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These Are the Most (And Least) Happy States in the U.S. 2023, According to a New Report Utah was found to be the happiest state in the country, while West Virginia was the least.

By Madeline Garfinkle

Key Takeaways

  • WalletHub ranked all 50 states across three metrics: emotional and physical well-being, work environment, and community & environment.
  • Utah was ranked No. 1 as the happiest state in the country.

Opinions expressed by Entrepreneur contributors are their own.

Happiness can come from a multitude of factors, from weather to the job market, but when it comes to the state of your well-being, is it really location, location, location?

Well, according to a new study, some states are significantly happier than others.

A new report by the personal finance platform Wallet Hub ranked the happiest states across the country by analyzing 30 metrics across three categories (emotional and physical well-being; work environment; and community and environment) with subsets for factors like depression rates, sleep adequacy, unemployment, and income growth, and found it's not just climate that contribute to one's quality of life.

The happiest state in the country was Utah, with a total score of 69.79 on a 100-point scale, followed by Hawaii (66.42), and Maryland (64.62). While Utah and Maryland also ranked in the top 10 for subsets of work environment and community, Hawaii lagged behind in both metrics — at 25 for work environment and 30 for community — but ranked No. 1 for emotional and physical well-being.

Related: These Are the Top 10 States to Retire in 2023, According to a New Report — And Florida Didn't Make Top 5

As for the unhappiest states, West Virginia was found to be the least happy state in the U.S., with a total score of 35.08, ranking as the worst state for emotional and physical well-being as well as work environment. Louisiana came in as the No. 2 least happy state (35.86), followed by Tennessee (38.30).

Here are the top 10 most and least happy states in the country in 2023, according to the report, along with their ranking for emotional and physical well-being, work environment, and community and environment.

Happiest States:

1. Utah

Total score: 69.79

Emotional and physical well-being: 16

Work Environment: 1

Community & environment: 1

2. Hawaii

Total score: 66.42

Emotional and physical well-being: 1

Work Environment: 25

Community & environment: 30

3. Maryland

Total score: 64.62

Emotional and physical well-being: 8

Work Environment: 4

Community & environment: 5

4. Minnesota

Total score: 62.82

Emotional and physical well-being: 10

Work Environment: 3

Community & environment: 13

5. New Jersey

Total score: 61.98

Emotional and physical well-being: 3

Work Environment: 14

Community & environment: 29

6. Connecticut

Total score: 60.68

Emotional and physical well-being: 6

Work Environment: 32

Community & environment: 8

7. California

Total score: 60.53

Emotional and physical well-being: 5

Work Environment: 34

Community & environment: 10

8. Florida

Total score: 59.31

Emotional and physical well-being: 2

Work Environment: 21

Community & environment: 44

9. Idaho

Total score: 59.31

Emotional and physical well-being: 30

Work Environment: 6

Community & environment: 2

10. Nebraska

Total score: 58.92

Emotional and physical well-being: 12

Work Environment: 7

Community & environment: 25

Least Happy States:

1. West Virginia

Total score: 35.08

Emotional and physical well-being: 50

Work Environment: 50

Community & environment: 33

2. Louisiana

Total score: 35.86

Emotional and physical well-being: 48

Work Environment: 49

Community & environment: 43

3. Tennessee

Total score: 38.80

Emotional and physical well-being: 45

Work Environment: 38

Community & environment: 49

4. Arkansas

Total score: 39.72

Emotional and physical well-being: 49

Work Environment: 42

Community & environment: 18

5. Kentucky

Total score: 40.58

Emotional and physical well-being: 47

Work Environment: 41

Community & environment: 26

6. Alabama

Total score: 40.82

Emotional and physical well-being: 44

Work Environment: 44

Community & environment: 42

7. Mississippi

Total score: 41.42

Emotional and physical well-being: 42

Work Environment: 47

Community & environment: 41

8. Alaska

Total score: 42.20

Emotional and physical well-being: 36

Work Environment: 48

Community & environment: 47

9. New Mexico

Total score: 43.49

Emotional and physical well-being: 43

Work Environment: 45

Community & environment: 17

10. Oklahoma

Total score: 44.09

Emotional and physical well-being: 46

Work Environment: 43

Community & environment: 4

You can view the whole report, here.

Madeline Garfinkle

News Writer

Madeline Garfinkle is a News Writer at Entrepreneur.com. She is a graduate from Syracuse University, and received an MFA from Columbia University. 

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