Happiness….is a wonderful feeling. Happiness is smiling and laughing and loving life. Sometimes what makes a person happy is hard to identify. Maybe it’s friends and family coming over for dinner, maybe it’s eating delicious food or listening to good music. It could be feeling safe. Sometimes it is as simple as a clean city park, hiking trails or a wide sidewalk that is big enough for pedestrians and bike riders. When I think of happiness, I think of wide open spaces…the great outdoors, somewhere not crowded, cooking outside and drinking fresh coffee…But what about money. Can money really buy happiness? Maybe. According to a new report from WalletHub, money may have something to do with the happiness. Researchers from WalletHub wanted to determine which states were the happiest and here is what they discovered…Check out the findings from WalletHub below:
Source: WalletHub: Happiest States in the United States 2016
To find the states that are home to the happiest Americans, WalletHub’s analysts compared the 50 states and the District of Columbia across 28 key metrics. Our data set ranges from emotional health to income level to sports participation rate.
Happiest States in America
1 Utah
2 Minnesota
3 North Dakota
4 Hawaii
5 Colorado
6 Idaho
7 Iowa
8 Nebraska
9 South Dakota
10 California
11 New Hampshire
12 Washington
13 Wyoming
14 Vermont
15 Wisconsin
16 Massachusetts
17 Connecticut
18 District of Columbia
19 Delaware
20 New JerseyBest vs. Worst
Hawaii has the lowest depression rate, 10.7 percent, which is 2.2 times lower than in Oregon, where the rate is highest, 24.0 percent.The District of Columbia has the lowest number of suicides per 100,000 residents, 7.8, which is 3.1 times lower than in Montana, where the number is highest, 23.9.
North Dakota has the lowest long-term unemployment rate, 13.1 percent, which is 3.8 times lower than in the District of Columbia, where the rate is highest, 49.2 percent.
Utah has the lowest rate of heart attacks, 2.7 percent, which is 2.7 times lower than in West Virginia, where the rate is highest, 7.4 percent.
Utah has the highest volunteerism rate, 45.2 percent, which is 2.5 times higher than in Louisiana, where the rate is lowest, 18.2 percent.
Utah has the lowest divorce rate, 15.97 percent, which is 1.9 times lower than in the District of Columbia, where the rate is highest, 31.00 percent.
For the full report and to see where your state or D.C. ranks, please visit: WalletHub: Happiest States 2016