Best - California. Even the worst parts of the state are better than most other places in America, and the best parts are literally world wonders (Yosemite, Redwoods, Sequoias, Death Valley, Joshua Tree). Pricey AF, but you get what you pay for, and it's all here - mountains, deserts, ocean, lakes, Hollywood, Silicon Valley, big cities, little towns, pretty much any kind of life you could want, you can live it here if you've got the means to afford it.

Worst - Texas. It's where the worst of America decided to throw an endless rodeo and most of their trash. Yeah, other states may be stupider, or more racist, or more desolate... but nobody nowhere is louder and prouder of being a drunken pain in the ass than a Texan. Florida man comes in a close second if he's methed up enough, but Florida actually has cool shit like the Everglades and Miami and manatees and alligators.

Texas has Buc-ees and lot lizards.

It really depends who you are and what you like and what your values are and what your income is.

That said, as a progressive software engineer who grew up in CA and now lives in Boston: Massachusetts for sure has its issues, and the cost of living in the city proper is ludicrous, but it’s probably the most European-ish city in the US. Many jokingly call it the People’s Republic of Massachusetts, but it’s one of the better states in terms of social safety nets and all that sort of stuff, and is generally pretty fun. Decent amount of shows, and the restaurant scene is honestly quite delicious and varied, once you get hooked into the scene a bit and learn a bit about which neighborhoods are good for what. And -gasp - a (usually) functioning mass transit system that has heavy and light rail as a major component, along with pretty good commuter rail that you can take all the way to the state border north or south (idk about west - western mass is considered to be a fictional location by many Bostonians). Basically, better mass transit than pretty much anywhere in the states I’ve ever been besides NYC, and maybe Chicago.

Colorado is also pretty sweet, though it’s becoming more expensive these days. Probably the only truly inland state I’d ever seriously consider moving to. Unbelievably good skiing and hiking and other mountain-y stuff to do.

You could not pay me enough money to live in Oklahoma.

And as close second for “nope”, the gulf coast is pretty goddamn awful imo, even putting aside the politics (which are predominantly pretty heinous) and racism (because we never really fully put down the confederacy) - largely economically depressed, horridly humid, no real winter (I like the cold), tons of petrochemical industry.

I know this isn’t what you were asking for, but the single best quality of life decision I made was leaving America. This was after living in multiple states.

If you're the kind of person using lemmy, then any southern state is probably in the running for "worst" to live in. They're not without their positives or fantastic people and culture (and I mean actual culture, not the confederacy bs) but if you were picking and choosing a place to live, it probably wouldn't be those.

By that same token, any west coast or northeast/new England state is probably "best". They all have their negatives and shitty people, but you'd probably prefer one of them if you were choosing. Though you actually may have a better time in a city in a "worst" state than in some rural areas in a "best" state. That'll depend on other factors.

Does the moon become a state when it gets renamed “Moon of America”?

Best California

Worst Mississippi

Everyone in the US thinks the state they are from is both the best and the worst at the same time. And also gets mad if you agree that their state is the worst of you're not from there.

That being said, Ohio is aight, more interesting than people give it credit for, and everything bad people think about Ohio is way more true in Indiana.

Also no one talks about how freaking beautiful West Virginia is I swear.

States matter only inasmuch as the city you live in.

Living in Altoona, Pennsylvania is going to be a vastly different experience than Philadelphia.

Washington state is the best, most beautiful place in the country.

I agree with Tikiporch. The city matters more than the state.

There are rankings on different measures floating around the internet, best and worst depend a lot on what you are measuring. So I took a look and Minneapolis comes up as ideal for most of what I want in a city but I'm a delicate tropical flower and would die there the first winter.

Florida was much more progressive when I was young, unfortunately we have attracted a lot of conservative northerners who completely changed the political landscape, but the city I'm in still feels nice.

So what are you measuring? Good transit? Stay in the northeast. Good music scene? Texas, believe it or not. Want to raise kids? Maybe NYC if you are loaded, so much to do there. Best is impossible to answer because it's different for different people. My ex evolved into a slavering racist so he thinks Iowa is best because it's not very diverse, but that is the opposite of what I like.

Subjective, but this is what it looks like for me.

I've lived in Maryland, liked it for education, work, proximity to DC, NY, fairly friendly people, lots to do between DC and Baltimore. Didn't like it for weather (not a fan of snow), Baltimore has some parts that are sketchy, though not personally affected, I hated the idea that someone could, and I had my car broken into once.

Texas. Enjoyed the weather tremendously, really enjoyed the food, in urban settings people were pretty friendly, enjoyed driving down to Galveston, Jamaica Beach, Surfside beach, Kemah, Seabrook, you get the idea, I like beaches. Didn't like it for education, dang, raw deal for kids in Texas, politics and religion in some settings, and perpetual road construction. Also, among the people I was hanging out with, there was a drinking culture I did not appreciate. Not that I'm judging, but people really drink in Texas and DUIs did not seem such a big deal. So in my mind, my generalization is drunks.

Future (currently aligning) looks like California, likely around LA or San Diego if I get this put together. Why? The beach of course, weather, education, farming and opportunities in certain fields I work in. My concern, cost (there is a certain X ratio against my current I am willing to tolerate), materialistic culture, and crime. That being said, it could also mean a split between California and New York if things go as I hope. NY would be a mostly professional, and occasional cultural thing. I weirdly enjoy big cities in the summer.

Future future, assuming I hit certain financial goals, Hawaii, more specifically Maui or Big Island. Again, beach, weather, by then education will not be a concerning factor, and farming.

Illinois is pretty bad. Super high property taxes, expensive gas, high ish sales tax most everywhere, and not much to do outside of Chicago.

Outside the city everything needs a car. Sure suburbs have trains and buses, but car is so much easier.

Everything very much so depends on your personal preferences, but quite a number of people really like purple states. These states have moderate politics and thus moderate policies. Obviously every state in the group is different, and even within the state there is large variation; moving even 20 miles closer/further from political hotspots can give massive variations in relevant laws, taxes, culture, etc.

Ex: New Hampshire, Arizona, New Mexico, Wisconsin, Maine, Pennsylvania, Michigan, Nevada, Minnesota

(Note, I have not specifically investigated every one of these states. Researching thousands of laws in a dozen states is quite a lot of work for a comment)

california, best with certain cities, with some natural areas preserved. although one may think for being a biotech/tech central, its not really. expanded healthcare for the less socioeconomic advantaged people who can still live in the state.

worst, HCOL is probably the most important reason, insane legislation of what can be built, and renting issues. the sheer amount of homeless in some cities is staggering, although this is likely due to transplants intentionally by red states, so many stores/businesses closed in areas where significant homeless are. high taxes for property which goes into HCOL, creates dead areas for businesses, and replaced by "bougie apartments".

jobs, have an established career prior to moving here, its wonderful. not so much starting out(biotech, tech, high paying health related job(not MD or nursing)

Texas. It’s the best and the worst.

Best - Hawaii
Worst - Anywhere but Hawaii

Here's a list of the worst 10: https://www.cnbc.com/2026/07/11/worst-states-to-live-in-america-2026.html