San Antonio geeks can nerd out at San Japan, which is returning to the Alamo City Sept. 1-3. Credit: Jaime Monzon

We all knew San Antonio residents have an affinity for geeky activities such as cosplay, comics and tabletop gaming. How else do you explain the kind of costumes many of them donned for last weekend’s  SuperHero Comic Con & Car Show?

But a new study suggests we’re not just holding our own when it comes to such fandom — we’re the fricken third-geekiest city in the nation, just behind New York and LA, which claimed the top two spots, respectively.

Researchers working for LawnLove, the online lawn marketplace that commissioned the study, worked up the rankings by comparing the 200 largest U.S. cities using metrics including their number of comic book stores, geek social groups and comic conventions.

“San Antonio is not just for history nerds,” the study said. “[The] Alamo City claims the 3rd-highest number of board game and trading card shops, after New York and Los Angeles. S.A. is also home to 14 stores that host Dungeons & Dragons events, the 2nd highest in our ranking.”

Turns out Texas is a pretty geeky state in general, with Austin and Houston both cracking the top 10 at No. 6 and No. 7, respectively. The report attributed Texas’ strong showing to San Antonio, Austin, and Houston’s high scores in the rankings’ Collectibles and Costumes category. Those who didn’t get enough geek action last weekend can also nerd out at San Japan, which is coming to the Henry B. González Convention Center Sept. 1-3.

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This article appears in Jun 28 – Jul 11, 2023.

Michael Karlis is a multimedia journalist at the San Antonio Current, whose coverage in print and on social media focuses on local and state politics. He is a graduate of American University in Washington,...