Who wouldn’t be happy with having more money in the bank?
A March study from Go Banking Rates and Purdue University unveiled how much money a person would need to make to be “happy” in each state based on multiple factors such as cost of living expenses.
A Purdue University study from 2018 found that the average income needed to achieve “happiness” in the U.S. was $105,000; experts at Go Banking Rates used that figure to rank states that require the least to the most amount of money to achieve “happiness.”
Researchers noted that “happiness” is subjective, so these numbers won’t apply to everyone.
In California, the minimum salary needed to be “happy” is $145,635, with experts citing the state’s “notoriously high cost of living” as one of the primary factors behind the high amount.
Massachusetts and Hawaii were the only states with a higher salary requirement than the Golden State.
Researchers found that in Massachusetts, a person needed to make a minimum of $157,395 to be “happy.” In Hawaii, that number increased to $195,300.
Mississippi was the state that required the lowest salary amount to be happy. Due to the state’s low living expenses, residents would need to make $88,725 to be “happy.”
Oklahoma and Alabama ranked in the second and third lowest spots, respectively, only requiring a minimum salary of $91,035 and $91,455 to be “happy.”
The complete study can be viewed here.