Washington Named Best State In Latest U.S. News Rankings

SEATTLE — When deciding where to live, one usually takes a lot of factors into account — good schools, low crime, access to good health care. Some states, however, do a better job than others when it comes to providing these things to residents and communities, according to a new ranking by U.S. News & World Report.

Washington is doing it best, according to the publication’s 2021 Best States ranking. Our state was ranked first out of all 50 states — again.

Gov. Jay Inslee celebrated the victory in a statement shared Tuesday morning:

“I am so happy for the people of Washington to take home this honor again. It takes all 7.6 million of us to make this state the dynamic place it truly is. Washingtonians are motivated to lead and innovate in all aspects of our society, in labor, business, education, health, and so much more,” Gov. Jay Inslee said. “It was that same spirit that helped us bounce back from being the first state in the nation hit by COVID-19, and we are on our way to a robust recovery because of our unique attributes.”

To determine the best states, U.S. News ranks each in 71 metrics across eight categories. Researchers then determine a state’s overall ranking based on the weighted average of the state’s ranking in those eight categories.

The purpose behind the rankings is to show how well and in what ways states best serve their residents. Read more about the ranking’s methodology here.

Here’s how Washington ranked in each category:

• Health care: 8th
• Education: 4th
• Economy: 4th
• Infrastructure: 3rd
• Opportunity: 25th
• Fiscal stability: 6th
• Crime and corrections: 19th
• Natural environment: 15th
• Overall: 1st

Washington has ranked No. 1 state in the country since 2019, securing the top spot with help from its low-carbon energy system and robust secondary education performance. The state’s economy is also the fastest-growing in the nation.

Following the Evergreen State in the overall rankings is Minnesota at No. 2 and Utah at No. 3.

Top-performing states in each category include:

• Health care: Hawaii
• Education: New Jersey
• Economy: Utah
• Infrastructure: Nevada
• Opportunity: Iowa
• Fiscal stability: Alaska
• Crime and corrections: New Hampshire
• Natural environment: Hawaii

Separate from this year’s ranking, U.S. News also compiled a new COVID-19 state toolkit, which allows users to compare several coronavirus metrics including the vaccine rate of each state, COVID-19 cases and deaths, unemployment statistics and more.

The toolkit updates at least daily, according to a U.S. News release.

Despite the rankings, residents remain divided on their state’s handling of the coronavirus pandemic, according to the report.

In a national survey conducted by U.S. News, just over 44.15 percent of respondents agreed that their state handled it well, 40.47 percent disagreed and 15.38 percent were neutral.