Colorado drops another spot in US News & World Report’s best states ranking

Morgan Whitley
·2 min read
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DENVER (KDVR) — Once again, Colorado dropped on U.S. News & World Report’s ranking of the best states in the country.

The annual report ranks all 50 states in categories like crime and corrections, economy, education, fiscal stability, healthcare, infrastructure, natural environment and opportunity.

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In past years, Colorado has been losing ground in the national ranking, and once again in 2024, the Centennial State has lost a spot.

According to U.S. News & World Report, Colorado is the 16th-best state in 2024.

U.S. News & World Report has been creating these rankings since 2017. In that time, Colorado has lost traction. In 2023, Colorado was ranked 15th overall. In the rankings scorecard this year, Colorado ranked in the top 50% in four categories and the bottom 50% in four categories.

According to U.S. News & World Report, Colorado ranked the following in each category in 2024:

  • Crime and Corrections: 47th

  • Economy: 4th

  • Education: 5th

  • Fiscal Stability: 36th

  • Healthcare: 12th

  • Infrastructure: 12th

  • Natural Environment: 26th

  • Opportunity: 39th

Colorado is one of the worst states for crime and corrections. U.S. News & World Report found the state is above average when it comes to violent crime rates — 492 per 100,000 residents compared to the nation’s 381 per 100,000 residents.

Colorado is also considered one of the least affordable states in this report, coming in at No. 41.

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However, the Centennial State is considered one of the best economies with 2.9% job growth in the past year — compared to the national average of 2.7%. Colorado also has some of the best education in the nation. The state was ranked as having the fourth-best higher education.

Utah was the best overall state in the U.S.

New Hampshire, Nebraska, Minnesota and Idaho rounded out the top five. The worst state overall was Louisiana.

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