“Do we have time to stop for ice cream?” Few questions get a quicker “yes.” Whether it’s a post-park treat, a break on a long walk, or a quick stop on the drive home, ice cream outings have a way of turning everyday moments into something a little more fun. With that in mind, we set out to find where those moments are most likely to deliver. Specifically, we found out which cities have the highest-rated ice cream, and which ones serve up great scoops again and again by analyzing Google rating data for ice cream shops across the 100 largest U.S. cities. We ranked locations based on weighted average ratings (factoring in both scores and review volume), and also looked at how consistently shops earn high marks to see where quality holds up across the board. Which States Have the Best Ice Cream Shops? So, where should you go when the craving hits? These are the cities where you’ll find the highest-rated ice cream, plus the top-rated shop in each (with at least 100 reviews). Florida leads the pack. Tampa, FL — 4.71 Melt N Dip (4.9, 4,779 reviews) Miami, FL — 4.68 Danielle Gelato (5.0, 3,308 reviews) Jacksonville, FL — 4.68 Gator Ice Cream - Lakewood (5.0, 105 reviews) St. Louis, MO — 4.68 Cafe de Blaire (4.9, 803 reviews) Sarasota, FL — 4.67 Gelateria Degli Angeli (5.0, 262 reviews) Florida’s coastal cities dominate the high end of our list, taking four of the top five spots. Which makes sense. Few things go better together than an evening walk along the beach, ice cream melting in hand, after you’ve roasted in the sun the entire day. When that post-beach cone starts calling, there may be no better place to answer than the Sunshine State, no matter which of the two coastlines you’re on. Now, whether it’s the quality of the ice cream or the picture-perfect settings that keep people coming back, we can’t be sure. But one thing is clear: cities all over Florida stand out for ice cream ratings and review quantities. That does leave us with one more city to round out the top five. A midwestern city is holding it down for the rest of the country. Sipping a milkshake that’s just a little bit too thick in St. Louis may not be as picture-perfect as the coastal scenes in the rest of the top five cities, but it makes the ice cream shops feel like more of a destination than an obligation. Here, shops are likely building strong followings and clearly getting it right with an average rating that’s just about level with some of the country’s ice cream capitals. Now that we’ve identified the hot spots based on average ratings, we’ll take a look at which cities consistently deliver high-quality scoops. Cities With the Most Consistently Good Ice Cream We’ve seen where ice cream reaches the highest highs. Now let’s zoom in on the cities that stand out for another reason: consistency. Not every scoop needs to be perfect, but in some places, it almost always is. To find the cities where you’re most likely to have a great experience wherever you go, we looked at the share of ice cream shops in each city with ratings of 4.5 stars or higher. Across all 100 cities, the average sits at 51.3%. These cities clear that bar by a wide margin: Scranton, PA — 81.0% Miami, FL — 78.0% San Diego, CA — 78.0% Jacksonville, FL — 76.0% Los Angeles, CA — 76.0% In these cities, you don’t have to look particularly hard for a standout ice cream shop. It’s no surprise to see Miami and Jacksonville pop up in this list, given the quality we explored earlier. It also isn’t shocking to see San Diego and Los Angeles land in the top five. Two more cities where you can easily imagine grabbing a tasty ice cream or a low-cal substitute and strolling along the boardwalk as the sun sets over the Pacific. One city does stick out here, and it happens to be the one at the very top. 81% of the ice cream shops we analyzed in Scranton have a rating of 4.5 or higher. That’s the kind of consistency you can’t help but applaud from one of the smallest cities in our study. Scranton, PA: an unsung ice cream capital. Here are the cities that round out the top 10: Akron, OH — 74.2% Sarasota, FL — 73.3% Tampa, FL — 70.0% Denver, CO — 70.0% Knoxville, TN — 68.6% Sarasota and Tampa show up again, reinforcing their claim to the ice cream shop throne. Meanwhile, places like Akron and Knoxville continue the trend of surprising cities popping up that prove you don’t need a coastline to build a revered ice cream scene. Strong community ties and repeat customers can help shops stay incredibly consistent over time. Denver is an interesting case. It’s the rare large, non-coastal city that seems to have outstanding ice cream options. It’s much better known for its mountain views and winter sports options than it is for the scenery you’d typically associate with premium ice-cream-eating conditions. You know how good the ice cream has to be to stand out in high-altitude, cold-weather cities? Very. Our findings just go to show that, while being in a picture-perfect setting for ice cream does help you when it comes to ice cream ratings, there are places to get a quality cone across the country. In these cities, whether you’re trying a new spot or heading back to a favorite, the odds are in your favor for a great scoop. Ice Cream Ratings: City-by-City Ice cream preferences, from flavors to atmosphere, are all but assured to vary from person to person, but our analysis of more than 3,800 shops from the 100 largest U.S. cities offers a clear look at where to go when the craving hits. Interested in which ice cream shop is highest-rated near you? Use the table below to search by city or sort through the data to see the top-rated ice cream spots across the country. Closing Thoughts From standout scoops to cities where great ice cream is the norm, the data shows one thing clearly: no matter where you are, a quality custard experience is rarely far away. Some places raise the bar with top-tier ratings, while others win with consistency. But both make it easier to turn a simple outing into something memorable. And that’s really what it’s about. Ice cream trips aren’t just about dessert, they’re about getting out of the house, taking a walk, and spending time together. Chicco has the car seats and strollers for the journey, making it easier to make those outings happen. Whether it’s a drive across town or a stroll to your favorite local shop, load up, head out, and enjoy the trip. Methodology To determine the cities with the best ice cream, we scraped google reviews of ice cream shops in the 100 largest metro areas in the U.S. We pulled the rating and number of reviews of up to 50 ice cream shops in each city, applied a weighted average to more heavily account for shops that have more reviews, and ranked them to find the cities with the best and worst ice cream. We also found which ice cream was the highest rated in every city. For a location to qualify, they must have had at least 50 reviews. For instances where ties occurred for the highest-rated ice cream shops, the one with more reviews was used. Fair Use You are welcome to use, reference, and share non-commercial excerpts of this study with proper attribution. If you cite or cover our findings, please link back to this page so readers can view the full methodology, charts, and context.