We realize, you have to take any rankings of the states in any category with a good dose of humor, skepticism and fun.
Unless — of course — your state wins.
It’s why New Jerseyans continue to trumpet the fact that the state was recently judged as having the best school system — and the best pizza.
Now, there’s something even bigger.
On Tuesday, WalletHub declared New Jersey the best state to live in.
Our education system certainly played a role in that. WalletHub said its rankings are based on 52 different metrics, including housing costs and income growth, to education rate and quality of hospitals. We’re guessing our pizza was worth a point or two as well.
Are the rankings legit? As with anything else, it’s likely in the eyes of the beholder — or resident.
But, we’ll say this: WalletHub wasn’t all flowery in its assessment. It did have New Jersey ranked No. 49 in affordability, ahead of only California. (See the complete rankings here.)
Here’s a look at the Top 10 states:
- New Jersey
- Massachusetts
- New York
- Idaho
- Minnesota
- Wisconsin
- Utah
- New Hampshire
- Iowa
- Pennsylvania
And here’s a look at how N.J. did on some key metrics:
- Affordability: No. 49
- Economy: No. 32
- Education and Health: No. 5
- Quality of Life: No. 7
- Safety: No. 1
In case you’re wondering: New Mexico ranked last, trailing No. 49 Alaska, No. 48 Louisiana, No. 47 Mississippi and No. 46 South Carolina.
