Georgia ranked top state for backyard entertaining

A new state-by-state ranking by The Luxury Pergola has identified Georgia as the top state for backyard entertaining. The study moves beyond simple climate metrics, incorporating U.S. Census data on homeownership and household budgets alongside Google Trends data regarding interest in outdoor living.

Georgia secured the first-place position with a composite score of 69.84, benefiting from 334 comfortable outdoor days per year and strong consumer interest in outdoor furniture and patios. While Florida offers the maximum 365 comfortable days, it ranked fourth due to lower homeownership rates and tighter household budgets.

Other notable findings include: • Iowa ranked fifth, driven by a 71.6% owner-occupancy rate. • Wyoming recorded the highest search interest in the nation. • California fell to 42nd place, impacted by a 55.3% homeownership rate. • The Southeast region dominated the top ten, including Georgia, South Carolina, Florida, Texas, and Louisiana. • Alaska and New York ranked near the bottom, at 50th and 49th respectively.

For this study, a “comfortable outdoor day” was defined using NOAA 30-year climate normals as a day with average high temperatures between 60°F and 95°F.