These are the 10 worst states to live in, according to a new study

Affordability helps, but WalletHub’s latest ranking shows that weak scores in health, the economy, and safety can outweigh cheaper living costs.

I recently looked at WalletHub’s ranking of the best states to live in, where Wisconsin landed at No. 3 and New Jersey came in at No. 2. But the other end of the list is arguably even more interesting.

WalletHub compared all 50 states across 51 measures of livability. The study looked at affordability, the economy, education and health, quality of life, and safety, with each of those five categories carrying equal weight in the final score.

Some of the states near the bottom actually rank very well in one area. West Virginia, for example, is the most affordable state in the country according to this study. That still wasn’t enough to keep it out of the bottom 10.

10. Kentucky

Kentucky finished No. 41 overall with a score of 47.59. Affordability is one of its stronger points, with the state ranking 11th in that category, but its economy came in 49th and quality of life ranked 45th.

Safety was considerably better at No. 22, so Kentucky isn’t near the bottom across the board. Its especially weak economic showing is what stands out here.

9. Oregon

Oregon came in at No. 42 overall. Unlike several states farther down this list, quality of life isn’t its biggest problem: Oregon actually ranked 11th in that category.

Instead, it struggled with affordability, where it ranked 41st, and safety, where it fell all the way to 48th. Its overall score was 46.49.

8. West Virginia

West Virginia is probably one of the more surprising entries because it ranked No. 1 in the country for affordability.

That advantage was offset by some very low scores elsewhere. West Virginia ranked 49th for education and health and 46th for quality of life, leaving it at No. 43 overall.

7. Oklahoma

Oklahoma ranked 44th overall with a score of 45.47. It didn’t finish last in any of WalletHub’s five major categories, but it also didn’t score particularly well in most of them.

Its economy ranked 41st, education and health came in 44th, and safety was 39th. Affordability was its best category at No. 19.

6. Nevada

Nevada landed at No. 45 overall. Quality of life was its strongest category by quite a bit, ranking 19th nationally.

The rest of its scores were much rougher. Nevada ranked 45th for its economy, 42nd for education and health, 39th for affordability, and 36th for safety.

5. Arkansas

Arkansas is another state where cheap living costs don’t tell the whole story. It ranked third in the country for affordability but still finished No. 46 overall.

Its economy ranked 48th, quality of life came in 47th, education and health ranked 45th, and safety was 44th. Those scores pushed its overall total down to 43.29.

4. Alaska

Alaska finished No. 47 overall despite having the 11th-best economy in the study. Its biggest problem was quality of life, where it ranked dead last among all 50 states.

It also ranked 46th for safety and 43rd for affordability. That combination left Alaska with an overall score of 42.92.

3. Mississippi

Mississippi ranked No. 48 overall, but affordability certainly wasn’t the reason. The state came in sixth for affordability and 18th for safety.

Its other scores were much weaker. Mississippi ranked last in the country for education and health, 49th for quality of life, and 47th for its economy.

2. Louisiana

Louisiana narrowly avoided the bottom spot with an overall score of 42.27. The state ranked last in the country for its economy and 48th for education and health.

Its affordability ranking of No. 20 was relatively middle-of-the-pack, while quality of life came in 38th and safety ranked 31st.

1. New Mexico

According to WalletHub, New Mexico is the worst state to live in for 2026, finishing No. 50 with an overall score of 41.42.

The state ranked 49th for safety and 47th for education and health. Its other scores weren’t nearly as extreme, including a No. 25 ranking for affordability and No. 28 for quality of life, but they weren’t enough to make up the difference.

No ranking like this can capture every reason someone may love living in a particular state. But WalletHub’s numbers do make one thing pretty clear: a low cost of living by itself doesn’t necessarily translate to a high overall quality of life. Several of the most affordable states in the country still landed near the very bottom once health, economic conditions, safety, and day-to-day livability were factored in.

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