The Most and Least Diverse Cities In Florida

Race relations in America seem to be hitting a tipping point.

While we still haven’t dealt with racism as a society, the election of Donald Trump to the presidency has only flamed the tensions that have been mounting for years.

Part of the reason for that tension? The country as a whole continues to self segregate across race, income, and party lines. But it’s not all bad on the race relations front.

There are parts of Florida where there’s a high level of diversity — where people of all walks of life come together. We decided to shine a light on those places today.

Using a standard measure of diversity, we ranked all 217 cities in Florida from most to least diverse. Here’s a look at the top ten:

1. Sunrise (Photos)
2. Orlando (Photos)
3. Oakland Park (Photos)
4. Margate (Photos)
5. Pembroke Pines
6. West Palm Beach (Photos)
7. Sanford (Photos)
8. Coral Springs (Photos)
9. Tampa (Photos)
10. Tamarac

Sunrise took the number one over all spot for diversity in Florida.

Read on below to see how we crunched the numbers and how your town ranked. To see where Florida ranked as a state, we have a ranking of the most diverse states in Ameria.

You can also check out the whitest places in Florida for a look at the opposite side of the coin.

How We Determined The Most Diverse Cities In Florida

We still believe in the accuracy of data — especially from the census. So that’s where we went to get the breakdown of race across Florida.

That lead us to the Census’s most recently available data, the 2011-2015 American Community Survey data from the US Census.

Specifically, we looked at table B03002: HISPANIC OR LATINO ORIGIN BY RACE. Here are the category names as defined by the Census:

• White alone*
• Black or African American alone*
• American Indian and Alaska Native alone*
• Asian alone*
• Native Hawaiian and Other Pacific Islander alone*
• Some other race alone*
• Two or more races*
• Hispanic or Latino

We limited our analysis to non-CDPs with a population greater than 5,000 people. That left us with 217 cities.

We then calculated the HHI for each city by finding the racial breakdown of a city in percent terms, squaring them, and then adding the squares together. This left us with scores ranging from 2996 (Sunrise) to 9392 (Sanibel).

Finally, we ranked each city based on the HHI with a lower score being more diverse than a high score. Sunrise took the distinction of being the most diverse, while Sanibel was the least diverse city.

Read on for more information on how the cities in Florida ranked for diversity or, for a more general take on diversity in america, head over to our ranking of the most diverse cities in America.

1. Sunrise

Population: 89,942
HHI: 2,996
% White: 33.55%
% African American: 31.49%
% Asian: 3.78%

2. Orlando

Population: 256,738
HHI: 3,059
% White: 39.13%
% African American: 26.02%
% Asian: 3.36%

3. Oakland Park

Population: 43,347
HHI: 3,077
% White: 40.39%
% African American: 26.8%
% Asian: 3.34%

4. Margate

Population: 55,678
HHI: 3,126
% White: 43.8%
% African American: 25.57%
% Asian: 4.65%

5. Pembroke Pines

Households: 162,243
HHI: 3,179
% White: 30.88%
% African American: 18.73%
% Asian: 5.49%

6. West Palm Beach

Population: 103,588
HHI: 3,198
% White: 40.79%
% African American: 31.09%
% Asian: 2.78%

7. Sanford

Population: 56,170
HHI: 3,242
% White: 45.18%
% African American: 25.62%
% Asian: 3.53%

8. Coral Springs

Population: 126,673
HHI: 3,242
% White: 46.13%
% African American: 20.41%
% Asian: 4.43%

9. Tampa

Population: 355,603
HHI: 3,267
% White: 46.14%
% African American: 23.9%
% Asian: 3.73%

10. Tamarac

Households: 63,227
HHI: 3,270
% White: 42.93%
% African American: 26.68%
% Asian: 1.81%

There You Have It – Diversity Across Florida

If you’re looking for a scientific breakdown of diversity across Florida, this is an accurate list.

If you’re curious enough, here are the least diverse places in Florida:

1. Sanibel
2. Hialeah Gardens
3. Hialeah

For more Florida reading , check out:

• 10 Small Towns In Florida Where You’d Never Want To Live
• These Are The 10 Most Affordable Places In Florida
• These Are The 10 Best Places To Live In Florida

Detailed List Of The Most Diverse Cities In Florida

City	Rank	HHI	Population
Sunrise	1	2,996	89,942
Orlando	2	3,059	256,738
Oakland Park	3	3,077	43,347
Margate	4	3,126	55,678
Pembroke Pines	5	3,179	162,243
West Palm Beach	6	3,198	103,588
Sanford	7	3,242	56,170
Coral Springs	8	3,242	126,673
Tampa	9	3,267	355,603
Tamarac	10	3,270	63,227
Greenacres	11	3,290	38,840
Avon Park	12	3,297	9,974
North Miami Beach	13	3,309	43,489
Miami Shores	14	3,321	10,784
Apopka	15	3,327	45,801
Groveland	16	3,353	9,931
Lake Worth	17	3,377	36,403
Royal Palm Beach	18	3,406	36,175
Miramar	19	3,415	131,384
Arcadia	20	3,444	7,704
Hollywood	21	3,449	146,791
Haines City	22	3,450	21,624
Winter Garden	23	3,497	37,955
Fort Myers	24	3,512	68,472
Plantation	25	3,524	89,904
Pompano Beach	26	3,542	104,741
Cocoa	27	3,549	17,339
Ocoee	28	3,560	39,884
South Miami	29	3,562	12,156
Fort Pierce	30	3,573	43,267
Hallandale Beach	31	3,574	38,725
Live Oak	32	3,574	6,920
Dania Beach	33	3,671	30,878
Fort Lauderdale	34	3,677	173,570
Palmetto Bay	35	3,746	24,443
Lake Wales	36	3,765	14,929
Davie	37	3,789	97,372
Deerfield Beach	38	3,806	78,227
Clewiston	39	3,820	7,240
Cutler Bay	40	3,833	43,474
West Park	41	3,834	14,779
Lake Park	42	3,836	8,376
Temple Terrace	43	3,836	25,354
Boynton Beach	44	3,837	71,530
North Lauderdale	45	3,842	42,853
Altamonte Springs	46	3,844	42,218
Gainesville	47	3,881	127,559
Jacksonville	48	3,891	846,951
Palm Springs	49	3,903	21,832
Plant City	50	3,908	36,382
Clermont	51	3,944	30,319
Cooper City	52	3,948	33,382
Coconut Creek	53	3,953	56,816
Lantana	54	3,957	10,910
Tallahassee	55	3,968	187,024
Fort Meade	56	4,024	5,824
Quincy	57	4,044	7,947
Port St. Lucie	58	4,050	172,054
Dade City	59	4,074	6,655
Leesburg	60	4,078	21,209
Southwest Ranches	61	4,083	7,676
Daytona Beach	62	4,087	62,726
Pinecrest	63	4,094	19,174
Deltona	64	4,126	86,418
Bay Harbor Islands	65	4,127	5,921
Mascotte	66	4,131	5,267
North Miami	67	4,140	62,042
Weston	68	4,145	68,423
Lake City	69	4,166	12,082
Pembroke Park	70	4,172	6,244
Winter Haven	71	4,185	35,835
St. Cloud	72	4,205	41,502
Delray Beach	73	4,231	63,939
Ocala	74	4,287	57,209
Deland	75	4,305	28,524
Belle Glade	76	4,314	17,950
Homestead	77	4,349	64,676
Palatka	78	4,354	10,414
Marathon	79	4,355	8,563
Lake Alfred	80	4,373	5,213
Wellington	81	4,389	60,155
Pahokee	82	4,396	6,003
Lakeland	83	4,415	101,302
Sunny Isles Beach	84	4,418	21,837
Miami Beach	85	4,427	91,564
Bradenton	86	4,430	51,811
Palmetto	87	4,470	12,973
Florida City	88	4,482	12,024
Bartow	89	4,486	18,094
Kissimmee	90	4,503	65,422
Perry	91	4,513	7,058
Coral Gables	92	4,526	50,059
Palm Bay	93	4,536	105,212
Marianna	94	4,546	8,860
St. Petersburg	95	4,599	250,713
North Bay Village	96	4,608	7,689
Starke	97	4,617	5,401
Pensacola	98	4,617	52,752
Casselberry	99	4,646	26,663
Sebring	100	4,653	10,371