SAN FRANCISCO – California cities lead the nation as the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) announces its annual ENERGY STAR “Top Cities” list, spotlighting the cities with the greatest number of ENERGY STAR certified commercial and multifamily buildings last year. Los Angeles leads the pack, with 876 ENERGY STAR certified buildings. To earn the EPA’s ENERGY STAR, a commercial building must have a score of 75 or higher on the EPA’s 1 – 100 scale, indicating that it is more energy efficient than 75% of similar buildings nationwide.
San Francisco ranks fifth in the country with 368 certified buildings and Riverside is ninth with 246. San Diego (13th), San Jose (18th) and Sacramento (19th) all rank in the top 20 for ENERGY STAR certified buildings for 2023.
“EPA is proud to recognize cities across California like Los Angeles, San Francisco and Riverside that are leading the way to cut energy costs while increasing efficiency and reducing emissions,” said EPA Pacific Southwest Regional Administrator Martha Guzman. “ENERGY STAR-certified buildings use significantly less energy than typical buildings, which helps tackle climate change, improve sustainability and protect air quality.”
“As we continue to be faced with an ever changing climate, we must adapt and build a greener Los Angeles. I’m so proud that for the second year in a row, Los Angeles continues to be the top city in building sustainable and energy efficient buildings,” said Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass. “It’s crucial that our infrastructure not only thrives, but also does so efficiently with our climate goals in mind. Thank you to the Department of Building and Safety and LADWP for their continued efforts to ensure our city remains a leader in confronting the climate crisis.”
About ENERGY STAR
The energy used by commercial buildings is responsible for 16% of the nation’s greenhouse gas emissions and costs more than $190 billion per year. ENERGY STAR certified buildings fight climate change and air pollution by using an average of 35% less energy and producing 35% less carbon dioxide emissions than typical buildings.
First released in 2009, the EPA’s annual list of cities with the most ENERGY STAR certified buildings shows how energy efficiency is being embraced as a simple and effective way to save money and reduce greenhouse gas emissions. To create the annual list, the EPA tallies the number of ENERGY STAR certified buildings within each metropolitan area, as defined by the U.S. Census, and creates separate rankings for mid-sized and small cities. These areas include the city itself as well as surrounding suburbs. The 2023 Top Cities are:
Rank Metro Area Building Count Last Year’s Rank
1 Los Angeles, Calif. 876 1
2 Washington, D.C. 631 2
3 New York, N.Y. 390 5
4 Atlanta, Ga. 373 3
5 San Francisco, Calif. 368 4
6 Dallas, Texas 323 8
7 Denver, Colo. 288 6
8 Houston, Texas 253 11
9 Riverside, Calif. 246 6
10 Austin, Texas 240 15
11 Chicago, Ill. 239 8
12 Boston, Mass. 213 10
13 San Diego, Calif. 209 14
14 Seattle, Wash. 187 13
15 Tampa, Fla. 167 12
16 Minneapolis, Minn. 162 16
17 Phoenix, Ariz. 156 17
18 San Jose, Calif. 140 18
19 Sacramento, Calif. 126 21
20 Provo, Utah 125 n/a
20 Charlotte, N.C. 108 19
Across the country, more than 8,800 commercial buildings earned the ENERGY STAR last year. As of the end of 2023, more than 43,000 buildings across America had earned EPA’s ENERGY STAR certification. Together, these buildings have saved nearly $6 billion on energy bills and prevented more than 23 million metric tons of greenhouse gas emissions—equal to the annual emissions of more than 3 million homes.
ENERGY STAR® is the government-backed symbol for energy efficiency, providing simple, credible, and unbiased information that consumers and businesses rely on to make well-informed decisions. Thousands of industrial, commercial, utility, state, and local organizations—including 40% of the Fortune 500®—rely on their partnership with the EPA to deliver cost-saving energy efficiency solutions. Together, since 1992, ENERGY STAR and its partners have helped American families and businesses save 5 trillion kilowatt-hours of electricity, avoid more than $500 billion in energy costs, and achieve 4 billion metric tons of greenhouse gas reductions, all through voluntary action.
More on ENERGY STAR Top Cities, including this year’s rankings of top small and mid-sized cities, as well as last year’s rankings: www.energystar.gov/topcities
Search for ENERGY STAR certified buildings: www.energystar.gov/buildinglocator
More about earning the ENERGY STAR certification for commercial buildings: www.energystar.gov/buildingcertification
Learn about EPA’s Pacific Southwest Region. Connect with us on Facebook, Instagram, and X.