State rankings
Donor States
New Mexico has the highest Return on Tax Dollars in 2024 ($3.42), followed by West Virginia ($2.91) and Mississippi ($2.66). Delaware has the lowest ($0.46).
Year 202451 of 51 states
Return on Tax Dollars, 2024
Darker means higher. Click a place to highlight it.
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All 51 ranked
Highest first.
Distribution Median and middle halfThe median is the middle value: half of places are above it, half below. The middle half is the range holding the central 50% of places.More in the glossary →
Each dot is one state; the lines mark the median and the middle half.
Median
$0.92
Middle half $0.77 – $1.55
Average
$1.20
51 states
Highest
$3.42
New Mexico
Lowest
$0.46
Delaware
Data
Click a column to sort, a row to highlight that place on the charts.
51 states · # = rank by Return on Tax Dollars
| # | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 |  New Mexico | $3.42 | $16,178 | $15,475 |
| 2 |  West Virginia | $2.91 | $12,130 | $11,522 |
| 3 |  Mississippi | $2.66 | $11,714 | $11,028 |
| 4 |  Alaska | $2.65 | $14,760 | $12,983 |
| 5 |  Hawaii | $1.94 | $10,291 | $9,660 |
| 6 |  Virginia | $1.91 | $16,650 | $16,096 |
| 7 |  Alabama | $1.90 | $10,268 | $9,728 |
| 8 |  Maryland | $1.79 | $13,037 | $12,469 |
| 9 |  Maine | $1.78 | $9,144 | $8,525 |
| 10 |  District of Columbia | $1.71 | — | — |
| 11 |  Kentucky | $1.68 | $10,813 | $10,149 |
| 12 |  Arizona | $1.62 | $7,195 | $6,471 |
| 13 |  South Carolina | $1.60 | $7,926 | $7,387 |
| 14 |  Vermont | $1.50 | $5,558 | $4,686 |
| 15 |  Montana | $1.43 | $4,929 | $4,347 |
| 16 |  Louisiana | $1.33 | $8,784 | $7,964 |
| 17 |  Oklahoma | $1.30 | $8,097 | $7,508 |
| 18 |  Oregon | $1.21 | $4,389 | $3,716 |
| 19 |  Idaho | $1.15 | $4,191 | $3,684 |
| 20 |  Connecticut | $1.09 | $2,937 | $2,261 |
| 21 |  Michigan | $0.99 | $4,584 | $4,028 |
| 22 |  Iowa | $0.97 | $3,481 | $2,950 |
| 22 |  South Dakota | $0.97 | $3,626 | $3,107 |
| 24 |  North Dakota | $0.96 | $2,787 | $2,077 |
| 25 |  Pennsylvania | $0.92 | $4,826 | $4,197 |
| 25 |  Indiana | $0.92 | $4,415 | $3,868 |
| 27 |  Wyoming | $0.91 | $3,218 | $2,572 |
| 28 |  New Hampshire | $0.90 | $23.00 | $535 |
| 29 |  Kansas | $0.89 | $3,900 | $3,391 |
| 30 |  North Carolina | $0.88 | $4,808 | $4,293 |
| 30 |  Nevada | $0.88 | $2,120 | $1,486 |
| 32 |  Wisconsin | $0.85 | $2,887 | $2,369 |
| 32 |  Arkansas | $0.85 | $7,340 | $6,738 |
| 34 |  Tennessee | $0.81 | $4,589 | $4,079 |
| 35 |  Florida | $0.79 | $2,574 | $1,978 |
| 35 |  Utah | $0.79 | $1,067 | $493 |
| 37 |  Georgia | $0.78 | $3,951 | $3,345 |
| 37 |  Colorado | $0.78 | $1,051 | $463 |
| 39 |  Illinois | $0.76 | $818 | $184 |
| 39 |  Rhode Island | $0.76 | $4,767 | $3,922 |
| 41 |  Texas | $0.75 | $2,603 | $2,037 |
| 42 |  California | $0.73 | $342 | $428 |
| 43 |  Minnesota | $0.71 | $807 | $237 |
| 44 |  Missouri | $0.70 | $7,150 | $6,595 |
| 45 |  Ohio | $0.66 | $5,075 | $4,490 |
| 46 |  New York | $0.65 | $674 | $372 |
| 46 |  Nebraska | $0.65 | $2,351 | $1,749 |
| 48 |  Massachusetts | $0.60 | $967 | $1,605 |
| 49 |  Washington | $0.59 | $7.00 | $728 |
| 50 |  New Jersey | $0.51 | $2,011 | $2,757 |
| 51 |  Delaware | $0.46 | $5,360 | $4,737 |
What correlates with Return on Tax Dollars (2024)?
Pearson r against 2,092 other state metrics sharing at least 31 states. Correlation is not causation.
Higher together
Places that have a higher Return on Tax Dollars tend to score higher on these
Opposite directions
Places that have a higher Return on Tax Dollars tend to score lower on these
Quick answers
- Which state has the highest Return on Tax Dollars?
- New Mexico has the highest Return on Tax Dollars in 2024, at $3.42, followed by West Virginia ($2.91) and Mississippi ($2.66).
- Which state has the lowest Return on Tax Dollars?
- Delaware has the lowest Return on Tax Dollars in 2024, at $0.46.
- What is the median Return on Tax Dollars across US states?
- The median is $0.92 across the 51 US states with data in 2024.
- Where does this donor states data come from?
- Rankodex compiles it from World Population Review and the primary sources it cites: The States That Are Most Reliant on Federal Aid - Money Geek; Who Gives and Who Gets? - Rockefeller Institude of Government.