State rankings

Each ranking lists all 50 states and DC with the latest official figure, its margin of error where it comes from a survey, the range of ranks a state could hold, and the source. Ranks are ties when the values cannot be told apart.

Number of the 45 rankings in which each state is first

Source: Census Bureau, 2024 Cartographic Boundary Files. Computed from the rankings listed below, each with its own sources. First means the highest value, whatever the measure (the highest poverty rate counts as first too); ties at first count for every tied state.

Show the numbers

State	Rankings where first
District of Columbia	9
California	6
Alaska	4
Hawaii	4
Utah	4
West Virginia	3
Maine	2
Mississippi	2
New Mexico	2
Vermont	2
Delaware	1
Louisiana	1
Nevada	1
New York	1
North Carolina	1
Rhode Island	1
South Carolina	1
Texas	1
Alabama	0
Arizona	0
Arkansas	0
Colorado	0
Connecticut	0
Florida	0
Georgia	0
Idaho	0
Illinois	0
Indiana	0
Iowa	0
Kansas	0
Kentucky	0
Maryland	0
Massachusetts	0
Michigan	0
Minnesota	0
Missouri	0
Montana	0
Nebraska	0
New Hampshire	0
New Jersey	0
North Dakota	0
Ohio	0
Oklahoma	0
Oregon	0
Pennsylvania	0
South Dakota	0
Tennessee	0
Virginia	0
Washington	0
Wisconsin	0
Wyoming	0

How to read a ranking

Rank 1 is always the highest value. For survey measures, a state's exact rank is uncertain: two states a few tenths of a point apart may not differ in a statistically meaningful way. Each table therefore shows a rank range, the best and worst ranks consistent with the margins of error, following the Census Bureau's method. Measures from counts and administrative records, such as population estimates or births, have no margin of error and are ranked exactly.

Rankings are listed below by topic. Every measure in them, and many more, can also be set side by side in the comparison tool or downloaded from the data page.

Population and land

States by populationHighest: California (39,355,309). Lowest: Wyoming (588,753).
States by land areaHighest: Alaska (571,242). Lowest: District of Columbia (61).
Population growth by stateHighest: South Carolina (1.46%). Lowest: Vermont (−0.29%).
Population density by stateHighest: District of Columbia (11,347.8). Lowest: Alaska (1.3).
Rural population by stateHighest: Vermont (64.9%). Lowest: District of Columbia (0.0%).

Money and cost of living

Cost of living by stateHighest: California (110.7). Lowest: Arkansas (86.9).
Poverty rate by stateHighest: Louisiana (18.1%). Lowest: New Hampshire (6.2%).
Median household income by stateHighest: District of Columbia ($109,505). Lowest: Mississippi ($59,346).
GDP by stateHighest: California ($4.30T). Lowest: Vermont ($49.7B).
GDP per capita by stateHighest: District of Columbia ($278,205). Lowest: Mississippi ($55,117).
Per capita personal income by stateHighest: District of Columbia ($119,772). Lowest: Mississippi ($54,433).
Income inequality by stateHighest: New York (0.519). Lowest: Utah (0.435).
SNAP and Medicaid enrollment by stateHighest: New Mexico (21.9%). Lowest: Wyoming (4.7%).
Millionaire tax returns by stateHighest: District of Columbia (9.7 per 1,000 tax returns). Lowest: West Virginia (1.6 per 1,000 tax returns).

Education and work

Most and least educated statesHighest: District of Columbia (64.9%). Lowest: West Virginia (24.7%).
High school graduation rate by stateHighest: West Virginia (91%). Lowest: District of Columbia (76%).
Unemployment rate by stateHighest: District of Columbia (6.3%). Lowest: South Dakota (2.1%).

Health and vital statistics

Life expectancy by stateHighest: Hawaii (80.0 years). Lowest: West Virginia (72.2 years).
Birth and fertility rates by stateHighest: Utah (13.3 per 1,000 residents). Lowest: Vermont (7.7 per 1,000 residents).
Teen birth rate by stateHighest: Mississippi (22.8 per 1,000 females 15–19). Lowest: New Hampshire (4.6 per 1,000 females 15–19).
Infant mortality by stateHighest: Mississippi (9.7 per 1,000 live births). Lowest: New Hampshire (3.0 per 1,000 live births).
Health insurance coverage by stateHighest: Texas (16.5%). Lowest: Massachusetts (2.7%).
Adult obesity rate by stateHighest: West Virginia (41.4%). Lowest: Colorado (25.0%).

Race and ethnicity

Black population by stateHighest: District of Columbia (41.6%). Lowest: Montana (0.7%).
Hispanic and Latino population by stateHighest: New Mexico (49.4%). Lowest: West Virginia (2.6%).
White population by stateHighest: Vermont (89.4%). Lowest: Hawaii (21.5%).
Asian population by stateHighest: Hawaii (36.7%). Lowest: West Virginia (1.0%).
American Indian and Alaska Native population by stateHighest: Alaska (22.2%). Lowest: Massachusetts (1.6%).
Racial and ethnic diversity by stateHighest: Hawaii (76.6). Lowest: West Virginia (22.2).

Age and sex

Median age by stateHighest: Maine (45.1 years). Lowest: Utah (32.6 years).
Children under 18 by stateHighest: Utah (26.1%). Lowest: Vermont (17.0%).
Population 65 and older by stateHighest: Maine (24.6%). Lowest: Utah (13.0%).
Sex ratio by stateHighest: Alaska (108.7). Lowest: District of Columbia (87.5).

Migration and immigration

Domestic migration by stateHighest: North Carolina (84,064). Lowest: California (−229,077).
Foreign-born population by stateHighest: California (27.2%). Lowest: West Virginia (2.3%).
Languages spoken at home by stateHighest: California (44.9%). Lowest: West Virginia (2.8%).

Housing and households

Median home value by stateHighest: Hawaii ($901,500). Lowest: West Virginia ($176,300).
Median gross rent by stateHighest: California ($2,160). Lowest: West Virginia ($921).
Homeownership rate by stateHighest: Delaware (74.7%). Lowest: District of Columbia (38.1%).
Homelessness by stateHighest: District of Columbia (74.2 per 10,000 residents). Lowest: Mississippi (4.2 per 10,000 residents).
Marriage and divorce rates by stateHighest: Nevada (24.8 per 1,000 residents). Lowest: Louisiana (3.7 per 1,000 residents).
Veterans by stateHighest: Alaska (9.7%). Lowest: New York (3.3%).

Religion

Religious adherence by stateHighest: Utah (76.1%). Lowest: New Hampshire (27.2%).
Catholic adherents by stateHighest: Rhode Island (40.6%). Lowest: Mississippi (3.4%).
Latter-day Saints by stateHighest: Utah (65.0%). Lowest: New Jersey (0.4%).

Sources

Association of Religion Data Archives (ARDA), U.S. Religion Census; table RCMSST20; 2020; released March 31, 2023. www.thearda.com
Census Bureau, 2024 Cartographic Boundary Files; table cb_2024_us_state_20m; 2024; released April 10, 2025. www2.census.gov

Citation: Grammich, C. A., Dollhopf, E., Gautier, M., Houseal, R., Jones, D. E., Krindatch, A., ... Thumma, S. (2023, March 31). U.S. Religion Census - Religious Congregations and Membership Study, 2020 (State File). DOI 10.17605/OSF.IO/6PGRZ. The data were downloaded from the Association of Religion Data Archives, www.theARDA.com, and were collected by Clifford A. Grammich, Erica Dollhopf, Mary Gautier, Richard Houseal, Dale E. Jones, Alexei Krindatch, Richie Stanley and Scott Thumma for the Association of Statisticians of American Religious Bodies (ASARB).

Margins of error (±) are at the 90% confidence level. A difference is called significant only when it passes the Census Bureau's test at that level. How every figure is built: methodology. Found an error? Write to [email protected]; corrections are listed on the updates page.