The Best US States to Live in, Ranked

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Every state has its pros and cons — but which one came out on top?

US News & World Report released its annual list of the best states to live in, evaluating each in eight categories: education, healthcare, the economy, infrastructure, opportunity, fiscal stability, the natural environment, and crime and corrections. The categories are weighted differently based on a survey of 25,000 Americans that asked what they care most about.

US News & World Report senior data editor Evan Comen told Business Insider that since the categories aren’t evenly weighted, a state excelling in one category doesn’t guarantee a high overall ranking — and in some instances, success in one category could lead to the collapse of another.

Texas, for example, finished outside the top 25 despite ranking first in economy.

“The way we’ve structured our index, it does reflect some of these trade-offs among categories,” Comen said. “Texas is No. 1 in the economy — a lot of that economy is tied to oil and gas manufacturing. But then, Texas is No. 46 in natural environment. And our natural environment category is composed of metrics related to air and water quality and pollution.”

Though Southern states have typically performed well on lists that rank the best places to live, Florida and North Carolina were the only Sun Belt states to finish in the top 25. According to Comen, it’s not that Southern states are getting worse; rather, other states are improving.

“A decline in rankings doesn’t necessarily mean a state is performing poorly in any metric, but rather that they are being outpaced by other states,” he said. “Some states in the South might have experienced ranking decline, but it’s more because they’re being outperformed by other states, particularly the Midwest.”

One state that kept its ranking from the previous year was Utah, which finished first for the fourth consecutive year. While Utah finished 48th in the natural environment category, it had one of the most balanced rankings across categories, including the second-best economy.

Keep reading to see what each state is best at and what it needs to improve on, according to US News & World Report.

The population data comes from the US census.

50. Louisiana

Shreveport, Louisiana.

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An aerial view of Shreveport, Louisiana. — Shreveport, Louisiana.

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Population: 4,618,189

Best ranking: Fiscal stability (43)

Worst ranking: Crime and corrections (50)

49. Alaska

Homer, Alaska.

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Population: 737,270

Best ranking: Opportunity (30)

Worst ranking: Economy (49)

48. Mississippi

Jackson, Mississippi.

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Population: 2,954,160

Best ranking: Crime and corrections (23)

Worst ranking: Healthcare (50)

47. New Mexico

Albuquerque, New Mexico.

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Population: 2,125,498

Best ranking: Fiscal stability (12)

Worst ranking: Education (50)

46. Michigan

Ann Arbor, Michigan.

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Population: 10,127,884

Best ranking: Healthcare (24)

Worst ranking: Education (45)

45. Arkansas

Hot Springs, Arkansas.

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Population: 3,114,791

Best ranking: Economy (23)

Worst ranking: Crime and corrections (49)

44. West Virginia

Wheeling, West Virginia.

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Population: 1,766,147

Best ranking: Opportunity (4)

Worst ranking: Healthcare and economy (50 in both categories)

43. Alabama

Birmingham, Alabama.

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Population: 5,193,088

Best ranking: Opportunity (19)

Worst ranking: Education and healthcare (44 in both categories)

42. Ohio

Columbus, Ohio.

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Population: 11,900,510

Best ranking: Opportunity (18)

Worst ranking: Natural environment (43)

41. Kentucky

Bardstown, Kentucky.

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Population: 4,606,864

Best ranking: Crime and corrections (10)

Worst ranking: Healthcare (46)

40. Pennsylvania

Philadelphia.

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Population: 13,059,432

Best ranking: Healthcare (11 )

Worst ranking: Economy (47)

39. Oregon

Portland, Oregon.

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Population: 4,273,586

Best ranking: Infrastructure (2)

Worst ranking: Economy (48)

38. Nevada

Reno, Nevada.

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Population: 3,282,188

Best ranking: Infrastructure (1)

Worst ranking: Natural environment (47)

37. Illinois

Chicago.

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Population: 12,719,141

Best ranking: Education (13)

Worst ranking: Fiscal stability (50)

36. Oklahoma

Oklahoma City.

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Population: 4,123,288

Best ranking Economy (11)

Worst ranking: Education (47)

35. California

Los Angeles.

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Population: 39,355,309

Best ranking: Healthcare (7)

Worst ranking: Opportunity (50)

34. Arizona

Phoenix.

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Population: 7,623,818

Best ranking: Economy (4)

Worst ranking: Education (43)

33. Rhode Island

Newport, Rhode Island.

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Population: 1,114,521

Best ranking Healthcare (4)

Worst ranking: Infrastructure (47)

32. South Carolina

Charleston, South Carolina.

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Population: 5,570,274

Best ranking: Economy (6)

Worst ranking: Education and crime and corrections(42 in both categories)

31. Missouri

Branson, Missouri.

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Population: 6,270,541

Best ranking: Opportunity (8)

Worst ranking: Crime and corrections (44)

30. Indiana

Indianapolis.

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Population: 6,973,333

Best ranking: Opportunity (17)

Worst ranking: Natural environment (50)

29. Montana

Missoula, Montana.

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Population: 1,144,694

Best ranking: Opportunity (15)

Worst ranking: Healthcare (41)

28. Hawaii

Population: 1,432,820

Best ranking: Healthcare (1)

Worst ranking: Economy (46)

27. Maine

Portland, Maine.

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Population: 1,414, 874

Best ranking: Crime and corrections (2)

Worst ranking: Infrastructure (41)

26. Texas

Population: 31,709,821

Best ranking: Economy (1)

Worst ranking: Opportunity (48)

25. Tennessee

Nashville, Tennessee.

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Population: 7,315,076

Best ranking: Fiscal stability (5)

Worst ranking: Crime and corrections (40)

24. Kansas

Topeka, Kansas.

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Population: 2,977,220

Best ranking: Infrastructure (5)

Worst ranking: Natural environment (39)

23. New York

Albany, New York.

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Population: 20,002,427

Best ranking: Natural environment (6)

Worst ranking: Opportunity (49)

22. Georgia

Population: 11,302,748

Best ranking: Fiscal stability (10)

Worst ranking: Healthcare (35)

21. Maryland

Baltimore, Maryland.

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Population: 6,265,347

Best ranking: Healthcare, natural environment (5)

Worst ranking: Economy (37)

20. New Jersey

Newark, New Jersey.

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Population: 9,548,215

Best ranking: Education (2)

Worst ranking: Fiscal stability (49)

19. Virginia

Richmond, Virginia.

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Population: 8,880,107

Best ranking: Crime and corrections (13)

Worst ranking: Infrastructure (39)

18. Connecticut

Hartford, Connecticut.

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Population: 3,688,496

Best ranking: Healthcare (3)

Worst ranking: Fiscal stability (47)

17. Colorado

Denver, Colorado.

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Population: 6,012,561

Best ranking: Education (1)

Worst ranking: Crime and corrections (47)

16. Wyoming

Casper, Wyoming.

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Population: 588,753

Best ranking: Fiscal stability (1)

Worst ranking: Healthcare (38)

15. Wisconsin

Madison, Wisconsin.

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Population: 5,972,787

Best ranking: Education (5)

Worst ranking: Infrastructure (37)

14. Delaware

Wilmington, Delaware.

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Population: 1,059,952

Best ranking: Fiscal stability (4)

Worst ranking: Education (37)

13. North Carolina

Charlotte, North Carolina.

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Population: 11,197,968

Best ranking: Education (10)

Worst ranking: Infrastructure, natural environment (26)

12. Iowa

Population: 3,238,387

Best ranking: Opportunity (2)

Worst ranking: Economy (39)

11. Massachusetts

Springfield, Massachusetts.

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Population: 7,154,084

Best ranking: Healthcare (2)

Worst ranking: Opportunity (41)

10. Vermont

Montpelier, Vermont.

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Population: 644,663

Best ranking: Opportunity (1)

Worst ranking: Fiscal stability (41)

9. Washington

Tacoma, Washington.

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Population: 8,001,020

Best ranking: Natural environment (7)

Worst ranking: Opportunity (34)

8. Florida

St. Petersburg, Florida.

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Population: 23,462,518

Best ranking: Education (3)

Worst ranking: Opportunity (47)

7. Idaho

Population: 2,029,733

Best ranking: Economy (3)

Worst ranking: Education (30)

6. New Hampshire

Peterborough, New Hampshire.

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Population: 1,415,342

Best ranking: Crime and corrections (1)

Worst ranking: Fiscal stability (36)

5. Nebraska

Lincoln, Nebraska.

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Population: 2,018,006

Best ranking: Infrastructure (3)

Worst ranking: Healthcare (34)

4. North Dakota

Fargo, North Dakota.

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Population: 799,358

Best ranking: Fiscal stability (3)

Worst ranking: Healthcare (29)

3. Minnesota

Minneapolis.

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Population: 5,830,405

Best ranking: Infrastructure (9)

Worst ranking: Economy (24)

2. South Dakota

Rapid City, South Dakota.

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Population: 935,094

Best ranking: Natural environment (2)

Worst ranking: Crime and corrections (41)

1. Utah

Salt Lake City, Utah.

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Population: 3,538,904

Best ranking: Economy, fiscal stability (2 in both categories)

Worst ranking: Natural environment (48)