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Rankings

State rankings and U.S. data, from official sources

28 rankings built from federal statistics: Census, BEA, BLS, EIA, FBI and NOAA. Every page has a sortable table, a chart, what changed from earlier years, the data vintage and a downloadable CSV.

Data vintage: varies by ranking, from 2024 data years (ACS, BEA price parities, EIA gasoline, NOAA tornado counts) to 2025–26 releases; each card below shows its own vintage. Last checked 2026-10-27 by The CompareTheData team.

People and cities

PeoplePopulation by state

Census Bureau Vintage 2025 estimates

PeopleFastest-growing states

Census Bureau Vintage 2025

CitiesBiggest U.S. cities

Census Bureau Vintage 2025 city and town estimates

CitiesFastest-growing cities

Census Bureau Vintage 2025 city and town estimates

PeopleMedian age by state

American Community Survey 2024 1-year estimates

Money and cost of living

MoneyMedian household income by state

American Community Survey 2024 1-year estimates

MoneyRichest states

BEA state personal income for 2025

MoneyCost of living by state

BEA regional price parities for 2024

MoneyPoverty rate by state

American Community Survey 2024 1-year estimates

MoneyGDP by state

BEA GDP by state, annual 2025

MoneyElectricity prices by state

EIA Electric Power Annual Table 2.10, 2025 data

MoneyGas prices by state

EIA State Energy Data System, motor gasoline prices through 2024

Work and pay

Work and payAverage salary by state

BLS OEWS May 2025 estimates

Work and payMinimum wage by state

State rates in effect as of October 2026

Work and payUnemployment rate by state

BLS Local Area Unemployment Statistics, September 2026

Work and payHighest-paying jobs

BLS OEWS May 2025 national estimates, compared with May 2024

Work and payDoctor salary

BLS OEWS May 2025 estimates, compared with May 2024

Work and payPilot salary

BLS OEWS May 2025 estimates, compared with May 2024

Housing

HousingMedian home value by state

American Community Survey 2024 1-year estimates

HousingMedian rent by state

American Community Survey 2024 1-year estimates

HousingHomeownership rate by state

American Community Survey 2024 1-year estimates

Safety

SafetyCrime rate by state

FBI Crime in the Nation 2025 estimates

SafetyMurder rate by state

FBI Crime in the Nation 2025 estimates

SafetyMost dangerous cities

FBI Offenses Known to Law Enforcement by City

Weather and climate

WeatherTornadoes by state

NOAA Storm Prediction Center Severe Weather Database, final data through 2024

WeatherAverage temperature by state

NOAA NCEI nClimDiv statewide series

WeatherRainfall by state

NOAA NCEI nClimDiv statewide series

Education

EducationMost educated states

American Community Survey 2024 1-year estimates

Military

Pay2026 military pay chart

DFAS basic pay tables, every grade

HousingBAH rates 2026

DoD housing allowance by location

BranchesMilitary branches compared

DMDC personnel counts

BasesMilitary bases by state

Installations and personnel by state

How these rankings are made

We download the official files, keep the raw copies, and compute ranks and changes ourselves. Each page names its source file and release date. Where agencies caution against ranking (FBI crime data, ACS margins of error, BLS wage estimates over time), the page says so. See the methodology.