State rankings

State Powers

New Hampshire has the highest State Freedom Score (0.592), followed by Florida (0.552) and Nevada (0.511). New York has the lowest (-0.813).

Politics & Government50 states · 1 metricUpdated Nov 16, 2023Original page
1 source
State Freedom ScoreBetter directionWhether a higher or a lower value is better. A green arrow means higher is better, a red arrow means lower is better, and no arrow means neither.More in the glossary →
50 of 51 states
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State Freedom Score

Darker green is better (higher is better). Click a place to highlight it.

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All 50 ranked

Best 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
0.132
Middle half -0.034 – 0.22
Average
0.0839
50 states
Highest
0.592
New Hampshire
Lowest
-0.813
New York

Data

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

50 states · # = rank by State Freedom Score
#
1New Hampshire0.592
2Florida0.552
3Nevada0.511
4Tennessee0.441
5South Dakota0.425
6Indiana0.368
7Michigan0.349
8Georgia0.33
9Arizona0.322
10Idaho0.313
11Missouri0.274
12Colorado0.262
13Virginia0.226
14Pennsylvania0.2
15North Dakota0.195
16North Carolina0.192
17Wisconsin0.19
18Montana0.177
19Oklahoma0.16
20Utah0.156
21Texas0.155
22Alabama0.153
23Arkansas0.143
24Alaska0.141
25Kentucky0.136
26Wyoming0.128
27Kansas0.127
28South Carolina0.125
29Massachusetts0.094
29Iowa0.094
31Ohio0.08
32Louisiana0.066
33Nebraska0.059
34Maine0.032
35West Virginia0.022
36Connecticut0.017
37Illinois-0.013
38Minnesota-0.041
39Washington-0.043
40Mississippi-0.057
41Rhode Island-0.093
42New Mexico-0.123
43Vermont-0.176
44Maryland-0.203
44Delaware-0.203
46Oregon-0.311
47New Jersey-0.46
48California-0.474
49Hawaii-0.603
50New York-0.813

What correlates with State Freedom Score?

Pearson r against 2,113 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 have a higher State Freedom Score tend to score higher on these (or rank better)

  1. Overall Freedom ScoreMost Libertarian States
    r = +0.97 · very strong · n = 50
    Plot
  2. Overall Freedom RankMost Libertarian StatesA rank: rank 1 is the best
    r = −0.90 · very strong · n = 50
    Plot
  3. Freedom RankMost Free StatesA rank: rank 1 is the best
    r = −0.89 · very strong · n = 50
    Plot
  4. Fiscal Freedom RankMost Libertarian StatesA rank: rank 1 is the best
    r = −0.79 · very strong · n = 50
    Plot
  5. Fiscal Policy RankMost Free StatesA rank: rank 1 is the best
    r = −0.73 · very strong · n = 50
    Plot
  6. Individual Income Tax RankBest State To Incorporate InA rank: rank 1 is the best
    r = −0.71 · very strong · n = 50
    Plot

Opposite directions

Places that have a higher State Freedom Score tend to score lower on these (or rank worse)

  1. Max RateTax Rates by State
    r = −0.78 · very strong · n = 43
    Plot
  2. Highest Income Tax BracketNo Income Tax States
    r = −0.77 · very strong · n = 42
    Plot
  3. Highest BracketIncome Tax by State
    r = −0.77 · very strong · n = 42
    Plot
  4. Income Tax Maximum RateTaxes by State
    r = −0.77 · very strong · n = 42
    Plot
  5. Local Effective Tax RateHighest Taxed States
    r = −0.73 · very strong · n = 50
    Plot
  6. Capital Gains RateCapital Gains Tax by State
    r = −0.73 · very strong · n = 42
    Plot

Quick answers

Which state has the highest State Freedom Score?
New Hampshire has the highest State Freedom Score, at 0.592, followed by Florida (0.552) and Nevada (0.511).
Which state has the lowest State Freedom Score?
New York has the lowest State Freedom Score, at -0.813.
What is the median State Freedom Score across US states?
The median is 0.132 across the 50 US states with data.
Where does this state powers data come from?
Rankodex compiles it from World Population Review and the primary sources it cites: State & Local Government.