2017's Happiest States In America

With the U.S. ranking No. 14 on this year's World Happiness Report, down one spot since the previous edition, and research proving that money up to a certain dollar amount can contribute to happiness, the personal-finance website WalletHub conducted an in-depth analysis of the happiest state in the country this year. To determine where Americans have the highest satisfaction with life, WalletHub's analysts compared all 50 states across 28 key indicators of happiness. The data set ranges from emotional health to income level to sports participation rate.

It's no surprise that people in the Centennial State ranks are so happy—they get to sleep enough and well. Colorado tops the adequate-sleep rate category. The state is also No. 1 when it comes to playing sports. Staying physically active has been proven many times to be key for being in a chronic good mood.

Locals in North Dakota seem to be very happy because they rarely worry about work. The Roughrider State has the lowest current unemployment, long-term unemployment and underemployment rates in the country, as well as the highest income growth rate at more than 22 percent.

The Green Mountain State ranked No. 1 in terms of safety. Locals also scored high in job satisfaction, ranking fourth overall. No wonder the state made our list of the best fall destinations for a weekend getaway on the East Coast.

What puts Virginia in the Top 15 of happiest states in the country is its high economic confidence index and emotional and physical well-being rank. The Old Dominion State is in the Top 5 of states with the lowest share of adult depression.

Maryland has the third lowest suicide rate in the country.  Its community and environment rank is also very high – 5, most likely because of the second highest economic confidence index. It is based on the combined responses to two questions: one is to rate economic conditions in the U.S. today; the other is whether think economic conditions as a whole are getting better or worse.

Spending time doing all kinds of recreational activities will make anyone happy. New Hampshire ranks No. 1 in average leisure time spent per day. This is one factor that brings the state in the second best position in the community and environment category, which counts for a quarter of the overall score.

Several studies have provided evidence that volunteering makes people happy. Wisconsin seems to be another proof of that. It is the state with the fourth highest volunteer rate in the country. Locals also tend to stay together as a family; the Badger State has a fairly low divorce and separate rate – just over 18 per cent.

Part of the reason why Iowans are happy is their work environment and job satisfaction. The Hawkeye State has the third lowest long-term unemployment rate in the U.S., fourth current unemployment rate, and the sixth highest income growth rate.

The Mount Rushmore State ranked very high in several separate categories – No. 2 in highest adequate-sleep rate, highest income growth rate, highest volunteer rate, and second lowest unemployment rate. People living in South Dakota also make a lot of time for recreational activities every day.

People in the Garden State tend to stay together; New Jersey has the third lowest divorce rate in the country at 17.53 percent. The state is No. 2 when it comes to the lowest share of adult depression. What drive New Jersey so high up in the general ranking is its emotional and physical well-being rank—third overall.

People in the Cornhusker State sleep well and enough hours which helps with feeling happy and relaxed throughout the day. They also rarely stay out of work for a long time; the long-term unemployment rate is the fourth lowest in the country. Another factor that makes people happy is the fact that they volunteer a lot, according to the study.

The Golden State is the third largest in the country by area. You can be certain people will find a huge range of fun activities that make them happy. This is why it's not shocking to find out that California is ranked No. 2 in the emotional and physical well-being category. It's also second when it comes to economic confidence.

Hawaii has always been in the top of many lists ranking happiness in different ways. The Aloha State has the lowest share of adult depression in the entire U.S. Comfortable weather, gorgeous scenery, beautiful beaches, thrilling watersports, and an intriguing culture are some of the many reasons why people enjoy living in Hawaii.

Many factors make Utah the second happiest state in the country. It has the highest volunteer rate; it's ranked second in the ideal weather category, third and job security, and fifth in job satisfaction. What also drives its ranking up is the lowest divorce and separation rate. The fact that Beehive State has five national parks also helps.

Although No. 1 in just one separate category – median credit score, the Land of 10,000 Lakes has a lot of things going for it that together make the state the happiest in the U.S. High adequate sleep rate, high volunteer rate, low divorce rate and low crime rate, to name a few.