Top 10 smartest states for financial literacy: 2015

Being financially literate is growing ever more important as investments and market forces become more complicated.

To find out where the most financially literate people live, we turned to Wallethub.com’s financial literacy rankings of the 50 states and Washington, D.C.

Wallethub.com noted that there is a huge financial literacy problem in the U.S. For instance, 20 percent of Americans spend more than they make and 60 percent do not have money set aside for bad times. In addition, only about 40 percent have a budget.

Read also: A look at financial confidence in every life stage

Wallethub.com assessed states based on two categories: knowledge and education; and planning and daily habits.

The site looked at the high school dropout rate, results of a FINRA literacy survey and the percentage of adults with a bachelor’s degree, among other things, rate states in the first category. The second category included looking at the percentage of people who spend more than they earn, how many have a rainy day fund and those paying just the minimum due on credit cards.

The rankings were designed to differentiate between financial hardship and lack of knowledge.

Read also: Financial literacy report card flags deficiency in retirement planning

10. VIRGINIA

Overall Score: 1st out of 51

Knowledge & Education: 3rd out of 51

Planning & Daily Habits: 20th out of 51

9. PENNSYLVANIA

Overall Score: 9

Knowledge & Education: 30

Planning & Daily Habits: 4

8. MINNESOTA

Overall Score: 8

Knowledge & Education: 8

Planning & Daily Habits: 13

7. ILLINOIS

Overall Score: 7

Knowledge & Education: 14

Planning & Daily Habits: 8

6. NORTH DAKOTA

Overall Score: 6