Survey: MN Will Be 2nd-Best Place to Live in 5 Years
In five years, Minnesota will the second-best U.S. state in which to live, according to the results of a Gallup poll released Tuesday.
The report is based on interviews with roughly 530,000 U.S. adults, Washington D.C.-based Gallup said. The ranking was created using a combination of 13 equally weighted factors, including economic confidence, job creation, obesity, and even the number of smokers in each state. (The complete methodology can be viewed here.)
In individual metrics, Minnesota was ranked highest in Gallup’s “Economic Confidence Index,” which is based on the combined responses to two questions—one that asked Americans to rate economic conditions today, and another asking whether economic conditions in the country are improving or worsening.
In addition, Minnesota was deemed the best state for finding a safe place to exercise, and it came in second based on the ease of finding clean water sources.
Utah will be the best state in which to live five years from now, according to the Gallup poll. Colorado ranked third, and Nebraska and North Dakota rounded out the top five.
West Virginia will be the worst state in which to live in five years, Gallup said. Mississippi, Kentucky, Nevada, and Arkansas also ranked near the bottom of the list.
To view the entire list, separated by the 13 “future livability” metrics, click here.