West Virginia is the state with the least healthy population, while Hawaii has the healthiest residents, according to a Forbes Advisor analysis released Jan. 8.
Forbes Advisor used 21 metrics to compare all 50 states across three categories: disease risk factors and prevalence, substance abuse, and lifestyle habits and health outlook. Metrics ranged from cancer mortality rate per 100,000 state residents to percentage of adults who did not exercise in the past month.
Below are the 15 states with the healthiest and least healthy populations, as determined by Forbes Advisor, along with their corresponding overall scores. See the full ranking and scoring methodology here.
States with the healthiest populations:
1. Hawaii — 0.00
2. Utah — 11.34
3. Connecticut — 13.33
4. Minnesota — 16.16
5. Massachusetts — 17.02
6. Colorado — 18.67
7. New Jersey — 19.23
8. New Hampshire — 20.35
9. Washington — 23.01
10. New York — 23.04
11. Idaho — 25.39
12. Florida — 29.35
13. California — 30.74
14. Rhode Island — 33.51
15. Vermont — 34.43
States with the least healthy populations:
1. West Virginia — 100.00
2. Mississippi — 96.04
3. Tennessee — 94.39
4. Arkansas — 88.06
5. Kentucky — 87.46
6. Alabama — 83.70
7. Louisiana — 82.81
8. Oklahoma — 81.69
9. Ohio — 78.38
10. Indiana — 76.37
11. South Carolina — 73.65
12. Nevada — 66.31
13. Missouri — 66.13
14. Michigan — 63.66
15. Georgia — 61.90