Overview
- WalletHub released its 2026 state stress report on March 23, providing a comparative snapshot of stress levels across all 50 states.
- The five most stressed states are Louisiana, Kentucky, New Mexico, West Virginia, and Arkansas.
- The five least stressed states are South Dakota, Utah, Minnesota, New Hampshire, and Vermont.
- Louisiana’s top ranking reflects the nation’s highest poverty rate, frequent skipped medical care due to cost, high rates of poor mental health and depression, limited psychologist availability, elevated unemployment, and the lowest job security.
- Kentucky’s second-place ranking is tied to high unemployment, a high bankruptcy rate, and low median credit scores along with poor self-reported health, while New Mexico’s third-place ranking is driven by high violent and property crime, high separation and divorce rates, many single-parent households, high poverty, and low credit scores.