The best and worst US states to live in

Ogden, Utah. DenisTangneyJr/Getty Images

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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