Is New Jersey a happy state?

😊 WalletHub released a report on the happiest states in America

😊30 key indicators of happiness were measured

😊 Is New Jersey a happy state?

Do you live in a happy state?

Personal finance website WalletHub compared all 50 states across 30 key indicators of happiness to come out with its report on “2023’s Happiest States in America.”

WalletHub’s data set ranged from depression rates to the share of adults feeling productive to income growth and unemployment rates.

“So, not just emotional and physical well-being, but work conditions and your just overall community as well,” said WalletHub analyst, Jill Gonzalez.

How did New Jersey rank?

New Jersey is one of the happiest states in the nation, ranking in the top five, coming at number five, Gonzalez said.

It did the best in the emotional and physical well-being category. New Jersey has the lowest suicide in the nation and one of the lowest depression rates, as well, she added.

“When we’re looking at the other categories in the emotional and physical well-being, we see that the physical health index in New Jersey is pretty high, adverse childhood experiences were low, there was more sports participation, there’s adequate sleep, and when adults were asked “do you feel active and productive,” New Jersey numbers were pretty high,” Gonzalez said.

All of these reasons make sense as to why depression rates are low, and therefore suicide rates are low, too.

New Jersey also has the third lowest separation and divorce rate in the country which contributes to people’s happiness, according to the report.

New Jersey also did pretty well when it came to overall safety. Gonzalez said this is not just violent and property crime rates, both of which New Jersey did pretty well in, but it also looks at natural disasters that have been affecting more and more states recently.
Other than Superstorm Sandy, New Jersey is mostly unaffected by natural disasters.

Where can New Jersey improve?

In New Jersey, it really comes down to work environment, Gonzalez said. While New Jersey ranked in the top three in emotional and physical well-being, it ranked down at 14th for its working conditions.

Everything from the number of work hours to long commute times, congested roadways, adults with financial anxiety, and high cost of living could use some help in the Garden State.

New Jersey did very well when it came to its unemployment rate, but its income growth is another story, Gonzalez said.

“The reason why we look at this is to answer that age-old question, “Does money buy happiness?” We also look at the number of work hours where New Jersey did okay, but some things concerning the work environment in New Jersey could be a little bit better,” she said.

What is the happiest state in the U.S.?

If you truly want to be happy, move to Utah. It was ranked the happiest state in the U.S. according to the report. Hawaii is the second happiest state, followed by Maryland, Minnesota, and New Jersey rounding out the top five.

On the flip side, West Virginia is the most depressed state in the nation, followed by Louisiana, Tennessee, Arkansas, and Kentucky.

As far as New Jersey’s neighbors, Connecticut follows directly behind as the 6th happiest state. Delaware comes in at number 11. New York ranked 16th and Pennsylvania is down on the list at number 25.

For a full report, visit here.

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