RESOLVING THE LEDGER
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US News & World Report ranked all 50 states in the US on livability.
States were ranked across eight categories, including education, healthcare, and the economy.
More well-rounded states fared better than those that ranked high in just one or two categories.
Every state has its pros and cons — but which one came out on top?
US News & World Report released its annual list of the best states to live in, evaluating each in eight categories: education, healthcare, the economy, infrastructure, opportunity, fiscal stability, the natural environment, and crime and corrections. The categories are weighted differently based on a survey of 25,000 Americans that asked what they care most about.
US News & World Report senior data editor Evan Comen told Business Insider that since the categories aren't evenly weighted, a state excelling in one category doesn't guarantee a high overall ranking — and in some instances, success in one category could lead to the collapse of another.
Texas, for example, finished outside the top 25 despite ranking first in economy.
"The way we've structured our index, it does reflect some of these trade-offs among categories," Comen said. "Texas is No. 1 in the economy — a lot of that economy is tied to oil and gas manufacturing. But then, Texas is No. 46 in natural environment. And our natural environment category is composed of metrics related to air and water quality and pollution."
Though Southern states have typically performed well on lists that rank the best places to live , Florida and North Carolina were the only Sun Belt states to finish in the top 25. According to Comen, it's not that Southern states are getting worse; rather, other states are improving.
"A decline in rankings doesn't necessarily mean a state is performing poorly in any metric, but rather that they are being outpaced by other states," he said. "Some states in the South might have experienced ranking decline, but it's more because they're being outperformed by other states, particularly the Midwest ."
One state that kept its ranking from the previous year was Utah , which finished first for the fourth consecutive year. While Utah finished 48th in the natural environment category, it had one of the most balanced rankings across categories, including the second-best economy.
Keep reading to see what each state is best at and what it needs to improve on, according to US News & World Report.
The population data comes from the US census.
50. Louisiana
Shreveport, Louisiana. Sean Pavone/Getty Images/iStockphoto
Population: 4,618,189
Best ranking: Fiscal stability (43)
Worst ranking: Crime and corrections (50)
49. Alaska
Homer, Alaska. Jay Berkow Photography/Getty Images
Population: 737,270
Best ranking : Opportunity (30)
Worst ranking: Economy (49)
48. Mississippi
Jackson, Mississippi. SeanPavonePhoto/Getty Images/iStockphoto
Population: 2,954,160
Best ranking: Crime and corrections (23)
Worst ranking: Healthcare (50)
47. New Mexico
Albuquerque, New Mexico. Sean Pavone/Getty Images/iStockphoto
Population: 2,125,498
Best ranking: Fiscal stability (12)
Worst ranking: Education (50)
46. Michigan
Sean Pavone/Getty Images
Population: 10,127,884
Best ranking: Healthcare (24)
Worst ranking: Education (45)
45. Arkansas
Sean Pavone/Getty Images/iStockphoto
Population: 3,114,791
Best ranking: Economy (23)
Worst ranking: Crime and corrections (49)
44. West Virginia
Wheeling, West Virginia. Sean Pavone/Getty Images/iStockphoto
Population: 1,766,147
Best ranking: Opportunity (4)
Worst ranking: Healthcare and economy (50 in both categories)
43. Alabama
Birmingham, Alabama. Sean Pavone/Getty Images/iStockphoto
Population: 5,193,088
Best ranking: Opportunity (19)
Worst ranking: Education and healthcare (44 in both categories)
42. Ohio
Columbus, Ohio. Sean Reid/Getty Images/iStockphoto
Population: 11,900,510
Best ranking: Opportunity (18)
Worst ranking: Natural environment (43)
41. Kentucky
Bardstown, Kentucky. Brian Koellish/Getty Images
Population: 4,606,864
Best ranking: Crime and corrections (10)
Worst ranking: Healthcare (46)
40. Pennsylvania
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. f11photo/Getty Images/iStockphoto
Population: 13,059,432
Best ranking: Healthcare (11 )
Worst ranking: Economy (47)
39. Oregon
Portland, Oregon. Sean Pavone/Getty Images/iStockphoto
Population: 4,273,586
Best ranking: Infrastructure (2)
Worst ranking: Economy (48)
38. Nevada
Reno, Nevada. Jacob Boomsma/Getty Images
Population: 3,282,188
Best ranking: Infrastructure (1)
Worst ranking: Natural environment (47)
37. Illinois
Chicago, Illinois. marchello74/Getty Images/iStockphoto
Population: 12,719,141
Best ranking: Education (13)
Worst ranking: Fiscal stability (50)
36. Oklahoma
Oklahoma City. Sean Pavone/Getty Images/iStockphoto
Population: 4,123,288
Best ranking Economy (11)
Worst ranking: Education (47)
35. California
Los Angeles, California. choness/Getty Images/iStockphoto
Population: 39,355,309
Best ranking: Healthcare (7)
Worst ranking: Opportunity (50)
34. Arizona
Kruck20/Getty Images/iStockphoto
Population: 7,623,818
Best ranking: Economy (4)
Worst ranking: Education (43)
33. Rhode Island
Newport, Rhode Island. Beth Fitzpatrick/Getty Images
Population: 1,114,521
Best ranking Healthcare (4)
Worst ranking: Infrastructure (47)
32. South Carolina
Charleston, South Carolina. Kruck20/Getty Images/iStockphoto
Population: 5,570,274
Best ranking: Economy (6)
Worst ranking : Education and crime and corrections(42 in both categories)
31. Missouri
Branson, Missouri. JeremyMasonMcGraw.com/Getty Images
Population: 6,270,541
Best ranking: Opportunity (8)
Worst ranking: Crime and corrections (44)
30. Indiana
Indianapolis, Indiana. Nicholas Klein/Getty Images
Population: 6,973,333
Best ranking: Opportunity (17)
Worst ranking: Natural environment (50)
29. Montana
Missoula, Montana. ...
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