NEW MEXICO (KRQE) – A new study from WalletHub is highlighting which states in the U.S. that are the best to live in. They looked at a state’s affordability, economy, education and health, quality of life, and safety across 51 different aspects like housing affordability, unemployment rate, and high school graduation rate.
New Mexico, unfortunately, came in dead last when stacked up against the other states with an average score of 39.86. Although our economy ranked 25th, and our quality of life came in at 31st, our education and health and safety rankings ended up toward the bottom – 47th and 50th, respectively.
The study also looked at the percentage of poverty in the state and New Mexico again ranked high, coming in at 48th place. Louisiana was 49th and Mississippi was 50th. Louisiana also had a slightly worse rating than us when it came to the crime rate. They were 50th and New Mexico was rated 49th.
New Mexico also ranked 46th when it came to the percent of the population aged 25 and older with a high school education. Montana and Vermont snagged the first and second places in that respect, along with a three-way tie for third between Maine, Wyoming, and Minnesota.
Massachusetts came in first overall as the best state to live in, according to the study. They came in 44th in affordability but got high marks in economy (11th), education and health (1st), quality of life (6th), and safety (6th).
