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California’s ranking drops in annual ‘Best States’ report

The California State flag flies outside City Hall, in Los Angeles, California on January 27, 2017. A campaign by Californians to secede from the rest of the country over Donald Trump's election is gaining steam with suporters given the green light to start collecting signatures for the measure to be put to a vote. / AFP / Mark RALSTON (Photo credit should read MARK RALSTON/AFP via Getty Images)

California is considered the nation’s 33rd “Best” state, according to the latest Best State Ranking from U.S. News and World Report.

The annual report used survey data to measure how well the 50 states serve their residents across 70 metrics in eight categories, including health care, education and economy.


Here is where the California ranked in the following categories:

The Golden State’s 33rd ranking is a step backward from 2021 when it was ranked the 24th “best” state.  

Researchers found that the top 10 best states were:

  1. Utah
  2. Washington
  3. Idaho
  4. Nebraska
  5. Minnesota
  6. New Hampshire
  7. Iowa
  8. Wisconsin
  9. Vermont
  10. Florida

Utah took the top spot from Washington, which held the position for two surveys in a row, according to U.S. News and World Report.

On the other hand, the 10 “worst” states were:

  1. Louisiana
  2. Alaska
  3. Mississippi
  4. New Mexico
  5. West Virginia
  6. Arkansas
  7. Alabama
  8. Oklahoma
  9. South Carolina
  10. Michigan