8%
14 Pocatello 54,466 37.5%
15 Idaho Falls 57,935 22.9%
16 Nampa 84,660 30.0%
17 Weiser 5,407 25.5%
18 Burley 10,352 13.1%
19 Post Falls 28,786 31.5%
20 Mountain Home 13,871 31.4%
21 Star 6,379 42.7%
22 Blackfoot 11,891 21.7%
23 Eagle 21,102 42.7%
24 Emmett 6,546 26.1%
25 Star 6,379 42.7%
26 Jerome 11,046 25.4%
27 Rathdrum 7,046 31.5%
28 Rexburg 26,301 5.8%
29 Preston 5,172 5.8%
30 Kuna 16,188 42.7%
31 Rupert 5,583 19.9%
About Chris Kolmar

Chris Kolmar has been in the real estate business for almost ten years now. He originally worked for Movoto Real Estate as the director of marketing before founding HomeSnacks.

He believes the key to finding the right place to live comes down to looking at the data, reading about things to do, and, most importantly, checking it out yourself before you move.

If you've been looking for a place to live in the past several years, you've probably stumbled upon his writing already.

You can find out more about him on LinkedIn or his website.