I tried suburban living for 3 years and was miserable. I’m back to city life and never looking back.

• Randall Galbreath and his partner moved to the suburbs in 2021 for more space and a shorter commute.
• The car-dependent culture of the suburbs and the gloomy weather made him miserable.
• Moving to LA and being able to enjoy the beach and outdoors has improved his mental health.

This as-told-to essay is based on a conversation with Randall Galbreath, a 33-year-old who moved with his partner from Chicago to the suburbs, before relocating to Los Angeles. The following has been edited for length and clarity.

My partner, Braden, and I got our first apartment together in July 2020: a one-bedroom in Chicago’s Uptown.

We were both working from home — I in social work and he in customer service — in the first year of COVID and decided that .