A new study published the week of July 27 by US News has evaluated and ranked every state in the nation. The 2026 Overall Best State Rankings were determined by analyzing 71 distinct metrics across eight core categories: education, health care, economy, infrastructure, opportunity, fiscal stability, natural environment, and crime and corrections.
To determine the rankings, US News analyzed 71 metrics across eight categories: education, health care, economy, infrastructure, opportunity, fiscal stability, natural environment, and crime and corrections. Some categories were weighted more than others. For example, health care and education were weighted more than crime and corrections and natural environment. Within the categories, each state was given points out of 100, with the best state given 100 points and the worst given zero. Beyond these metrics, the report also incorporated feedback from over 56,000 people surveyed between 2018 and 2025 regarding their satisfaction with their state's performance.
Utah claimed the top spot in the overall rankings. The state performed strongly in several areas, securing the No. 2 position for economy and fiscal stability, No. 4 for infrastructure, No. 6 for education, and No. 7 for crime and corrections. However, it ranked lower in other metrics, placing No. 18 for health care, No. 24 for opportunity, and No. 48 for natural environment.
Rounding out the top five best-ranked states were South Dakota, Minnesota, North Dakota, and Nebraska. Conversely, the states at the bottom of the list included Arkansas, Michigan, New Mexico, Mississippi, and Alaska. Louisiana was ranked No. 50 overall. Its individual category rankings included No. 43 for fiscal stability, No. 45 for health care and opportunity, No. 46 for infrastructure and education, No. 49 for economy and natural environment, and No. 50 for crime and corrections.
Interested in seeing where your state fell on the list? Here's a look at this year's rankings.
Here's a closer look at how US News ranked each of the 50 states:
