The U.S.' most 'uptight' city is in Texas

Is Texas laid back or uptight?

(NEXSTAR) — Would you say Texas is laid back or uptight? Well, Texans have some new indicators of our stress levels.

Financial resource outlet FinanceBuzz recently ranked the U.S.' 50 biggest cities based on four major categories and 25 data points to determine which cities have "easygoing vibes" and which are more apt to add to stress. Analysts weighed areas of well-being, economic prosperity, livability and leisure to find the most laid back cities in the U.S.

But the state of Texas sadly didn't rank very high for cities that were feeling chill. In fact, a Texas city was named the most uptight in the nation.

That would be Houston, which earned significant dings from FinanceBuzz due to its lack of "theme parks, golf courses, yoga studios and concert venues" per capita. The outlet writes that Houston's biggest city ranks in the bottom five for absence of leisure activities.

Additionally, FinanceBuzz found that workers in Houston work 40 hours per week on average — the highest average of any other city studied.

Another factor that likely impacted Houston's score was the amount of traffic congestion seen in the city.

"Traffic congestion can cause tremendous stress on drivers and passengers alike. People who feel constant time pressure and who worry about being late for work, school, or picking up a child from daycare will be very stressed out," Boston University Professor of Sociology Deborah Carr, Ph.D. told FinanceBuzz.

Carr added that "clean, efficient, frequent public transit," on the other hand, contributes to an increased sense of calm for workers.

Behind Houston, a few other Texas cities were found to be more stressed, including San Antonio, which ranked third nationally, and Dallas, which ranked fifth nationally. According to FinanceBuzz, despite its reputation as a Texas hill country destination, San Antonio has the lowest score for leisure activities of any city in the nation. The Bexar County hotspot ranked in the bottom two for activities like "golf courses, yoga studios, farmers markets, sushi restaurants, performing arts centers and concert venues" per capita.

Meanwhile, the city of Dallas was dinged for similar reasons, in addition to ranking in the bottom 15 nationally for number of parks. FinanceBuzz also explains that Dallas workers were found to work 39.9 hours per week on average, which they explain is the second-highest total in the U.S.

When it comes to the most laid-back city in Texas, Austin is Texas' highest ranked city — coming in 29th nationally. True to its middle-of-the-pack placement, Austin received relatively average scores in the four major categories, ending up with a final overall city score of 52.1 out of 100.

Nationally, Seattle, Washington, was named the most laid-back city in the U.S., with an overall city score of 71.8 out of 100. Seattle earned major points for a high number of work-from-home workers (36%), which is the highest of any city in the U.S. Additionally, Seattle boasts the fifth-most parks per capita — and its walkability and bike-ability rank among the 10 highest nationally.

For more information and the full list of the U.S.' Most Laid-Back Cities, visit FinanceBuzz.