Idaho is one of the happiest states in US, new study says. Here’s where we ranked and why

Shaun Goodwin
·2 min read

Idaho often gets a bad reputation when it comes to national studies: It has been ranked one of the worst states to work in, a bad state for women to live in, and even ranked lowly for states with the worst work-life balance.

But the Gem State has plenty of redeeming qualities, too. It has been ranked one of the best places to retire, as well as one of the best states for camping.

Now, according to a new study from personal finance website WalletHub, Idahoans are among the top 10 happiest groups of people in the country. The study, which looked at a wide-ranging set of criteria to determine happiness, found that Idaho is the eighth-happiest state in the United States.

With one exception — Utah (1st) — Idaho ranked higher than all of its neighbors and decidedly higher than nearby Wyoming (36th) and Oregon (38th).

Source: WalletHub

To determine the happiest (and unhappiest) states, WalletHub used three key dimensions to formulate the rankings: emotional and physical well-being, work environment, and community and environment.

Under those three dimensions are 30 key indicators, such as the sports participation rate, mean work hours and divorce rate. A total score of 100 was calculated for each state to determine its final ranking.

Data was gathered from the Bureau of Labor Statistics, Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration, and Feeding America, among other sources.

Idaho earned a score of 59.3, tying with Florida for 8th and slightly ahead of 10th-placed Nebraska (58.9). Under the key dimensions, Idaho ranked 30th for emotional and physical well-being, sixth for work environment, and second for community and environment.

Under the 30 key indicators, Idaho scored noticeably well for the fourth-lowest long-term unemployment rate and the fourth-best income growth.

Idaho ranked particularly well in two of the 30 key indicators: long-term unemployment rate and income growth.
Idaho ranked particularly well in two of the 30 key indicators: long-term unemployment rate and income growth.

Who is Idaho competing with?

WalletHub’s top 10 happiest states and their scores are:

  1. Utah (69.8)

  2. Hawaii (66.4)

  3. Maryland (64.6)

  4. Minnesota (62.8)

  5. New Jersey (62)

  6. Connecticut (60.7)

  7. California (60.5)

  8. Florida (59.3)

  9. Idaho (59.3)

  10. Nebraska (58.9)