When people talk about the smell of a city, it's usually not a compliment.

Nobody has ever stood on a downtown sidewalk, taken a deep breath and said, "Wow. Put THAT in a candle."

But apparently, somebody decided it was time to scientifically figure out which American cities smell the best.

Researchers looked at things like local candle shops, bakeries, perfumeries, florists and overall cleanliness.

They also considered air quality, garbage disposal satisfaction and the amount of green space.

And somehow, after all that sniffing...

Detroit made the Top 10.

Yep.

Detroit is officially ranked the ninth-best-smelling city in America.

Apparently, Michigan can now add "smells pretty good" to the list of things Detroit is famous for.

The Top 10 best-smelling cities were:

1. Boston

2. Washington, D.C.

3. San Francisco

4. Seattle

5. Philadelphia

6. Portland, Oregon

7. Denver

8. Baltimore

9. Detroit

10. Las Vegas

Chicago came in at number 11, while New York landed at number 13.

Now, as a Michigan resident, I have some questions.

Did they do the Detroit smell test on a perfect 72-degree Saturday morning?

Because that's one thing.

Try this study again during a Michigan summer, when you've got hot pavement, traffic, garbage trucks and somebody grilling something mysterious three blocks away.

And what about winter?

Maybe the snow helps.

You can't smell much when your nose has gone numb.

What About the Rest of Michigan?

Unfortunately, the study only looked at 30 cities, so we don't know where Saginaw, Flint, Bay City or Midland would rank.

But I think we can all agree that Michigan has some very specific smells.

There's the smell of a Michigan cider mill in October.

Fresh donuts. Apple cider. Leaves. Campfire smoke.

That's a Top 10 smell right there.

Then there's the smell of a Michigan highway after a summer rain.

That's harder to describe.

It smells like wet pavement, grass and approximately 17 different things leaking from somebody's pickup truck.

And we can't forget the unmistakable smell of a Michigan lake on a hot August afternoon.

Nature's way of reminding you that "freshwater" doesn't necessarily mean "fresh-smelling."

Meanwhile, the worst-smelling city in the study was Jacksonville, Florida, followed by Oklahoma City, San Antonio, El Paso and Memphis.

Memphis made the list, which raises an important question:

Did barbecue not count?

Because if Memphis barbecue smells are being ignored, I'm not sure we're conducting this study correctly.

So congratulations, Detroit.

You're number nine.

Michigan may have potholes, unpredictable weather and roads that occasionally make you question your life choices...

But apparently, at least according to this study, we don't stink.

And honestly, we'll take the win.