You might think people across the nation love where they live. After all, you wouldn’t spend your life somewhere that you truly didn’t love. Right?
Not always. In fact, a Pew Research Center study not too long ago determined that almost half of Americans would rather live somewhere else than they do now.
Well, if you’re in one of the states we’re about to highlight, we don’t blame you for wanting to move.
Or, if you live in the south, for wanting to run away as fast as you possibly can.
What’s the worst state in America for 2020? It turns out New Mexico is the worst state to live in the country. New Mexico is having a rough week since we also just named it one of the most dangerous states in America for 2020.
The purpose of this study is to use science to determine which of our great American states are the absolute worst. While unbiased, this research does take into account factors that almost all Americans would agree are undesirable.
Read on below to see how we crunched the numbers and how your city ranked. Or check out more on the worst cities to live in America.
For more positive news, feel free to check out the best places to live in the country and the the best states in America.
For more reading, check out:
The 10 Worst States To Live In America For 2020
1. New Mexico
Population: 2,092,434
Rank Last Year: 1 (No Change)
Median Income: $48,059 (Fifth worst)
Median Home Value: $166,800 (20th worst)
More On New Mexico: Photos | Rent
New Mexico is, by far, the first state in the entire country for 2020, according to this scientific analysis. Sorry to break the news to you folks out there in the Land of Enchantment. This is the fourth year in a row New Mexico took the “top spot”. That’s not great for those playing at home.
New Mexico sees more break-ins, armed robbery, and theft than anywhere else. There’s a saying there, “If it’s not bolted down, someone’s going to take it, unless you put a sign that says FREE on it.” With a staggering 66% of children finishing high school in New Mexico, their education system suffers year after year. 16% of New Mexicans age 16 and older have a reading level of 1 out of 5, which is equivalent to barely being able to read a book meant for grade school kids. There’s a huge wealth gap in New Mexico, and wages are really low, meaning there aren’t a lot of opportunities.
When you look at the numbers, overall, New Mexico ranks toward the bottom in just about every statistical category you can measure . Are there any good things about living in New Mexico? Probably.
2. Louisiana
Population: 4,663,616
Rank Last Year: 3 (Up 1)
Median Income: $47,942 (Fourth worst)
Median Home Value: $157,800 (15th worst)
More On Louisiana: Photos | Rent
Folks in Louisiana are really singing the blues these days. That’s because things aren’t going so well for many of them. It’s a mess down here, to be honest. Louisiana ranks in the bottom ten in 8 of 11 categories measured. It’s third in crime, 13th in uninsured residents, third in poverty, fourth in income levels, and Louisianans are the sixth least educated people in America. Factor in the worst sales tax structure and some of the highest local sales taxes in the entire country, and it’s whoo whee hard to make ends meet here.
Now before you get all down on Louisiana, you should know that the Pelican State is actually full of some REALLY friendly and giving people. The Cajun Navy is a bright spot here – whenever something goes wrong in Louisiana, you can bet the first people on the scene will be neighbors and strangers. Plus, there’s crawfish everywhere here! You can get crawfish jello, crawfish beer, crawfish peanut butter, crawfish cereal, crawfish ice cream, crawfish spice lattes…
3. Mississippi
Population: 2,988,762
Rank Last Year: 12 (Up 9)
Median Income: $43,567 (First worst)
Median Home Value: $114,500 (First worst)
More On Mississippi: Photos | Rent
Mississippi is a real work in progress. This really pretty state ranks as the worst, or close to it, in five categories including: college graduates, income levels, home prices and jobs. The education system in Mississippi is pretty lousy. Did you know 32% of the population over the age of 18 in Mississippi cannot spell their state’s name and another 27% don’t know the name of the river that shares the same name as the state? Well, that’s what we read on the internet at least.
Much of Mississippi also has a big shortage of medical doctors, too. The state has the nation’s highest obesity rate and highest rates for women dying of heart disease and breast cancer.
Now, people in Mississippi are pretty proud to be from Mississippi, and they admit their state has flaws, but they love it nonetheless.
4. Arkansas
Population: 2,990,671
Rank Last Year: 2 (Down 2)
Median Income: $45,726 (Third worst)
Median Home Value: $123,300 (Third worst)
More On Arkansas: Photos | Rent
While Arkansas doesn’t place last in a number of categories like Mississippi does, it’s worse off in more of them overall. They’re just about as poor as folks in Mississippi, but it’s even more dangerous in Arkansas than it is in Mississippi. Like other southern states on our list, it’s a poor place with little opportunity. Although, to be fair, some of the gun shots that ring out in Arkansas every day may not be due to crime.
Now, what’s interesting about Arkansas is that the Natural State ranked 10th in the nation for happiest states, according to a national poll that was conducted last year. So, statistics aside, people here don’t really seem to care a lick. There are some bright spots here. For fun, you could join an outhouse racing league, or join in on some spontaneous hog calls.
5. Alabama
Population: 4,864,680
Rank Last Year: 4 (Down 1)
Median Income: $48,486 (Seventh worst)
Median Home Value: $137,200 (Seventh worst)
More On Alabama: Photos | Rent
Not so Sweet Home Alabama! The state finds itself ranking as the fifth worst state to live in America this year.
Alabama it the seventh poorest place in the nation. While not having money doesn’t necessarily mean a place is lousy, having a lot of crime does. Alabama ranks ninth for total number of crimes committed each year.
In terms of opportunities, there aren’t many here; at 6.648278391769151%, Alabama has the nation’s seventh highest number of people out of work – and the population isn’t educated enough to demand raises, either. Across the board, there isn’t actually a single category where Alabama excels.
Now on paper, Alabama may not have southern charm, but there’s a lot more than meets the eye. There’s a low cost of living here, and a ton of outdoors to explore, where you can learn how to get unstuck from the mud with all your buddies. Did you know more people go to church in Alabama than anywhere else? Alright. It’s also true that more people die of strokes in Alabama than in any other state, too. Aww man.
6. South Carolina
Population: 4,955,925
Rank Last Year: 5 (Down 1)
Median Income: $51,015 (Ninth worst)
Median Home Value: $154,800 (14th worst)
More On South Carolina: Photos | Rent
South Carolina, the butt of North Carolina, has pretty big problem when it comes to crime. That’s the leading cause of its sixth place ranking for 2020. Surprisingly, South Carolina has the fourth worst property crime in the nation. You have a 1 in 70 chance of being the victim of a property crime for every year you spend in the Palmetto State. South Carolina is also the 4th worst place in America for online dating – so if you’re looking for love here, swipe at your own risk.
Other factors that were a problem – very high poverty rates and America’s ninth lowest income levels. This state ranks first for number of mobile home parks per capita, too. Which is really bad news during hurricane season.
But there are reasons to be proud of living in South Carolina. Clemson has won the college football title several times in the past years – congrats to the Tigers. Then there’s the boiled peanut stands on every highway offramp. Boiled peanuts are like regular peanuts, but they’re boiled. And lastly, the beach communities are some of the best on the east coast, where people come from all over the world to play golf and vacation.
7. Oklahoma
Population: 3,918,137
Rank Last Year: 8 (Up 1)
Median Income: $51,424 (Tenth worst)
Median Home Value: $130,900 (Fourth worst)
More On Oklahoma: Photos | Rent
You knew we were going to mention Oklahoma SOONER or later, right? The seventh worst state for 2020 goes to Oklahoma. Where do we begin, Oklahoma? First off, the population of Oklahoma isn’t insured – this state ranks third lowest in number of people with medical insurance. Considering that 43% of Okies carry guns, it might be surprising that this state has America’s eighth highest property crime rate. Robbers must just like taking their chances here.
Now, while people might say they love the cost of living in Oklahoma, the fact that this state has America’s fourth lowest home values is a sign that there isn’t a lot of desire to live here, plain and simple. Another interesting fact: Oklahoma has the most women in their prison system than any other state. Some tough broads in the Sooner state. And, to top if off, Oklahomans eat the least number of fruits and veggies of anywhere else.
Now, Oklahomans aren’t ALL all bad. Oklahomans are actually known as awful friendly folk who love living in wide open spaces.
8. Tennessee
Population: 6,651,089
Rank Last Year: 7 (Down 1)
Median Income: $50,972 (Eighth worst)
Median Home Value: $158,600 (16th worst)
More On Tennessee: Photos | Rent
You know the saying. There’s Nashville and there’s the rest of Tennessee. According to science, both are undesirable. Incomes are the eighth lowest in America, which means lots of Tennesseans are living in poverty, and many struggle to find decent jobs outside of the booming capital of Nashville. Part of that is due to a population that ranks in the bottom 10 for education.
Tennessee is top in the nation for number of immunize dresidents, which is good – or bad, depending on if you’re an anti-vaxxer. But most importantly, in Tennessee, crime is remarkably bad. Did you know Tennessee has the nation’s third highest violent rate? Memphis, in particular, is a real mess. It consistently ranks as one of the most destitute, dangerous dives in the country. Memphis is so bad, that even Google Street view doesn’t go down many of its streets, many of which are near Graceland.
But, have you ever had a Goo Goo Cluster? They were invented in and manufactured in Tennessee. They’re delectable, and there’s even Goo Goo Ice Cream. Once you have some, you’ll be goo goo for goo goo.
9. Arizona
Population: 6,946,685
Rank Last Year: 9 (No Change)
Median Income: $56,213 (21st worst)
Median Home Value: $209,600 (29th worst)
More On Arizona: Photos | Rent
The first of several states out west, Arizona has several things going against it. Besides the fact that the summer months can be downright sickening, heat wise, Arizona has a surprisingly high crime rate and very poor support in its school system for its students. Sure, were well aware that places like Sedona, Prescott, Chandler and Gilbert are awesome cities to visit and live, and that there’s pretty deserts and lots of space. Fact is though, there are far better places to call home.
Statistically, Arizona has a lot to boast about. The Copper State ranks in the bottom 10 in five different categories, folks. Total crime, including violent and property crimes is 8th highest and the number of people without health insurance is 12th. Arizona has the nation’s ninth highest number of residents who live in poverty, too. Alcoholism is a big deal here – booze poisoned the 4th highest number of drinkers in America here.
What’s good about Arizona? Well it might be really really really hot for long stretches, but you get 300 days of sunshine here – the highest number of sunny days in the US. That’s great news for sun enthusiasts. They also have a cool flag – perhaps the BEST state flag in America. And, if you like Mexican food, well, your choices are limited to the greater Phoenix area.
10. Nevada
Population: 2,922,849
Rank Last Year: 10 (No Change)
Median Income: $57,598 (24th worst)
Median Home Value: $242,400 (34th worst)
More On Nevada: Photos | Rent
Coming in as the tenth worst state in America for 2020 is Nevada. Why is Nevada so second-rate? First off, Nevada has the nation’s fourth highest violent crime rate in the country. Part of that might be due to the state’s poor worker pool – outside of Las Vegas, there aren’t many employed people. In fact, Nevada has America’s 25th highest unemployment rate, and our nation’s 12th least number of college graduates.
And to top it off, Nevada has one of the highest rates of domestic violence by men against women in all of the US.
Now, let’s be fair and look at the bright side of living in Nevada. Well, for starters, you could go and watch Britney or Gaga every night if you wanted to. That’s cool. And you don’t have to pay income tax in Nevada – instead, the state pays for all of THIS with gambling money! 71% of Nevada’s state budget comes from people like you and me. And if you own a business here in Nevada, you don’t have to pay corporate tax, either. That means you can cook the books all you want and no one will ever know.
So, while Nevada might be a hot, boring place with no real soul (sorry, Nevada), there are a handful of advantages to living here if you look closely.
How do you decide if a state is lousy or not?
In order to rank the worst states to live in the United States, we had to determine what criteria people like or dislike about a place. It isn’t a stretch to assume that people like low crime, solid education, great weather, things to do and a stable economy.
So we researched the internet for those criteria, and it spit out the answer. Like magic.
How we crunched the numbers for the worst states in the nation for 2020
We threw a lot of criteria at this one in order to get the best, most complete results possible. Using FBI crime data and the most recent 2014-2018 American Community Survey , this is the criteria we used:
- Population Density (The lower the worse)
- Highest Unemployment Rates
- Low Median Income
- Low Home Values
- Low Levels of College Education
- A lot of uninsured people
- High Crime
- High poverty
We then ranked each state from 1 to 50 for the criteria with a #1 ranking being the worst for the particular criteria. Next, we averaged the rankings into one “Worst Place To Live Index”.
Finally, we ranked every state on the “Worst Place To Live Index” with the lowest index being the Worst State To Live in America for 2020, New Mexico. You can download the data here.
If you’d like to see the complete list of states, from worst to best, scroll to the bottom of this post to see the abridged chart.
Note: We get the crime numbers from the FBI, which gets its crime numbers from the states themselves. This list is based on data. It’s also not a testament to the effectiveness of local law enforcement.
There You Have It — The Worst States In The Country
Like we said earlier, trying to determine the worst states in the US is usually a subjective matter. But if you’re analyzing states with the worst economic situations, where there’s high crime and bad weather, this is an accurate list.
If you’re curious enough, here are the best states in the USA, according to science. Apparently, things are ‘all that’ when it comes to northeast America:
- New Hampshire
- Massachusetts
- New Jersey
For more reading, check out:
What Are The Worst States In America For 2020?
| Rank | State | Population |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | New Mexico | 2,092,434 |
| 2 | Louisiana | 4,663,616 |
| 3 | Mississippi | 2,988,762 |
| 4 | Arkansas | 2,990,671 |
| 5 | Alabama | 4,864,680 |
| 6 | South Carolina | 4,955,925 |
| 7 | Oklahoma | 3,918,137 |
| 8 | Tennessee | 6,651,089 |
| 9 | Arizona | 6,946,685 |
| 10 | Nevada | 2,922,849 |
| 11 | Georgia | 10,297,484 |
| 12 | Texas | 27,885,195 |
| 13 | North Carolina | 10,155,624 |
| 14 | West Virginia | 1,829,054 |
| 15 | Missouri | 6,090,062 |
| 16 | Alaska | 738,516 |
| 17 | Kentucky | 4,440,204 |
| 18 | Florida | 20,598,139 |
| 19 | Kansas | 2,908,776 |
| 20 | Indiana | 6,637,426 |
| 21 | Michigan | 9,957,488 |
| 22 | Montana | 1,041,732 |
| 23 | California | 39,148,760 |
| 24 | Idaho | 1,687,809 |
| 25 | Oregon | 4,081,943 |
| 26 | Ohio | 11,641,879 |
| 27 | South Dakota | 864,289 |
| 28 | Illinois | 12,821,497 |
| 29 | Nebraska | 1,904,760 |
| 30 | Colorado | 5,531,141 |
| 31 | Wyoming | 581,836 |
| 32 | Washington | 7,294,336 |
| 33 | New York | 19,618,453 |
| 34 | Delaware | 949,495 |
| 35 | Iowa | 3,132,499 |
| 36 | Pennsylvania | 12,791,181 |
| 37 | North Dakota | 752,201 |
| 38 | Maine | 1,332,813 |
| 39 | Utah | 3,045,350 |
| 40 | Rhode Island | 1,056,611 |
| 41 | Wisconsin | 5,778,394 |
| 42 | Virginia | 8,413,774 |
| 43 | Maryland | 6,003,435 |
| 44 | Minnesota | 5,527,358 |
| 45 | Hawaii | 1,422,029 |
| 46 | Connecticut | 3,581,504 |
| 47 | Vermont | 624,977 |
| 48 | New Jersey | 8,881,845 |
| 49 | Massachusetts | 6,830,193 |
| 50 | New Hampshire | 1,343,622 |
I grew up in North Dakota (28 years). I live in Washington now (39 years). Comparison? None.
Hands-down, Washington is a better place to live, work, and find friends. Mountains, rivers, temperate climate, many backpacking trails, places to go and things to do. Educated, tolerant, and aware people live here compared to grade-school level farmers and ex-farmers working for minimum wage in North Dakota.
Once I finished college and found that regardless of North Dakota’s perennial 4% unemployment rate, I couldn’t find ANY job, I moved west. I pity the residue who stayed, pity them.
When I’ve visited back, I’ve met people who looked like the ones I used to know but who had never changed, never grown.
Well I guess you consider yourself educated however the stats would show a different story than you paint of the state. Most retired or former farmers that you note are most likely worth millions in the bank. William County ND has an average salary of $70,000 per year even with the downturn in the oil industry. I guess there was a reason you did not find work in ND but its probably more related to your lack of intelligence than anything related to ND. Enjoy yourself but I really don’t think we are looking for any low wage earners so no need to look for employment here in North Dakota.
LOL very well said. Almost spit out my tea.
WA is a cesspool. If you’re a vampire, might be nice, but the constant grey and 55 degrees 10 months out of the year – oh wait all 12 because at night it’s still 50 bloody degrees. Have to have winter clothes out all year round. Barely get a summer. And people are cold and passive-aggressive. I’m trying to leave after 20 soggy, soul-sucking years.
I am from Minnesota, but last year I moved to North Dakota & I was not that impress with it at all. The nearest town is between 30 to 60 miles away. you
will see a lot of tumbleweeds. I will go there to visit but that is about it.
Yeah, pretty sure that isn’t Santa Fe up there in #7.
That is Santa Fe Station in Forth Worth, Texas.
It is bad enough that some people don’t even know that NM is a state. Then you have to go and put in an image that isn’t from our state.
Good job. Thanks for fixing that error.
Why not just poll residents and rank the states based on the percentage of people who would rather live elsewhere? I can think of no more accurate indication of desirability than one where you measure the amount of people who want out.
As soon as you factored in public education, you exposed your bias and tilted the results. Maybe they counted for something once upon a time but today they are little more than babysitting and indoctrination centers.
What about taxes? Don’t taxes factor into this?
And who in their right mind makes population density a *positive*??? New Jersey cannot possibly be the 9th best place to live in the USA, but that’s what this “scientific” analysis shows.
If that’s not proof positive that you need to reconsider your technique, I don’t know what is.
I totally agree with you about population density! And home prices and rent are so high in CA you pay almost half your earnings for it. Not a positive in my book!
How about the quality of the people living there? Virginia might have the highest rate of a$$holes in the country, and I have lived in several states, including NY. New Yorkers have a reputation for being jerks, but my 12 years there proved it unfounded. Virginians are jerks for the sake of being jerks. And oh, by the way, they’re better than you are. In fact, the worst of them is better than the best of you from anywhere else. Virginia is where Southern hospitality goes to die.
Being right next to them in Maryland I agree! I imagine you have some choice words for us too but I have to say, everytime I visited NY people were nice…definitely nicer than they’ve ever been in VA.
I’ve been noticing that about Washington. Seattle has a reputation for being “Brainy” but honestly living here for two years now, I’ve not seen a trace of that to be true. The medical professionals here are top notch without a doubt, but the general populace, not so much. Not only are they poorly read and completely unaware of what’s going on in the world, but arrogant as well. Many of them lack manners and politeness. Very bland, dry personalities. It’s like if the people here were represented by a color that color would be beige. The lot of them walk around cranky, depressed and moody. They’ll look for ANY reason to bitch and complain so working any kind of customer service here is pure hell. Washingtonians need to have their asses kissed and powdered otherwise they get pissy. Similar to how you have to speak to children. Once I finish my degree I’m flying the coop. The natural environment is something special. It’s very beautiful and rich in nature, but the people and their pissy attitudes ruin it. I’m also a New Yorker born and raised so the adjustment has been quite challenging to say the least. The population lacks any sort of vibrancy.
P.s. Also it rains.. A LOT.
Florida is a hot, humid, and buggy place where depending on where you live, it can be a warm haven for the wealthier snowbirds who come here or a low salary hell for those of us who have to tough it out all year and deal with raising utility rates during the summer months when we need air conditioning to merely survive. Mixed feelings all around. Moved back here from California when things got economically out of hand and couldn’t afford to stay anymore. Not crazy about this place but don’t want to deal with winters either. What to do…what to do. (Is there a little island off of the coast of North Carolina or something?)
Yes and it is one of the most cruel law enforcement criminal not so much justice states. FL boast of feeding inmates unfit for human comsumption food on less than $2/day in nasty muderous abusive (both from employee and other inmates) rape filled spider vermin and rat n mice ridden non a/c literally torture chambers called dorms.
I don’t like somethings but FL on the whole is not a place I want to live.
Not unless you love hurricanes, large insects, snakes and humidity… tried it, back west now
Sometimes you want to tell your friends what a great place you just but then you realize most things are fleeting and maybe mostly subjective. And then you forget what was so great about it. Probably like ole whats his face said, ‘stuff’ happens. Yuk yuk.
Your current state of health, (physical) and financial situation has a lot to do with it. Sometimes you relocate out of necessity and sometimes out of stupidity.
Keep up with expecting things to improve, and don’t ever say ‘things’ or ‘it’ is getting worse, because you really may get what you pray for. (Unless you are an athiest, of course.l
Nebraska is the worst state in the Union. Over and over I see Nebraska listed as one of the best, but based on what criteria? There is nothing to do in Nebraska. A majority of the population have no critical reasoning skills. They might be able to read and write, but there’s no reading comprehension. They blindly believe anything reported on Fox News, love football and the Tea Party, hateful, bigoted, but only in a politically correct way. In short, Nebraskans hate anyone that doesn’t conform to what they consider to be “normal” meaning you must look like them, think like them, watch the same TV shows, read the same books, listen to the same music, go to the same church, or you will never be accepted. Our Public TV station is run by a bunch of brownie scouts all working on merit badges. They can’t even publish an accurate program guide. Highest State income taxes, property taxes, and where does all the money go? There very few services, especially for the poor or disabled. They refused to extend Medicare to the uninsured under Obama Care, even though this was essentially free money!! Our new Governor is a good old boy who’s trying to set things up for himself and his cronies, and to hell with the rest of us. There is no thought given to the quality of life in Nebraska from our “elected” officials, and it shows. Don’t come here. Don’t go to school here. Don’t even drive through the State, drive around it, or better yet, fly over it, and don’t even bother looing down.
In Maryland, the residents blindly believe everything the Democrats tell them and absolutely hate everyone else. Now, that’s bigotry.
Are you a Republican? I hate you!
You nailed it! I live here, and everything you said is so true. It’s the most narrow minded states, why else do they keep electing some ones who have done nothing since getting elected. Check what Adrian Smith has done, especially when you think about how many years he’s been in office. Yet, they keep reelecting him.
Iowa is right up there in crappiness with Nebraska. They never accept you unless you agree with all of their narrow minded ways, or inherited a ton of farm money like them. They think they feed the world, yeah with crappy gmo food devoid of nutrients and sickening everyone. Living near them and trying to grow some healthy food in nigh on impossible because of their constant herbicide drift and vaporization. Then try to turn them to the worthless IDALS regulatory agencies, and nothing gets done. Iowa sucks.
Yep I agree Nebraska is the worst state I lived there for 3 years and hated it there was nothing to do unless you liked drinking and gaizing at cows. I hated everything about that state.
The author clearly does not understand me.
How does Florida weather suck? I like Sun all year long. 4 seasons is overrated. 3 of them suck
I’m sorry but whoever wrote this has the most backwards sense of “good weather”. You can’t say that Florida has the second worst weather in the nation (unless you’re allergic to the sun or something) and that the weather in places like Minnesota and Alaska is much better. I live in Georgia and one of the only things I like about living here is the weather
With the exception of D.C., the worst of humanity gravitates to wherever the cost of living is cheap. If I was forced to live in Florida, I would commit suicide because it is the armpit of the US – Stinking hot with stifling humidity almost year round- – Boring without the change of seasons, and with flat landscapes with the ugliest of trees. It’s a place that breeds pestilence and disease, including leprosy and let’s not forget the mosquitoes and, palmettos, as well as poisonous snakes, alligators and sharks- Sinkholes abound, as well as scam artists, fraudulent doctors and medical practices, baby killers, such as Casey Anthony and wife killers, such as O J Simpson, as well as wannabe narcissitic big shots that kill black teens and beat up their girlfriends, such as the POS George Zimmerman – Florida also boasts the Number 6 state with the most sex offenders. Florida also has the most old people, who are the worst drivers and spread the most STD’s in assisted living facilities and nursing homes. And the worst of the worst gun-toting and bible belching hypocritical confederate flag flying racist hypocrites. I wish I could be alive to see Florida sink into the ocean from climate change, which the majority of retards living there still deny.
Evelyn, this your comment was so well written and snarky that I laughed out loud. I completely agree with your assessment of Florida and apply the same sentiment to all of the southern states, one of which I was born and grew up in. I hope that you see my reply to your comment, even though I’m responding two years later. Hilarity!
Evelyn that is the funniest comment! I laughed so loud… I dislike Florida for a number of reasons but you’ve said it best! lol
I live in Utah and here are my personal pros/cons of living here:
Jobs:
Pro: Utah boasts that it has a healthy economy. Con: Many of the jobs are low-level jobs (minimum wage is around $7.25) and since Utah’s job market is unregulated, many of those jobs are pyramid schemes, otherwise known as multi-level marketing schemes. My background is in marketing and I cannot tell you how many job posts were MLMs where they requested that the employee pays to work there.
Housing market:
Pro: In Salt Lake City, there are charming bungalows and Victorians. Con: The SLC median housing price is around $315K and it’s more in some of the suburbs. Plus, there is a major meth problem.
Pro: Fun outdoor activities- skiing, boating, and hiking. Con: Not a diverse selection of bars or restaurants.
The People:
Pro: I can’t really think of one. Con: Lots of self-righteous self-centered people. I swear everyone here is related to one another. They all dress the same, act the same and look the same. In other words, homogeneous.
Damn! Nebraska never wins anything.
I am surprised this was not reported every day for a week in Nebraska.
I guess this is not news.
I’d like to say Nebraska is best rather than read it’s least worst.
Thanks RoadSnacks
To put it simply Cold weather Sucks!! AZ all the way, Hot and Dry, just the way I like it. If I decide I want snow I’ll drive 2 hours north. I lived in N.Y. and it sucks, over crowded, high pollution, too damn expensive. High prices low quality. I love Arizona.
Why is California not #1? It’s horrible here. Liberals, hollywood, illegals, and soon to be newsom as governor….
How is a low population density a bad thing??
Here’s my personal subjective list, based upon my own criteria.
1: Maine
2: Wyoming
3: Pennsylvania
4: Idaho
5: Nebraska
6: South Dakota
7: Vermont
8: Arizona
9: New Hampshire
10: North Dakota
11: Louisiana
12: Colorado
If you are looking to get on welfare well Minnesota is the place to go.. Being from Minnesota I am embarrass by this. I am looking to move out of this state… I am looking to move to some where it is warm, and there is employment and good environment.. very very low crime rate…. any ideas of which states are the best ones to relocate to
I wouldn’t want to live in any of the states you listed as not bad. Baised?
When you have lived in or visited most of these states… What? This list is all wrong. States that should DEFINITELY be here are not. What a sham.
You Shall die in Fire and flame!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
First off: AZ should be #1 and Mississippi Should be at least #10!
Home come Florida did not make this list ? Many families are moving out because they can not afford to take care of the household . Hourly wage is way to low and the prices for buying houses are sky high . I know multiple people that are renting homes with five or six of their friends ! The crime here is bad it’s only going to get worse . If your not retired or middle high class Florida is a horrible state to live in .
Yeah, even if we go with your list as gospel, I’d still take living in New Mexico on a bad day over living in any other country in the world. First world problems.
Quite frankly, I live in virginia (one of the top states listed to live in) and personally I would rather live in California. Yes there is wealth here, and our summers are nice (although we still get 7 months of winter weather – so we are a state that still only has short summers), and there are places in our state where the jobs are plentiful. However, I feel like we are one of the emptier states in the country (which maybe good for quality of life and job opportunity), but as a young man (or atleast young enough, I’m in my early 30s) I feel like this is a terrible state to date or find friends in. California has literally a 4 x times larger population which means there are a lot more stores, a lot more things to do, and a lot more social opportunities. Also, California has some of the best weather on earth (nearly year long summers). So, yeah I’d trade.
You obviously didn’t consider the quality of our food. I’ll put MS, LA, and AL up against any other state or region. Plus, I LOVE my rural living. This elitist list is pure horseshit.
what a loaded bunch a loaded liberal BS. Population density?!? seriously. Also there is no correlation between income and cost of living. Hands down worst state in the union is California where they outlaw drinking straws.
California sucks so bad, full of Libtards and most people here are clueless, I was very surprised that all of my coworkers didn’t even know that we pay the highest amount for gas in the entire nation, everything is overpriced, Most people here don’t even know who our current governor is. There is barely any freedom here, the only freedom you have is to smoke pot. It’s also a “sanctuary state”, California is a extreme left leaning state. Mostly everybody here is a libtard zombie with their head up their ass….A bunch of people that think it’s cool to wear a “Cali” hat, but California is a fucking joke/communist state.
A lot of poor people are really kind-hearted and socially-conscious people. There are statistics people can look up to back this up, for example the studies that conclude that there’s a high correlation between sociopathology and wealth.
So, I think this study has multiple errors of statistical inference.
Thanks for the ideas, yet I’d advise readers to look elsewhere for advice on this topic.
You are typical of what our colleges are producing today, you need to compare the average income with the actual standard of living, the states in your top 10 are actually great places to live with low cost of living, and your crime statistics are scewed due to less population density. I am from The Great State of Tennessee and agree, Memphis is a shithole, a Democratic shithole, like most Democrat run shitholes, high crime and poverty. I do like your artical for one reason , may keep dumdasses like you out of our fair states. Sincerely, Joe Morton Jr.
I love living in West Virginia.Best people!!!
Living in New Mexico, I could not agree more. It should be The Land Of Entrapment. This place sucks. Im originally from Alabama, and most anyone I’ve talked to out here in New Mexico that has also moved from another state, agrees that it’s the worst. Funny thing is if you ask people born and raised here, they see no issues and usually get offensive when they hear negative things about it. I know one things for sure, and that is that I will never raise my family in this state. Could not agree more with you guys ranking New Mexico last.
Maybe don’t claim that these states are the worse and show glorious pictures of places there and contradicting everything you say. And how is it bad for a state to have population density?
This comments section makes me want to off myself
I do have to say that these lists are pretty funny but subjective to peoples preferences hidden behind a rouse of ‘statistics’. Massachusetts, my home state is the 2nd best state in the nation behind new hampshire (gtfoh – haaaaaaa!!!)? Wow, that is awesome and laughable. The criteria seems a bit skewed. Why would lower population density mean it’s a shittier state? That seems counter intuitive. How bout ‘weather’? The weather in Massachusetts is an absolute nightmare, enough to make even the most positive person in the world question their existence. I used to cringe when living in sunny California and overhearing people talking about how they miss the seasons. THERE IS ONLY 1 SEASON HERE, it’s called winter and it last 8 months long. By mid September it’s under 40 degrees and nearing freezing. It’s not until the end of April or even into May does the temp return to over 50 degrees. 2 weeks of fall, 2 weeks of spring, 3 hot awesome months of summer and the most depressing miserable 8 months of your life spent wishing each day away. This ALONE should put Massachusetts in the top 10 WORST STATES in America. phhhhewww. I feel a little better now, only 6 weeks left in Winter. YeaH!
though this ‘study’ claims to be unbiased or rather objective, the entire basis of its claim is not ‘hard science’. Examples of hard science are the disciplines of Mathematics, Chemistry, Physics, Geology, Biology, where opinions are of no consequence. Though some of this study includes objective data, i.e. temperatures, distances, populations, elevations. etc., it emphasizes the preferences and assumed opinions of others. This is ‘soft’ science, i.e. Sociology, Psychology, History. Anytime a study claims to be entirely objective but has words such as ‘best’ and ‘worst’ in its very title, then one can be assured of its subjectivity. Still a good article with some interesting stuff.
New Jersey is the worst most hated state to live in, has lowest quality of life, highest taxes, highest organized crime, worst terror, worst Apartheid schools, worst most violent cruel schools, worst concealed State crimes, worst CPS/DCPP forced child abductions at 8,000 year and worst most cruel forced drugging and concealed Judicial and State Attorney General corruption and tyranny, worst medical kidnapping, worst State malfeasance, worst northern state for racism, scientific racism and child Holocaust today, … This state is a living hell and nightmare so many people with more federal District and Circuit Court of Appeals against State corruption, malfeasance and extreme cruelty including child trafficking, human trafficking, prolonged torture and extreme abuse to the residents and people of New Jersey – join the federal class action suits and federal criminal justice charges to bring an end to the terror from the State of New Jersey (government).
There are three factors you track to determine which states are the worst that I don’t agree with. Population Density, Median Home Value and Median Income. Extremely high home values, like in parts of California, contribute to problems such as homelessness. Low home values allow people with lower incomes to buy a home. Median income should be effective median income. The cost of living is much less in many southern states. Finally, it seems low population density shouldn’t really be a factor. Some states might have areas that are uninhabitable while other areas, in the same state, could be paradise.
Question: Why the hell is Colorado not on this list? We’re overpopulated and people are only here because of the marijuana and crime is just as bad, if not worse, than it is in NYC or LA. Seems like every time I walk out my door, people are ALWAYS doing stupid shit and the law does nothing about it.
Top two worsts states in the union is NOW officially Alabama and Georgia. Passing the new abortion laws sets women back to the 50’s. I was considering moving to Georgia. I never would now. They are the offical shit-hole states in the union. WOmen, move out of those states now!
Anybody give me a recommendation please. I have been living in Houston Texas, I work for almost 10 company within 6 years but never get fulltime job, stable job, just a few month layoff, when I go to work I get many frustrating like bad leader, most Mexican leader, they make a group they treat bad to new people if you don’t be toady person, I don’t like that, now I’m frustrated, I want to move other state to look for good job, good co worker, a stable job to raise my kids, that is it, I graduated electrical electronic, computer engineering in my country but here it doesn’t work, I never get the job like that, just get jobs like as assembly, anyone recommend me what state should I come please,
Thanks
The criteria is bogus. Population density is a negative not a positive. The worst states in reality are:
1. New Jersey
2. New York
3. California
4. Delaware
5. Maryland
6. Illinois
7. Michigan
8. Arkansas
9. Mississippi
10. Oklahoma
P.S. Arizona is awesome don’t hate!
This is the definition of spurious, but I imagine your research seminar professor gave you an A. Missouri, for one, is much much worse than New Mexico on metrics related to social justice, murder, and air quality. You have a lot to learn about research (assuming you really care to do so beyond what’s required for pulling off your ulterior motive – clicks).
You obviously don’t know what you are talking about. You look at median income but don’t take inflation into account. This is the same for median home value. Of course California will have higher income and home value but the purchasing power of their dollar is much less than of other states like Tennessee. You don’t know your stuff and have made a very poor article. Next time find real median income and not nominal median income.
I’m just greatful I don’t have to live in Commiefornia.
How is high population density even a consideration for ‘best place to live’, or population density at all for that matter, It’s subjective unlike crime or housing cost, and is almost always a negative: traffic sucks, streets are dirty, pollution is horrific, water quality sucks etc. etc. Walkability and public transportation much more relevant data. Just look at your winners, there is mass exodus out of the north east, tells me you got this straight up wrong, goofy even. My wife is from Stamford, we live in Boulder, omg! not even close.
California is the worst state to live in, check out how much human waste is on the streets, its getting called the Sh*t state, just recently a woman had a bucket of fecal waste dumped on her head.
It is obvious that the worst states in which to live, based on the list, are conservative states, except New Mexico and maybe Nevada. These are the states with nearly the worst health care system, nearly the worst quality of life, highest percentage of low-wage jobs, high poverty, and the highest percentage of individuals on welfare and government assistance, despite being conservative states.
This is written by a progressive (Fools, Tools and Fellow Travelers…) cellar dweller pajama boy who drank the coolaid. My criteria would be Patriotic, Hard Working, God Loving, Gun Owning, Straight People, who have not traded in their common sense for a sheepskin. By the way, I have three college degrees, Two undergrad, and an MBA. I got them all well into adulthood by hard work.I live in Massachusetts. This state is everything he holds dear, and frankly, It sucks big time. I thought about moving to New Hampshire in retirement next year, but the massholes have moved up there and screwed up the granite state just as they have done to Maine. Southern NH is just another Boston Suburb now. The NY, NJ, CT hippies, Jews and queers moved up to Vermont beginning in the 70’s and screwed up a once beautiful state. That is why you get people like Comrade Sanders running for president. He wants to finish screwing up the rest of the country with his Judeo-Bolshevik bat shit crazy ideas.