Top 10 States With the Worst Economies

U.S. economic growth depends heavily on individual states’ performance. In a recent study the 50 states and District of Columbia, WalletHub found that some contribute less than others.

For example, Alaska, which is blessed with valuable natural resources, is struggling with the highest unemployment rate in the country, at 7.3%. And Mississippi has the highest share of any state’s population living in poverty, a rate of 22.3%.

Hawaii has the lowest value of exports per capita, at $664, 18 times lower than the best-performing state. New Jersey has the dubious honor of claiming the highest foreclosure rate in the country, at 0.1653%. And at 2.3%, Wyoming has the smallest share of high-tech jobs among the states.

In order to determine the best and worst state economies, WalletHub compared the 50 states and the District of Columbia across three key dimensions: economic activity, economic health and innovation potential.

It evaluated those dimensions using 28 relevant metrics, grading each one on a 100-point scale, with a score of 100 representing the highest economic performance. A state’s score was a weighted average across all metrics.

Check out the gallery to see how the 10 states with the worst economies scored overall and how each ranked on the three key dimensions.

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