'America's Rudest City' Is An Iconic Florida Beach Destination You Might Want To Skip

If you're looking for a place to travel with friendly locals who will welcome you warmly, you may want to shy away from planning a trip to Miami. The Florida metropolis is full of exciting tourist attractions, beautiful beaches, and underrated neighborhoods with European flair. It attracts millions of tourists each year, but according to several studies, Miami is one of the rudest cities in the United States.

American tourists have garnered a rather bad reputation for being rude around the globe. Locals from countries that welcome hordes of tourists each year have expressed that American tourists are some of the worst. We're often described as loud, entitled, arrogant, and insensitive to cultural norms that we're not used to. Some of these criticisms may seem a bit like unfair stereotyping. There are certainly plenty of open-minded and polite Americans, but in some cases we even view ourselves and our compatriots as rude. Americans' rude behaviors are even more noticeable in certain cities, and apparently, Miami is particularly bad. 

Some major American cities have become notorious for their rudeness, but most of them don't even come close to America's rudest city. In 2025, Miami was dubbed the rudest city in the country. Even people who call Miami home described many of the other locals as extremely rude in a recent study published in 2026 by SolitaireStreak. According to data, people in Miami are seen as entitled and lack self-awareness in public spaces. People who participated in various polls also claimed that many Miami locals are rude to people who work in the service industry, that they're obsessed with their cellphones, and that they exhibit rude behaviors while driving. There are plenty of wonderful reasons to visit Miami, but it seems like kindness and civility aren't among the city's best qualities. 

Miami has been dubbed "The Magic City" but according to a recent study, locals' manners are far from magical. Multiple publications have deemed Miami, Florida, is the rudest city in the entire country.

Kylian, an AI-powered platform that teaches languages, published an article in 2025 outlining the rudest cities in the U.S., where "incivility thrives," and Miami topped the list. The platform surveyed thousands of people in order to gather data on local behaviors. The southern city by the sea scored a 9.88 out of 10 on Kylian's rudeness scale, which the platform called "unprecedented." According to Kylian, even the locals themselves considered the city rude. The article states that some of the reasons residents of Miami think their neighbors are so rude include their self-centered behaviors, lack of regard for shared spaces, and because many people treat service staff poorly.

The online gaming website SolitaireStreak had similar findings and dubbed Miami the rudest city in the nation. The gaming company interviewed residents of 40 different major metropolises in the country, focusing on the most populated cities. Miami's rudeness score was 99.29 out of 100. Last Vegas and Philadelphia came in second and third place, respectively. According to the data, around 42% of Miami residents participating in the survey have considered moving due to others' rude attitudes. Some specific behaviors mentioned in the survey included rude or even reckless driving habits, being loud in communal spaces, and lack of care for others.

In addition to the recent surveys, Miami has been dubbed the rudest city in the country by multiple publications and companies over the last decade. In 2024, another language learning platform called Preply named Miami the most rude city in the U.S. In 2017, Time Magazine published a similar article and dubbed Miami the rudest city in the country based on votes. One local travel blogger named Christine Austin said that many locals are rich and attractive, which could make them vain. She also blamed the climate, saying that since it's hot all the time, people can become agitated.

It's important to note that rudeness is somewhat subjective. As someone who grew up in the Midwestern United States, I consider certain behaviors that are relatively common in large cities to be extremely rude. One person may think it's rude to discuss money, and another may not. That said, lack of concern for your fellow human beings and blatant meanness will always be considered rude no matter where you go or where you're from.

If you're looking for destinations where you'll feel warmly welcomed by the local community, Miami may be worth skipping. That being said, there are still plenty of amazing things to do in the city. It's also still possible to find friendly locals, so if you have thick skin and you're prepared, then you don't need to avoid planning a trip to Miami entirely. To its credit, the city is home to unique hotels, beautiful beaches, and a thriving foodie culture. The arts scene is wonderful, and the nightlife is top-notch. However, if you're looking for somewhere to meet new people while traveling and make friends with locals, you may want to visit one of the friendliest cities in the U.S. instead.