The happiest states in the US, ranked

Happiness may come from within, but external factors can still play a role in how happy you feel.

Even if you’re a glass-half-full kind of person, factors like financial security, access to healthcare, and community can also impact your well-being.

A recent WalletHub study ranked all 50 states based on metrics that measure residents’ happiness.

All states were compared across three categories: emotional and physical well-being, work environment, and community and environment.

These dimensions were broken down into 30 metrics, graded on a 100-point scale to create a happiness score.

The most heavily weighted category was emotional and physical well-being, which included metrics such as career well-being, physical health, the share of adults with depression, and life expectancy.

Work environment metrics included the number of work hours and the share of households earning annual incomes above $75,000.

For community and environment, the metrics included ideal weather, average daily leisure time, and safety.

WalletHub’s analysis used data from sources such as the US Census Bureau, the Bureau of Labor Statistics, and Gallup.

Here are the 50 states, ranked from least to most happy.