People who live in the Garden State each have their own reasons for calling it home. Despite its peculiarities, many of us probably think it’s among the finest locations within the nation.
It turns out we were quite close; New Jersey ranked as the 19th best state nationwide, as reported by U.S. News & World Report.
2025 Best States Ranking
.
The rankings were determined by assessing how all 50 states measured up across eight areas: education, healthcare, economy, infrastructure, opportunity, financial stability, criminal justice, and environmental quality. This evaluation utilized data gathered from extensive nationwide polls where over 50,000 individuals ranked these issues according to their significance within their individual states.
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Every state was additionally assigned separate ratings for all eight of these areas, along with specific indicators within each area.
In which position did New Jersey place in every category?
New Jersey ranked within the upper half among the 50 states across four out of the eight categories included in the evaluation. Additionally, the state secured the number one position in the most significantly weighted category according to the report: education.
New Jersey achieved its best position – and topped all other states nationally – in education, securing the number one spot among the 50 states. According to the report, this leading rank can be attributed to New Jersey’s strong showing in pre-K through 12th-grade education metrics such as preschool attendance rates, standardized testing outcomes, and high school graduation figures, although it lagged behind in tertiary education measures.
According to the report, “The leading three states in the pre-K-12 category—New Jersey, Massachusetts, and Connecticut—are positioned within the lower half when it comes to higher education rankings. These same states place among the lowest ten regarding both tuition and fees as well as student debt upon graduating.”
In healthcare, New Jersey secured the fifth position nationally. According to the report, this ranking aligns with trends observed across the Northeast, particularly regarding public health metrics.
The state performed exceptionally well in crime and corrections (ranked No. 10) as well as infrastructure (ranked No. 12). It showed moderate rankings in natural environment (No. 28) and economy (No. 31). However, New Jersey fared badly when it came to opportunity (No. 45) and fiscal stability (No. 49), largely due to the general unaffordability within the state.
What are the top five greatest, and poorest, states in the country?
According to the report, Utah claimed the title of the best state in the country, scoring within the top 20 across seven out of the eight evaluated categories. The remaining positions in the top five were occupied by New Hampshire, Idaho, Minnesota, and Nebraska.
At the opposite end of the spectrum, Louisiana was placed last overall and is deemed as the poorest performing state nationwide based on the findings of this particular study. Joining Louisiana at the lower echelon were Alaska, Mississippi, New Mexico, and West Virginia, all falling within the report’s lowest ranking quintile.
Maddie McGay serves as the real estate correspondent for
NorthJersey.com
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The article initially appeared on NorthJersey.com.
Which states rank at the top nationwide for 2025? Find out where New Jersey stands.
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