State rankings

Most Free States

New Hampshire ranks 1st on Freedom Rank in 2023, followed by Florida (2nd) and Nevada (3rd); rank 1 is the best. New York ranks last (50th).

Politics & Government50 states · 5 metricsUpdated May 27, 2023Original page
1 source
50 of 51 states
Compare this metricAdd to combined rankingOpen full map

Freedom Rank, 2023

Green is better, red is worse (rank 1 is the best). Click a place to highlight it.

Loading map…

All 50 ranked

Best first; rank 1 is the best and has the longest bar.

Over time · 2016–2023

The top 5 in 2023; rank 1 at the top.

  • New Hampshire
  • Florida
  • Nevada
  • Tennessee
  • South Dakota

Biggest changes · 2021 → 2023

50 states have a value in both years; rank 1 is the best.

Climbed

Fell

Data

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

50 states · # = rank by Freedom Rank
#
1New Hampshire1st2nd
2Florida2nd12th
3Nevada3rd1st
4Tennessee4th39th
5South Dakota5th18th
6Indiana6th11th
7Michigan7th8th
8Georgia8th34th
9Arizona9th6th
10Idaho10th42nd
11Missouri11th15th
12Colorado12th7th
13Pennsylvania14th27th
14Virginia15th38th
14North Dakota15th13th
16North Carolina16th16th
17Wisconsin17th21st
18Montana18th17th
19Oklahoma19th23rd
20Utah20th28th
21Texas21st49th
22Alabama22nd37th
23Arkansas23rd44th
24Alaska24th10th
25Kentucky25th45th
26Wyoming26th41st
27Kansas27th31st
28New Jersey28th48th
28South Carolina28th35th
30Iowa29th19th
31Massachusetts30th25th
32Ohio31st40th
33Louisiana32nd29th
34Nebraska33rd20th
35Maine34th3rd
36West Virginia35th14th
37Connecticut36th43rd
38Illinois37th30th
39Minnesota38th22nd
40Washington39th24th
41Mississippi40th36th
42Rhode Island41st33rd
43New Mexico42nd5th
44Vermont43rd4th
45Delaware44th47th
46Maryland45th32nd
47Oregon46th9th
48California48th26th
49Hawaii49th46th
50New York50th50th

What correlates with Freedom Rank (2023)?

Pearson r against 2,109 other state metrics sharing at least 30 states. 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 rank better on Freedom Rank tend to score higher on these (or rank better)

  1. Overall Freedom RankMost Libertarian StatesA rank: rank 1 is the best
    r = +0.94 · very strong · n = 50
    Plot
  2. State Freedom ScoreState Powers
    r = −0.89 · very strong · n = 50
    Plot
  3. Overall Freedom ScoreMost Libertarian States
    r = −0.86 · very strong · n = 50
    Plot
  4. Fiscal Freedom RankMost Libertarian StatesA rank: rank 1 is the best
    r = +0.84 · very strong · n = 50
    Plot
  5. Local Taxes RankBest States to RetireA rank: rank 1 is the best
    r = +0.71 · very strong · n = 50
    Plot
  6. Overall RankBest State To Incorporate InA rank: rank 1 is the best
    r = +0.67 · strong · n = 50
    Plot

Opposite directions

Places that rank better on Freedom Rank tend to score lower on these (or rank worse)

  1. Max RateTax Rates by State
    r = +0.66 · strong · n = 43
    Plot
  2. Local Effective Tax RateHighest Taxed States
    r = +0.64 · strong · n = 50
    Plot
  3. Highest BracketIncome Tax by State
    r = +0.63 · strong · n = 42
    Plot
  4. Highest Income Tax BracketNo Income Tax States
    r = +0.63 · strong · n = 42
    Plot
  5. Income Tax Maximum RateTaxes by State
    r = +0.63 · strong · n = 42
    Plot
  6. Capital Gains RateCapital Gains Tax by State
    r = +0.62 · strong · n = 42
    Plot

Quick answers

Which state ranks first on Freedom Rank?
New Hampshire ranks first on Freedom Rank in 2023, at 1st, followed by Florida (2nd) and Nevada (3rd). Rank 1 is the best state.
Which state ranks last on Freedom Rank?
New York ranks last of the 50 US states with data in 2023, at 50th.
Where does this most free states data come from?
Rankodex compiles it from World Population Review and the primary sources it cites: Freedom in the 50 States - CATO institute.