Top 5 Happiest States (and Unhappiest)

They say happiness is a state of mind. But could it really be just a state itself – like a physical state where you live?

Wallethub, an online financial services company, researched this very question: in which states are people the happiest? They compared the 50 states across three key dimensions: 1) Emotional & Physical Well-Being, 2) Work Environment, and 3) Community & Environment.

To determine this, they used 30 relevant metrics, and each metric was graded on a 100-point scale, with a score of 100 representing maximum happiness.

ThinkFives has followers all across the US (and beyond) so we thought it would be interesting to see if you agree with these conclusions.

States with the Best Emotional and Physical Well-being

The researchers used several metrics to determine Community Environment. They include:

• Career Well-Being
• Physical Health Index
• Adverse Childhood Experiences
• Share of Adult Depression
• Social Well-Being
• Share of Adults with Alcohol Use Disorder
• Adequate-Sleep Rate
• Sports-Participation Rate

Bottom 5 States for Emotional and Physical Well-being: 

46. Oklahoma
47. Arkansas
48. Louisiana
49. Kentucky
50. West Virginia

Top 5 States for Emotional and Physical Well-being:

1. Hawaii
2. New Jersey
3. Illinois
4. Florida
5. Maryland

States with the Top Work Environment

The researchers used several metrics to determine Community Environment. They include:

• Number of Work Hours
• Commute Time
• Share of Households Earning Annual Incomes Above $75,000
• Share of Adults Worried About Money
• Current Unemployment
• Underemployment Rate

Bottom 5 States for Work Environment:

46. Arkansas
47. New Mexico
48. West Virginia
49. Louisiana
50. Mississippi

Top 5 States for Work Environment:

1. Utah
2. Minnesota
3. Idaho
4. Montana
5. Washington

States with the Lowest Share of Depression

Depression is a serious issue confronting many people. According to their research, these states have the lowest reported cases of depression. We’ll also first share those with the highest.

States with the Highest Share of Depression:

46. Arkansas
47. Vermont
48. Tennessee
49. Kentucky
50. West Virginia

States with the Lowest Share of Depression:

1. Hawaii
2. California
3. Illinois
4. Florida
5. New Jersey

States with the Top Community Environment

The researchers used several metrics to determine Community Environment. This includes Volunteer Rate, Ideal Weather, Average Leisure Time Spent per Day, Separation & Divorce Rate, and Safety.

Bottom 5 States for Community Environment:

46. Alabama
47. Colorado
48. Florida
49. Alaska
50. Texas

Top 5 States for Community Environment:

1. Utah
2. Idaho
3. Wyoming
4. Maryland
5. California

Top 5 and Bottom 5 Happiest States Overall

When Wallethub compiled all the results across these categories, they found these were the top 5 happiest states to live in – and also the bottom 5 unhappiest states to live in. And the envelope, please…..

Bottom 5 Happiest States:

46. Alabama
47. Kentucky
48. Arkansas
49. Louisiana
50. West Virginia

Top 5 Happiest States:

1. Hawaii
2. Maryland
3. Minnesota
4. Utah
5. New Jersey

Resource

https://wallethub.com/edu/happiest-states/6959