US State Rankings 2026

Name: US State Rankings 2026 — cost of living, take-home pay, taxes, migration
Creator: CostByState
License: https://costbystate.com/terms/

All 50 states ranked on the numbers that decide where your money goes furthest — cost of living, take-home pay, retirement taxes, and where people are actually moving. Every figure is computed from the same cited, monthly-updated data behind our calculators. As of 2026, Arkansas has the lowest cost of living, Alaska leaves the most take-home on a $100,000 salary, and Florida gains the most residents from other states.

Cheapest states by cost of living

Composite cost-of-living index, US average = 100. Lower is cheaper. Source: BEA Regional Price Parities.

#	State	Index (US=100)
1	Arkansas	86.9
2	Mississippi	87.0
3	Iowa	87.8
4	Oklahoma	87.8
5	Louisiana	88.2
6	South Dakota	88.6
7	Alabama	88.8
8	North Dakota	89.0
9	West Virginia	89.5
10	Kansas	90.1
11	Nebraska	90.1
12	Kentucky	90.2
13	Missouri	90.8
14	Tennessee	91.9
15	New Mexico	92.2
16	Wyoming	92.7
17	Ohio	92.8
18	Indiana	93.3
19	South Carolina	93.7
20	Wisconsin	94.1
21	North Carolina	94.3
22	Montana	94.6
23	Idaho	95.5
24	Michigan	96.2
25	Georgia	96.3
26	Maine	97.0
27	Texas	97.1
28	Pennsylvania	97.6
29	Vermont	98.0
30	Minnesota	98.6
31	Utah	98.9
32	Delaware	99.8
33	Illinois	100.0
34	Nevada	100.0
35	Arizona	100.7
36	Virginia	101.1
37	Rhode Island	102.3
38	Alaska	102.4
39	Colorado	103.1
40	Oregon	103.4
41	Florida	103.4
42	Connecticut	103.6
43	New Hampshire	104.2
44	Maryland	105.0
45	Massachusetts	105.8
46	Washington	107.0
47	New York	107.9
48	New Jersey	108.8
49	Hawaii	110.0
50	California	110.7

Most take-home pay on a $100,000 salary

Annual take-home after federal tax, FICA, and state income tax, single filer. Higher is better.

#	State	Tax	Take-home
1	Alaska	No income tax	$79,180
2	Florida	No income tax	$79,180
3	New Hampshire	No income tax	$79,180
4	Nevada	No income tax	$79,180
5	South Dakota	No income tax	$79,180
6	Tennessee	No income tax	$79,180
7	Texas	No income tax	$79,180
8	Washington	No income tax	$79,180
9	Wyoming	No income tax	$79,180
10	North Dakota	0.0%–2.5%	$78,489
11	Ohio	2.75% flat	$77,146
12	Arizona	2.50% flat	$77,074
13	Louisiana	3.00% flat	$76,555
14	Indiana	2.95% flat	$76,260
15	Pennsylvania	3.07% flat	$76,110
16	Rhode Island	3.8%–6.0%	$76,006
17	Iowa	3.80% flat	$75,992
18	Arkansas	0.0%–3.7%	$75,939
19	Mississippi	0.0%–4.0%	$75,912
20	Kentucky	3.50% flat	$75,794
21	North Carolina	3.99% flat	$75,699
22	New Mexico	1.5%–5.9%	$75,611
23	Nebraska	2.5%–4.5%	$75,497
24	West Virginia	2.1%–4.6%	$75,489
25	Colorado	4.40% flat	$75,488
26	Missouri	0.0%–4.7%	$75,413
27	Oklahoma	0.0%–4.5%	$75,181
28	Michigan	4.25% flat	$75,177
29	Idaho	0.0%–5.3%	$75,148
30	Alabama	2.0%–5.0%	$75,079
31	Vermont	3.4%–8.8%	$75,011
32	New Jersey	1.4%–10.8%	$75,000
33	Georgia	4.99% flat	$74,939
34	South Carolina	2.0%–5.2%	$74,936
35	Montana	4.7%–5.7%	$74,891
36	Utah	4.45% flat	$74,730
37	Wisconsin	3.5%–7.6%	$74,679
38	Connecticut	2.0%–7.0%	$74,430
39	Kansas	5.2%–5.6%	$74,400
40	Massachusetts	5.0%–9.0%	$74,400
41	Illinois	4.95% flat	$74,371
42	New York	3.9%–10.9%	$74,320
43	Virginia	2.0%–5.8%	$74,191
44	California	1.0%–13.3%	$74,126
45	Minnesota	5.3%–9.8%	$73,869
46	Delaware	0.0%–6.6%	$73,811
47	Maine	5.8%–7.1%	$73,622
48	Hawaii	1.4%–11.0%	$73,297
49	Oregon	4.8%–9.9%	$71,981
50	Maryland	2.0%–6.5%	$71,846

Most retirement tax-friendly states

How each state taxes Social Security, pensions, and 401(k)/IRA withdrawals in 2026, then typical retiree cost of living.

#	State	Retirement tax	Retiree cost/mo
1	Mississippi	Very tax-friendly	$2,518
2	Iowa	Very tax-friendly	$2,578
3	South Dakota	Very tax-friendly	$2,615
4	Wyoming	Very tax-friendly	$2,738
5	Tennessee	Very tax-friendly	$2,798
6	Michigan	Very tax-friendly	$2,891
7	Pennsylvania	Very tax-friendly	$2,946
8	Texas	Very tax-friendly	$3,056
9	Illinois	Very tax-friendly	$3,106
10	Alaska	Very tax-friendly	$3,146
11	Nevada	Very tax-friendly	$3,278
12	New Hampshire	Very tax-friendly	$3,358
13	Florida	Very tax-friendly	$3,420
14	Washington	Very tax-friendly	$3,553
15	Colorado	Tax-friendly	$3,477
16	Arkansas	Tax-friendly	$2,508
17	West Virginia	Tax-friendly	$2,530
18	Oklahoma	Tax-friendly	$2,570
19	Louisiana	Tax-friendly	$2,576
20	Alabama	Tax-friendly	$2,593
21	Kentucky	Tax-friendly	$2,627
22	Missouri	Tax-friendly	$2,682
23	Wisconsin	Tax-friendly	$2,824
24	South Carolina	Tax-friendly	$2,845
25	Maine	Tax-friendly	$2,880
26	Georgia	Tax-friendly	$2,966
27	Delaware	Tax-friendly	$3,146
28	Virginia	Tax-friendly	$3,238
29	Maryland	Tax-friendly	$3,452
30	New York	Tax-friendly	$3,533
31	New Jersey	Tax-friendly	$3,681
32	Kansas	Mixed	$2,663
33	Montana	Mixed	$2,900
34	Utah	Mixed	$3,202
35	Arizona	Mixed	$3,214
36	Rhode Island	Mixed	$3,216
37	Connecticut	Mixed	$3,363
38	Massachusetts	Mixed	$3,518
39	Hawaii	Mixed	$3,604
40	North Dakota	Mixed	$2,658
41	Nebraska	Mixed	$2,709
42	Ohio	Mixed	$2,732
43	Indiana	Mixed	$2,763
44	North Carolina	Mixed	$2,858
45	Idaho	Mixed	$2,973
46	Oregon	Mixed	$3,307
47	California	Mixed	$3,919
48	New Mexico	Less tax-friendly	$2,758
49	Vermont	Less tax-friendly	$2,961
50	Minnesota	Less tax-friendly	$3,040

Net interstate migration — gaining vs losing residents

Arrivals minus departures across the other 49 states. Source: US Census Bureau, ACS State-to-State Migration Flows.

Top 6 net gainers and top 6 net losers · Source: US Census Bureau, ACS State-to-State Migration Flows · chart: CostByState

#	State	Net migration
1	Florida	+171,318
2	Texas	+123,978
3	Arizona	+79,559
4	North Carolina	+77,974
5	South Carolina	+49,379
6	Tennessee	+47,771
7	Georgia	+40,340
8	Nevada	+35,314
9	Idaho	+31,887
10	Oklahoma	+24,821
11	Colorado	+17,371
12	Alabama	+15,850
13	Kentucky	+13,381
14	Maine	+10,475
15	Arkansas	+8,983
16	Oregon	+8,290
17	Montana	+8,259
18	Delaware	+7,314
19	Rhode Island	+7,008
20	Washington	+6,595
21	New Hampshire	+6,256
22	Vermont	+5,844
23	Wisconsin	+4,928
24	Indiana	+4,924
25	Missouri	+4,831
26	Utah	+4,808
27	North Dakota	+3,445
28	Kansas	+3,432
29	Pennsylvania	+2,793
30	West Virginia	+1,889
31	Iowa	+783
32	South Dakota	+177
33	Wyoming	+177
34	New Mexico	-576
35	Ohio	-1,009
36	Mississippi	-2,547
37	Virginia	-4,878
38	Hawaii	-8,595
39	Nebraska	-8,967
40	Alaska	-9,684
41	Michigan	-14,458
42	Minnesota	-17,711
43	Louisiana	-22,329
44	Maryland	-37,697
45	Massachusetts	-42,037
46	New Jersey	-69,679
47	Illinois	-109,999
48	New York	-206,548
49	California	-273,440

The data studies behind these rankings

Figures are computed from CostByState’s cited data and updated monthly (see methodology). For educational purposes only, not financial advice.