Best States for Homesteading

Every state scored on the eight factors that decide whether a homestead works in practice — water security, land affordability, growing climate, legal freedom, natural-hazard exposure, rural space, broadband for remote income, and healthcare access.

#StateOverall scoreScore
1Arkansas84/10084
2Mississippi81/10081
3Tennessee79/10079
4Kentucky78/10078
5Alabama76/10076
6Indiana76/10076
7Georgia74/10074
8Missouri74/10074
9South Carolina73/10073
10West Virginia73/10073
11Louisiana70/10070
12Oklahoma66/10066
13Florida63/10063
14Virginia63/10063
15North Carolina61/10061
16Iowa60/10060
17Nebraska60/10060
18Ohio60/10060
19Maine59/10059
20Michigan59/10059
21Pennsylvania56/10056
22Texas55/10055
23Kansas52/10052
24Illinois51/10051
25North Dakota49/10049
26Vermont49/10049
27Minnesota48/10048
28South Dakota48/10048
29Wisconsin48/10048
30Maryland47/10047
31Idaho46/10046
32Delaware45/10045
33New York44/10044
34Alaska43/10043
35Wyoming42/10042
36Arizona41/10041
37Montana39/10039
38New Mexico38/10038
39Oregon38/10038
40Hawaii37/10037
41Massachusetts37/10037
42New Hampshire37/10037
43Colorado35/10035
44Washington33/10033
45Utah32/10032
46California31/10031
47Nevada28/10028
48Rhode Island27/10027
49New Jersey13/10013
50Connecticut5/1005

Rankings are computed automatically from public-dataset figures (U.S. Census, USDA, NOAA, FEMA, FCC, BLS) using the same homestead-scoring model as our state and county pages, so they update as the data does.

Frequently asked questions

How is the homesteading score calculated?

It is a weighted average of eight axes — water security, climate and growing season, land and cost, legal freedom, natural hazards, rural space, connectivity, and healthcare access — derived only from sourced public data. No figures are invented.

Does the ranking change over time?

Yes. The score is computed live from the underlying data, so when a state's figures are updated the ranking adjusts automatically.

More rankings

All rankings