Most Biodiverse States
California has the highest Total # of Species (6,717), followed by Texas (6,273) and Arizona (4,759). Hawaii has the lowest (1,418).
Total # of Species
Darker means higher. Click a place to highlight it.
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.
Data
Click a column to sort, a row to highlight that place on the charts.
| # | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 |  California | 6,717 | 29.0% | 1st |
| 2 |  Texas | 6,273 | 10.0% | 2nd |
| 3 |  Arizona | 4,759 | 14.0% | 3rd |
| 4 |  New Mexico | 4,583 | 10.0% | 4th |
| 5 |  Alabama | 4,533 | 15.0% | 5th |
| 6 |  Georgia | 4,436 | 13.0% | 6th |
| 7 |  Florida | 4,368 | 14.0% | 7th |
| 8 |  Oregon | 4,136 | 11.0% | 8th |
| 9 |  North Carolina | 4,131 | 10.0% | 9th |
| 10 |  Utah | 3,892 | 15.0% | 10th |
| 11 |  Nevada | 3,872 | 16.0% | 11th |
| 12 |  Virginia | 3,803 | 8% | 12th |
| 13 |  Tennessee | 3,772 | 10.0% | 13th |
| 14 |  South Carolina | 3,701 | 9% | 14th |
| 15 |  Oklahoma | 3,616 | 5% | 15th |
| 16 |  Colorado | 3,597 | 9% | 16th |
| 17 |  Mississippi | 3,580 | 7% | 17th |
| 18 |  Louisiana | 3,495 | 5% | 18th |
| 19 |  Arkansas | 3,415 | 6% | 19th |
| 20 |  Washington | 3,375 | 7% | 20th |
| 21 |  Missouri | 3,340 | 5% | 21st |
| 22 |  New York | 3,333 | 5% | 22nd |
| 23 |  Illinois | 3,258 | 5% | 23rd |
| 23 |  Kentucky | 3,258 | 7% | 23rd |
| 25 |  Idaho | 3,205 | 7% | 25th |
| 26 |  Wyoming | 3,184 | 7% | 26th |
| 27 |  Ohio | 3,152 | 4% | 27th |
| 28 |  Maryland | 3,148 | 4% | 28th |
| 29 |  Pennsylvania | 3,135 | 4% | 29th |
| 29 |  Michigan | 3,135 | 4% | 29th |
| 31 |  Indiana | 3,098 | 5% | 31st |
| 32 |  New Jersey | 3,022 | 4% | 32nd |
| 33 |  Montana | 2,921 | 5% | 33rd |
| 34 |  West Virginia | 2,873 | 5% | 34th |
| 35 |  Wisconsin | 2,869 | 3% | 35th |
| 36 |  Minnesota | 2,817 | 3% | 36th |
| 37 |  Kansas | 2,778 | 3% | 37th |
| 38 |  Massachusetts | 2,765 | 4% | 38th |
| 39 |  Nebraska | 2,587 | 2% | 39th |
| 40 |  Iowa | 2,533 | 3% | 40th |
| 41 |  Connecticut | 2,497 | 3% | 41st |
| 42 |  South Dakota | 2,406 | 2% | 42nd |
| 43 |  Maine | 2,352 | 4% | 43rd |
| 44 |  New Hampshire | 2,327 | 3% | 44th |
| 45 |  Vermont | 2,274 | 3% | 45th |
| 46 |  Delaware | 2,244 | 3% | 46th |
| 47 |  Rhode Island | 2,078 | 3% | 47th |
| 48 |  District of Columbia | 1,909 | 2% | 48th |
| 49 |  North Dakota | 1,889 | 2% | 49th |
| 50 |  Alaska | 1,835 | 8% | 50th |
| 51 |  Hawaii | 1,418 | 63.0% | 51st |
What correlates with Total # of Species?
Pearson r against 2,082 other state metrics sharing at least 31 states, 1 near-identical series hidden. Ranks are read by standing: a better rank counts as higher, whether rank 1 is the best place on a list or the worst. Correlation is not causation.
Higher together
Places that have a higher Total # of Species tend to score higher on these (or rank better)
Opposite directions
Places that have a higher Total # of Species tend to score lower on these (or rank worse)
- Plot
- Plot
- Plot
- Average Days with Accumulated Snow 1 or More Inches Deep 1980-2010Snowiest StatesPlotr = −0.62 · strong · n = 48
- Plot
- Road Safety Rank WalletHubSafest States in the USA rank: rank 1 is the bestPlotr = +0.61 · strong · n = 50
Quick answers
- Which state has the highest Total # of Species?
- California has the highest Total # of Species, at 6,717, followed by Texas (6,273) and Arizona (4,759).
- Which state has the lowest Total # of Species?
- Hawaii has the lowest Total # of Species, at 1,418.
- What is the median Total # of Species across US states?
- The median is 3,184 across the 51 US states with data.
- Where does this most biodiverse states data come from?
- Rankodex compiles it from World Population Review and the primary sources it cites: States of the Union: Ranking America’s Biodiversity - NatureServe.