State rankings

Housing Shortage by State

California has the highest Housing Unit Shortage in 2023 (2,210,280), followed by New York (962,650) and Florida (486,211). West Virginia has the lowest (1,460).

Economics51 states · 5 metricsUpdated Feb 1, 2026Original page
1 source
Year 202351 of 51 states
Compare this metricAdd to combined rankingOpen full map
Cost-of-living adjustmentConverts wages and incomes to what they would buy at average US prices, so $100k in a cheap state and $100k in an expensive one are not treated as equal.More in the glossary →

Housing Unit Shortage, 2023

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
23,172
Middle half 10.1K – 81.1K
Average
117,647
51 states
Highest
2,210,280
California
Lowest
1,460
West Virginia

Data

Click a column to sort, a row to highlight that place on the charts.

51 states · # = rank by Housing Unit Shortage
#
1California2,210,28015.0%
2New York962,65011.2%
3Florida486,2114.7%
4Washington247,6427.4%
5Massachusetts193,6226.4%
6Colorado182,0476.9%
7Texas163,1191.3%
8Arizona138,2954.3%
9New Jersey131,9063.5%
10Oregon125,3296.7%
11North Carolina107,7922.2%
12Hawaii103,20118.0%
13Georgia81,0921.8%
14Nevada81,0136%
15Virginia79,6062.1%
16Tennessee72,4752.3%
17Utah67,7375.4%
18Maryland45,2821.8%
19Idaho44,5255.5%
20South Carolina43,0631.7%
21Pennsylvania39,2800.7%
22Montana32,7036.1%
23District of Columbia31,8398.7%
24Illinois28,7130.5%
25Connecticut28,4901.8%
26Louisiana23,1721.1%
27Minnesota23,1460.9%
28Wisconsin20,4160.7%
29New Mexico18,2731.9%
30Michigan17,7010.4%
31Ohio17,2680.3%
32Rhode Island16,9423.5%
33Alabama13,1750.6%
34Maine12,9941.7%
35New Hampshire12,1041.9%
36Delaware11,1112.4%
37Kentucky11,0650.5%
38Wyoming10,2913.7%
39Indiana9,9090.3%
40Missouri9,8890.3%
41Arkansas8,2510.6%
42Oklahoma5,7650.3%
43Mississippi5,4950.4%
44Kansas4,1910.3%
45Vermont4,0041.2%
46Alaska3,7171.1%
47South Dakota3,6320.9%
48Iowa3,1260.2%
49Nebraska3,0790.4%
50North Dakota1,9090.5%
51West Virginia1,4600.2%

What correlates with Housing Unit Shortage (2023)?

Pearson r against 2,071 other state metrics sharing at least 31 states. Correlation is not causation.

Higher together

Places that have a higher Housing Unit Shortage tend to score higher on these

  1. Solo Homeless IndividualsHomeless Population by State
    r = +0.99 · very strong · n = 51
    Plot
  2. Celery Acres HarvestedCelery Production by State
    r = +0.98 · very strong · n = 44
    Plot
  3. Abortion ClinicsAbortion Rates by State
    r = +0.96 · very strong · n = 37
    Plot
  4. Level 2 PortsEV Charging Stations by State
    r = +0.96 · very strong · n = 51
    Plot
  5. Total PortsEV Charging Stations by State
    r = +0.96 · very strong · n = 51
    Plot
  6. Asian Alone or in Combination Total RegisteredVoters by Race by State
    r = +0.96 · very strong · n = 51
    Plot

Opposite directions

Places that have a higher Housing Unit Shortage tend to score lower on these

  1. Req. English CreditsHigh School Graduation Requirements by State
    r = −0.75 · very strong · n = 48
    Plot
  2. Balance of Payments without COVIDFederal Aid by State
    r = −0.66 · strong · n = 50
    Plot
  3. Number of SeasonsAll Four Seasons States
    r = −0.63 · strong · n = 51
    Plot
  4. Housing CostPension-Friendly States
    r = −0.57 · strong · n = 49
    Plot
  5. Quadratic RuleMost Gerrymandered States
    r = −0.56 · strong · n = 44
    Plot
  6. Fuel Prices (1-10)Best States for Camping
    r = −0.50 · strong · n = 49
    Plot

Quick answers

Which state has the highest Housing Unit Shortage?
California has the highest Housing Unit Shortage in 2023, at 2,210,280, followed by New York (962,650) and Florida (486,211).
Which state has the lowest Housing Unit Shortage?
West Virginia has the lowest Housing Unit Shortage in 2023, at 1,460.
What is the median Housing Unit Shortage across US states?
The median is 23,172 across the 51 US states with data in 2023.
Where does this housing shortage by state data come from?
Rankodex compiles it from World Population Review and the primary sources it cites: U.S. Housing Shortage by State, County, and City - The AEI Housing Center.