Olathe Among Best in Nation per Resident Survey Results

Olathe citizen satisfaction levels remain at or near the top regionally and nationally according to the annual DirectionFinder® citizen survey presented to the Olathe City Council and City staff.

"Olathe continues to be one of the absolute best performing cities in America," said Chris Tatham of the ETC Institute, who administered the survey. "Satisfaction levels in nearly all key categories tower above regional and national averages."

Olathe's ratings in "Satisfaction with the Overall Quality of City Services" and "Quality of Customer Service Received" rank in the Top 10% in the nation among cities larger than 100,000 residents surveyed by the ETC Institute. Olathe's ratings in "Value Received for Your Tax Dollars," "Overall Quality of Life," also ranked in the Top 10% nationally.

Satisfaction with the "Overall Quality of City Services" in Olathe rated 92 percent, far above the national average of 49 percent.

Satisfaction with "Value Received for City Tax Dollars" in Olathe rated 68 percent, more than double the national average of 33 percent.

Satisfaction with "Quality of Customer Service Received" in Olathe rated 85 percent, more than double the national average of 38 percent.

"Olathe is the best place to live period. Our beautiful city continues to not only be nationally highlighted for our services and unmatched quality of life, but as an incredible place to work, live, thrive, and raise a family," said City Manager Susan Sherman. "Our dedicated staff continues to go above and beyond for exceptional services that our residents deserve. Providing tangible value to our taxpayers for their hard-earned tax dollars is among our top priorities and having our residents believe strongly in their city services is an honor of which we're most proud."

The City of Olathe is now a six-time Leading the Way award winner, which is the top achievement from the ETC Institute and the only city or county to achieve this designation as many times.

According to residents surveyed, traffic flow is the highest priority (65 percent) followed by maintenance of city streets/buildings/facilities (62 percent).

The survey, DirectionFinder®, is administered by ETC Institute. Olathe is one of approximately 900 city and county governments from 49 states using the citizen satisfaction survey. Approximately 2,000 households covering all areas of the city were surveyed during 2025. The survey has a margin of error of +/- 4.2% at the 95% confidence level.

The City has used DirectionFinder® annually since 2000 to track and benchmark city performance. It has been a critical decision-making tool for service delivery and resource allocation.

Visit the Performance Management page for more information.