Va. city makes list of 20 cities that love to stay up late

New York City has often been called the “city that never sleeps.” Using data from the most recent American Community Survey estimates, FindTheHome found the city in each state with the highest percentage of people who start their workday between noon and midnight.

Despite its reputation, NYC doesn’t make the list.

Instead, the late-night crown belongs many college towns and casino cities, such as Eugene, Oregon (home to the University of Oregon) and Atlantic City, New Jersey. Ithaca, which beat out NYC with nearly 30 percent of people working late, is home to Cornell University and Ithaca College. Since most college students attend class during the day, it makes sense that those needing extra cash might work nights.

Though occupational health researchers have long known the pitfalls of working at night, many people still work graveyard shifts — either by necessity or choice. From 24 hour diners to companies trying to leverage their capital (expensive machines don’t stop working at night, after all), approximately 3.2 percent of people in the U.S. work night shifts.

While some cities are home to particularly early-rising populations, the cities on this list are home to America’s night owls.

Note: The city whose population is closest to the 95th percentile within each state is used as the population minimum. We consider all cities at or above that size. In the case of ties, cities with larger populations are ranked higher.

#20. Kentucky: Murray

Percent Leaving for Work Between Noon and Midnight: 25%
Population: 18,375
Local Colleges: Murray State University

#19. Utah: Logan

Percent Leaving for Work Between Noon and Midnight: 25.1%
Population: 48,933
Local Colleges: Utah State University, Stevens-Henager College

#18. Idaho: Rexburg

Percent Leaving for Work Between Noon and Midnight: 25.6%
Population: 26,301
Local Colleges: Brigham Young University-Idaho

#17. Virginia: Harrisonburg

Percent Leaving for Work Between Noon and Midnight: 25.8%
Population: 50,821
Local Colleges: James Madison University, Eastern Mennonite University

#16. Minnesota: Austin

Percent Leaving for Work Between Noon and Midnight: 26.2%
Population: 24,760

#15. Texas: Huntsville

Percent Leaving for Work Between Noon and Midnight: 26.2%
Population: 39,764
Local Colleges: Sam Houston State University

#14. Arkansas: Russellville

Percent Leaving for Work Between Noon and Midnight: 26.6%
Population: 28,581
Local Colleges: Arkansas Tech University

#13. Nevada: Spring Valley

Percent Leaving for Work Between Noon and Midnight: 26.7%
Population: 183,937

#12. Nebraska: Schuyler

Percent Leaving for Work Between Noon and Midnight: 28.2%
Population: 6,195

#11. Illinois: DeKalb

Percent Leaving for Work Between Noon and Midnight: 28.2%
Population: 44,092
Local Colleges: Northern Illinois University

#10. South Dakota: Vermillion

Percent Leaving for Work Between Noon and Midnight: 28.5%
Population: 10,697
Local Colleges: University of South Dakota

#9. New York: Ithaca

Percent Leaving for Work Between Noon and Midnight: 28.5%
Population: 30,399
Local Colleges: Ithaca College, Cornell University

#8. Indiana: East Chicago

Percent Leaving for Work Between Noon and Midnight: 29.1%
Population: 29,387

#7. New Jersey: Atlantic City

Percent Leaving for Work Between Noon and Midnight: 29.1%
Population: 39,521

#6. Kansas: Liberal

Percent Leaving for Work Between Noon and Midnight: 29.6%
Population: 20,846

#5. Wisconsin: La Crosse

Percent Leaving for Work Between Noon and Midnight: 29.6%
Population: 51,864
Local Colleges: University of Wisconsin-La Crosse, Viterbo University

#4. Pennsylvania: York

Percent Leaving for Work Between Noon and Midnight: 29.7%
Population: 43,817
Local Colleges: York College Pennsylvania, The Art Institutes of York-PA, Pennsylvania State University-Penn State York

#3. Ohio: Lima

Percent Leaving for Work Between Noon and Midnight: 30.7%
Population: 38,432
Local Colleges: Ohio State University-Lima Campus, University of Northwestern Ohio

#2. Michigan: East Lansing

Percent Leaving for Work Between Noon and Midnight: 31.4%
Population: 48,611
Local Colleges: Michigan State University, Great Lakes Christian College

#1. Iowa: Storm Lake

Percent Leaving for Work Between Noon and Midnight: 33.1%
Population: 10,743
Local Colleges: Buena Vista University

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