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Smartest States in the US

Curious which states are the smartest? To determine the smartest states in the U.S., we looked at a few key factors including IQ scores, ACT & SAT scores, high school graduation rates, bachelor degree statistics.

We also looked to see if risky behaviors, TV viewing behaviors, various beliefs, and other interesting behaviors were correlated to intelligence.

Review our findings below.

Table of Contents

Smartest State Rankings

Find out which states are the smartest based on our research study. We ranked the smartest states using a combination of these criteria:

  • IQ Scores
  • ACT & SAT Scores
  • High School Graduation Rates
  • Percent Holding a Bachelor Degree

An infographic showing the smartest states in the United States.

Top 10 Smartest States

  1. Vermont
  2. Minnesota
  3. New Hampshire
  4. Washington
  5. Virginia
  6. Massachusetts
  7. Iowa
  8. Connecticut (Tie)
  9. Nebraska (Tie)
  10. New Jersey

Bottom 10 Smartest States

  1. Mississippi
  2. Nevada
  3. New Mexico
  4. Louisiana
  5. Alabama
  6. Oklahoma
  7. Arkansas
  8. West Virginia
  9. Texas
  10. Delaware
State Smart Rank Average IQ Score Converted Average SAT Score HS Graduation Rate % Holding a Bachelor Degree
Vermont 1 102.2 1095 93.50% 14.20%
Minnesota 2 102.9 1080 93.40% 13.40%
New Hampshire 3 103.2 1050 93.30% 14.60%
Washington 4 101.5 1096 91.70% 13.00%
Virginia 5 101.2 1124 90.30% 13.90%
Massachusetts 6 103.1 1029 91.10% 19.30%
Iowa 7 101.1 1092 92.50% 11.50%
Connecticut 8 101.2 1025 90.90% 18.20%
Nebraska 8 101.2 1022 91.60% 14.90%
New Jersey 10 101 1079 90.30% 19.40%
North Dakota 10 101.7 1016 93.10% 13.20%
Wisconsin 12 101.2 1022 92.60% 13.30%
Utah 13 101.5 1037 93.00% 7.60%
South Dakota 14 100.7 1095 92.20% 10.30%
Wyoming 15 101.7 1016 93.60% 10.00%
Maine 16 100.9 1081 93.20% 9.30%
Oregon 17 100.3 1143 91.10% 10.00%
Montana 18 101.1 1019 94.00% 12.50%
Colorado 19 101.1 1021 92.10% 14.10%
Pennsylvania 20 100.2 1091 91.00% 13.80%
Maryland 21 100 1075 90.60% 16.90%
Indiana 22 100.6 1073 89.30% 11.80%
Kansas 23 100.5 1037 91.40% 12.50%
Alaska 24 99.4 1110 93.10% 3.50%
Hawaii 25 99.2 1063 92.50% 13.80%
Missouri 26 99.5 1048 90.60% 12.80%
Ohio 27 100 1022 90.80% 12.40%
North Carolina 28 99.5 1063 88.50% 12.40%
New York 29 98.4 1067 87.20% 19.00%
Michigan 30 99.6 1000 91.30% 12.20%
California 31 97.1 1115 83.90% 12.20%
Illinois 32 99.4 981 89.70% 16.30%
Idaho 33 100.5 968 91.30% 6.70%
Georgia 34 98.1 1079 87.90% 11.00%
Rhode Island 35 99.4 971 89.20% 15.40%
Florida 36 98.8 997 88.50% 11.50%
Kentucky 37 98.8 994 87.20% 11.40%
South Carolina 38 97.8 1018 88.30% 11.40%
Tennessee 39 98.3 994 88.20% 11.90%
Arizona 40 98.3 986 87.90% 10.50%
Delaware 41 98.7 968 90.60% 9.40%
Texas 42 97.4 1018 84.40% 10.90%
West Virginia 43 97.2 999 87.60% 9.70%
Arkansas 44 97.1 1002 87.20% 9.70%
Oklahoma 45 98.2 966 88.60% 7.90%
Alabama 46 96.4 970 86.90% 9.10%
Louisiana 47 95.2 974 85.90% 8.60%
New Mexico 48 95 976 86.50% 8.20%
Nevada 49 96.6 942 86.90% 8.20%
Mississippi 50 95.8 962 85.30% 8.60%

Smartest States by IQ

We used IQ as a ranking factor when calculating the smartest states.

Review the top 10 and bottom 10 states in terms of IQ below.

An infographic showing the smartest states in the United States by average IQ scores.

Smartest States by ACT and SAT Scores

We used ACT and SAT scores as a ranking factor when calculating the smartest states. To compare “apples to apples” we converted ACT scores to SAT scores for states that did not have enough SAT score data.

Review the top 10 and bottom 10 states in terms of ACT and SAT scores below.

An infographic showing the smartest states in the United States by converted SAT scores.

Smartest States by High School Graduation Rates

We used high school graduation rates as a ranking factor when calculating the smartest states.

Review the top 10 and bottom 10 states in terms of high school graduation rates below.

An infographic showing the smartest states in the United States by percent of people who graduated high school.

Smartest States by Percent Holding a Bachelor Degree

We used the percentage of individuals who hold a bachelor’s degree as a ranking factor when calculating the smartest states.

Review the top 10 and bottom 10 states in terms of high school graduation rates below.

An infographic showing the smartest states in the United States by percent of people who hold a bachelor degree.

What Behaviors Correlate to Smart Rankings

We wanted to take our study a step further and see if we could correlate certain behaviors to our “smartness” rankings. We looked at the following categories of behaviors:

  1. Risky Behaviors
  2. TV Viewing Behaviors
  3. Beliefs
  4. Other Behaviors

Risky Behaviors

We were interested in seeing if there was any relationship between “risky behaviors” and intelligence. In general, risky behaviors are any behaviors that may result in negative consequences for the individual. To explore this, we looked at the following:

  1. Marijuana Usage
  2. Gambling
  3. Drinking
  4. Smoking
  5. Prison Time

Here are our interesting findings:

Risky BehaviorCorrelation Coefficient“In English”
Marijuana Usage0.16No Correlation to State Intelligence
Gambling-0.24No Correlation to State Intelligence
Drinking0.32Slight Positive Correlation to State Intelligence
Smoking-0.49Moderate Negative Correlation to State Intelligence
Prison Time-0.60Moderate Negative Correlation to State Intelligence

Key Takeaways:

Smoking and prison time were found to have a moderate negative relationship with state intelligence – states with a higher prevalence of smokers or more people in jail tend to have a lower ranking for intelligence.

TV Viewing Behaviors

Next, we wanted to investigate whether how much TV you watch, or what type of TV shows you are interested in have any relationship to overall intelligence. To explore this, we looked at the following:

  1. Overall TV Viewing Time
  2. “Below Deck”
  3. “The Bachelor”
  4. “Love Island”
  5. “Catfish”
  6. “Temptation Island”
  7. “The Real Housewives”
  8. “90 Day Fiancé”
  9. “Big Brother”
  10. “Vanderpump Rules”
  11. “Only Murders in the Building”
  12. “PBS News Hour”
  13. “Ted Lasso”
  14. “Jeopardy”
  15. “Downtown Abbey”
  16. “The X-Files”
  17. “Stranger Things”
  18. “House”

Here are our interesting findings:

TV Behavior Correlation Coefficient “In English”
Overall Viewing Time -0.56 Moderate Negative Correlation to State Intelligence
Below Deck 0.58 Moderate Positive Correlation to State Intelligence
The Bachelor 0.61 Moderate Positive Correlation to State Intelligence
Love Island 0.40 Slight Positive Correlation to State Intelligence
Catfish -0.38 Slight Negative Correlation to State Intelligence
Only Murders in the Building 0.66 Moderate Positive Correlation to State Intelligence
PBS News Hour 0.56 Moderate Positive Correlation to State Intelligence
Ted Lasso 0.67 Moderate Positive Correlation to State Intelligence
Jeopardy 0.43 Slight Positive Correlation to State Intelligence
Downton Abbey 0.46 Slight Positive Correlation to State Intelligence
The X-Files 0.31 Slight Positive Correlation to State Intelligence
Stranger Things -0.32 Moderate Negative Correlation to State Intelligence

Key Takeaways:

Five TV series (Only Murders in the Building, PBS Newshour, Ted Lasso, Below Deck and The Bachelor) were found to have a moderate positive relationship with state intelligence – states showing more interest in these TV series tend to have a higher ranking for intelligence.

Overall TV Viewing time was shown to have a moderate negative relationship – states that had high rankings for intelligence tended to watch less TV.

Beliefs

We wanted to see if an individual’s beliefs were related to intelligence rankings. To explore this, we looked at the following:

  1. Religiosity
  2. Flat Earth Conspiracy Theory
  3. New World Order Conspiracy Theory
  4. Chemtrails Conspiracy Theory
  5. Moon Landing was Fake Conspiracy Theory
  6. CIA and JFK Assassination Conspiracy Theory
  7. % of State that Voted for Biden

Here are our interesting findings:

BeliefCorrelation Coefficient“In English”
Religiosity-0.55Moderate Negative Correlation to State Intelligence
% of State that Voted for Biden0.29Slight Positive Correlation to State Intelligence

Key Takeaways:

Religiosity was shown to have a moderate negative relationship – states that had higher percentage of religious believers tended to have lower intelligence rankings.

Belief in conspiracy theories and voting preferences did not seem to correlate with intelligence.

Other Behaviors

In our attempt to see what may be related to intelligence we looked at a diverse set of behaviors. To explore this, we looked at the following:

  1. Sports
  2. Cars/Trucks
  3. Reading
  4. Types of Alcohol
  5. Personal Income
  6. Personal Debt
  7. Educational Spending

Here are our interesting findings:

Other BehaviorsCorrelation Coefficient“In English”
Golf0.57Moderate Positive Correlation to State Intelligence
Pickup Trucks-0.37Slight Negative Correlation to State Intelligence
Reading Interest0.65Moderate Positive Correlation to State Intelligence
Personal Income0.62Moderate Positive Correlation to State Intelligence
Personal Debt (Non-Mortgage)-0.34Slight Negative Correlation to State Intelligence
State’s Education Expenditure / Student0.58Moderate Positive Correlation to State Intelligence

Key Takeaways:

Interest in golf had a moderately strong positive correlation – states that displayed a higher interest in golf tended to have higher intelligence rankings.

Reading interest showed a moderately strong positive correlation – states with more active readers tend to have higher intelligence rankings.

Personal income also was moderately correlated with intelligence – states with higher intelligence rankings seemed to have higher personal incomes.

The amount of money a state spends per student on education had a moderate positive correlation – states that spent more per student tended to have higher intelligence rankings.

Key Findings and Conclusions

So, what does all of this mean? Review our key findings and conclusions below.

Vermont is Smart

Vermont was our top ranked state for intelligence. Although Vermont didn’t rank #1 for any of the four individual factors, they were in the top 10 for all of them. Not surprisingly, Vermont also had very strong rankings for educational expenditures per student and reading interest.

In the “draw your own conclusions” category, Vermont ranked #1 for marijuana usage and % of voters supporting Biden. Vermont was also ranked #49 for gambling.

Vermonters don’t watch much TV, but when they do, they seem to enjoy Jeopardy! and PBS NewsHour.

Key Takeaways:

Vermont is the smartest state in the US. They did not rank #1 for any of the four individual factors we looked at, but were top 10 for all of them.

  • IQ Rank: 4
  • Exam Scores: 6
  • HS Graduation Rate: 3
  • Degree Rank: 10

Other Interesting Facts / Rankings:

  • Marijuana Usage: 1
  • Gambling: 49
  • % Biden: 1
  • Education Dollars /Student: 2
  • TV Viewing Time: 42
  • Jeopardy!, PBS NewsHour Interest: 1
  • Library Books and Visits Per Capita: 1
  • Ranked Bottom 4 for Interest in Each Conspiracy Theory

Mississippi Ranks Low in All Categories, 50th Overall

Mississippi ranks 48th in IQ, 49th in standardized exam scores, 48th in high school graduation rank and 43rd in percent holding a bachelor’s degree – all resulting in making Mississippi the lowest state ranked by intelligence.

They are interested in pickup trucks, but not golf.  They have the nation’s lowest income but rank #5 for personal debt.  They are not interested in reading and go to the library less than any other state.  They are very religious, don’t use Marijuana much, but do like to gamble. There are more Mississippians in prison than every other state except Alaska.

In 2018, Mississippi’s State Board of Education created a 5-year strategic plan known as “Mississippi Succeeds Plan”. It included plans and measurement metrics to increase student growth and proficiency in multiple areas. Although Mississippi still has significant work to do, it did lead the nation in gains in 4th grade reading and math – a strong indicator of intelligence.

Key Takeaways:

Mississippi has some work to do in their quest to become the smartest state. They ranked low in all factors we looked at.

  • IQ Rank: 48
  • Exam Scores: 49
  • HS Graduation Rate: 48
  • Degree Rank: 43

Other Interesting Facts / Rankings:

  • Marijuana Usage: 40
  • Gambling: 4
  • Prison: 2
  • Religiosity: 1
  • Education Dollars/Student: 45
  • Reading Interest: 45
  • Library Visits Per Capita: 50
  • Golf: 45
  • Pickup Trucks: 1
  • Income: 50
  • Personal Debt: 5

You Can’t Judge A …

In this case, you can’t judge how smart someone is by their TV habits.  Although the amount of time people watch TV seems to be inversely correlated with intelligence, there appears to be no sense to be made from what they watch.

States that watch more TV seem to have a lower intelligence ranking. The bottom 10 intelligent states watched an average of 3.12 hours of TV per day while the top 10 states only watched 2.65 hours per day – a full 27% lower. Once again the relationship is not absolute. For example, New Mexico residents only watched 2.3 hours per day (47th in nation) but were also ranked 48th for intelligence.

Trying to correlate TV series with intelligence rankings proved to be an interesting endeavor. We looked at state by state interest in a diverse set of TV shows. We included TV series that are typically thought of as “trashy” or “guilty pleasures” as well as series that many consider “witty” or “thought provoking”.

Ten series had no correlation with state intelligence rankings – implying no relationship between interest in these shows and intelligence. No series that we evaluated had an inverse correlation – which would’ve have implied that residents in less intelligent states would be watching them more. Seven series had moderately positive correlations which means that higher ranked intelligent states tended to have more interest in them – this included both “trashy” and “witty” TV shows.

Key Takeaways

TV Shows with Positive Correlations to Intelligence:

  • Below Deck
  • The Bachelor
  • Downton Abby
  • Only Murders in the Building
  • PBS Newshour
  • Ted Lasso
  • Mashups

TV Shows with No Correlation to Intelligence:

  • Temptation Island
  • Love Island
  • The Real Housewives
  • 90 Day Fiance
  • Big Brother
  • Catfish: The TV show
  • Vanderpump Rules
  • Jeopardy!
  • X-files
  • Stranger Things

Those Who Value Education and Learning Tend to Be More Intelligent

As Albert Einstein famously said: “I have no special talents. I am only passionately curious.” We found that states that value education and learning seem to have higher intelligence rankings.

States that spend more on student education tend to have a higher intelligence ranking. The top 10 intelligent states spent an average of $20,500 per student while the bottom 10 states spent an average of $13,500 per student – a remarkable difference of 52%.

The correlation, however, is not perfect. For example, New York led the nation in educational spending per capita ($30,200), yet ranked 29th for intelligence. Similarly, Virginia ranked 28th for educational spending yet ranked 5th for intelligence.

Similarly, states whose residents are more interested in reading seem to be more intelligent. Evaluating library statistics, the top 10 states by intelligence displayed library activity (books, visits, and circulation per capita) greater than the bottom 10 states by between 46% and 74%.

Key Takeaways

  • States that spend more on student education tend to have a higher intelligence ranking.
  • States whose residents are more interested in reading tend to be more intelligent.

Some Expected Results but Some Surprises

We looked at a broad spectrum of behaviors to see which ones might be correlated with intelligence rankings. Some correlations were expected (seemed likely) while some behaviors that we thought would be correlated were not.

In the risky behaviors category, we were surprised that Marijuana usage and Gambling showed no correlation while smoking did. Perhaps it is more widely believed that smoking has more potentially bad consequences than either marijuana usage or gambling resulting in a stronger correlation.

The prison population (per capita) had a moderately strong correlation with state intelligence rankings. This is an expected result if you consider that lower intelligence might be related to making poor decisions (that break the law) or getting caught.

When we looked at an individual’s general beliefs, we also found surprising results. We would’ve expected that beliefs in easily disproved conspiracy theories would have been inversely correlated with intelligence – implying less intelligent states would believe these theories more often. This was not the case – we found no correlations. One possible explanation is that we evaluated “interest” in these conspiracy theories (as measured by search volume via Google Trends) which may differ from “belief” in these theories (e.g., people may be just searching about them to see what they are all about).

When we decided to look at other beliefs (religion and voting preferences), we did not know what to expect. Religiosity had a moderately inverse relationship (implying lower ranked states were more religious). There was no correlation between the percent of a state that voted for Biden and intelligence rankings (likewise for voting for Trump). We expect that because both of these topics (religion and politics) are “unfit for polite conversation” that there would not be any popular consensus whether either of these would be correlated with intelligence.

Key Takeaways

  • Marijuana usage and Gambling showed no correlation to intelligence.
  • Smoking showed a negative correlation to intelligence – states with a higher prevalence of smokers tended to have lower rankings for intelligence.
  • Prison showed a negative correlation to intelligence – states with a higher prison population tended to have lower rankings for intelligence.
  • There were no significant correlations with intelligence and conspiracy theories.
  • Religiosity had a moderate negative correlation to intelligence – states that were more religious tended to be less intelligent.
  • No significant correlation between voting for Biden / Trump and intelligence.

Methodology and Data Sources

We used a variety of data sources to develop our rankings and analysis. Review our sources and methodology below.

Smart Rankings

We assessed four metrics and developed our state smartness rankings based on the weights in the table below:

MetricNotesSource
IQEstimated Based on State PIAAC and NAEP examsSource for IQ
Standardized Exam ScoresCombined ACT and SAT ScoresACT Scores Source
SAT Scores Source
High School Graduation RatesPublic HS 4-year Cohort Graduation RateGraduation Rates Source
% of Bachelor’s Degree18-24 Year OldsBachelor’s Degree Percentage Source

Risky Behaviors

BehaviorNotesSource
Marijuana UsageUsage 18+ Years OldMarijuana Usage Source
GamblingBased on State’s Gambling Friendliness & Problem/TreatmentGambling Source
DrinkingGallons of Ethanol Per CapitaDrinking Source
SmokingCurrently Smoking Per CapitaSmoking Source
Prison TimePrisoner Population Per CapitaPrison Time Source

TV Viewing Behavior

BehaviorNotesSource
TV ViewingHours Per Day EstimateTV Viewing Source
TV SeriesSearch VolumeTV Series Source

Beliefs

BehaviorNotesSource
ReligiosityAdults Who are “Highly Religious”Religiosity Source
Conspiracy TheoriesSearch VolumeConspiracy Theories Source
Voting Preferences% Voted Biden, 2020 ElectionVoting Preferences Source

Other Behaviors

Behavior(s)NotesSource
Sports, VehiclesSearch VolumeSports, Vehicles Source
Reading InterestLibrary Books Per Capita, Circulation Per Capita, Library Visits, Interest in KindleReading Interest Source (NCES)
Reading Interest Source (Google Trends)
Personal IncomeMedian Household IncomePersonal Income Source
Personal DebtAverage Non-Mortgage DebtPersonal Debt Source
Educational Spending$ / StudentEducational Spending Source
Dave Evangelisti
Dave is our founder and CEO. He has 20+ years of experience in the testing and test prep industry.
  • Last Updated October 3, 2023