Study finds Idahoans have one of the worst work-life balances in US. How low do we rank?

Shaun Goodwin
·2 min read
3

Idaho is a great place to live for those who want to get out of the house and take their minds off work for a while. There are biking and hiking trails throughout the Boise Foothills, countless camping grounds throughout the Boise National Forest, and tons of downtown entertainment shows, bars and restaurants.

There’s just one problem. Idahoans aren’t very good at taking their minds off work.

That’s according to a study from Solitaire Bliss, which used data from the 2021 American Time Use Survey to determine that Idaho has the worst work-life balance of any state.

The study from Solitaire Bliss took the average time spent on work per day and the average time spent doing leisurely activities to calculate a work-to-leisure ratio.

In the study, work time is considered any time spent on work and travel to and from work locations. Leisure is defined as socializing, relaxing, playing sports, exercising and recreation, and the time spent traveling to those activities.

According to the Time Use Survey, Idahoans spend, on average, 8.85 hours working per day and just 1.98 hours on leisurely activities. That resulted in a work-to-leisure ratio of 4.47, beating Iowa for the top spot, which recorded a work-to-leisure ratio of 4.01.

Idahoans aren’t close to spending the most hours per day working — that honor belongs to Rhode Island, whose residents work 10.24 hours per day on average. But Gem State residents do trail the pack in time spent on leisure — the 1.98 hours average spent on having fun is the lowest of any state.

The best and worst states for work-life balance

Residents of Vermont are living the good life. According to the study, Vermont residents spent the second-least amount of time working per day (7.13 hours) while simultaneously spending the most on leisurely activities (4.66 hours) than any other state.

Here are the top five states to live in for an excellent work-life balance, along with their work-to-leisure ratio:

  1. Vermont - 1.53

  2. North Dakota - 1.95

  3. Nevada - 2.03

  4. Wyoming - 2.04

  5. Utah - 2.17

Nearly all of Idaho’s neighboring states — Wyoming, Utah, Nevada, Oregon and Washington — rank in the top 15.

So while those who live around Idaho know how to turn their work brains off, here are some of the other worst states to live for a work-life balance:

  1. Idaho - 4.47

  2. Iowa - 4.01

  3. Tennessee 3.94

  4. Rhode Island - 3.85

  5. New Mexico - 3.79