Minnesota Is Officially the Best State in the Midwest

Yep, it's official! Minnesota is the best state in the Midwest, and the third-best state in the entire country. Here's who says so...

According to a new report from US News & World Reports, which used data relating to several aspects of life in the United States, Minnesota came in at #3 of the best states in the entire country. The report used data it collected in areas including education, health care, crime, opportunity and government to create its list.

Minnesota ranked third in health care, which ranked states in terms of care access, affordability, quality and outcomes. The Land of 10,000 Lakes also ranked second in opportunity, which focused on data related to poverty, housing affordability and equality for women, minorities and people with disabilities. And the state ranked fifth among states in terms of its infrastructure, which refers to the quality of our bridges, roads, broadband service, power grid and other infrastructure-related structures and systems.

In addition to those very high rankings, Minnesota also fared well in education (#11) and economy (#12). Even the areas where the state didn't rank high, which included crime and corrections (#17) and government (#24), we still ranked in the top half of all states in those categories.

And how did some of our neighbors rate? Well, North Dakota finished just behind Minnesota in the rankings, taking fourth place. And Iowa was just a few places behind, in sixth. South Dakota and Wisconsin ranked #15 and #16, respectively.

As for who finished at the bottom of the list, states in the southeast part of the country occupy the bottom four spots, with Alabama 47th, Arkansas 48th, Mississippi 49th, and Louisiana coming in at the bottom in 50th place.

What do you think of the rankings? Do you agree with Minnesota being near the top of the list? Are we truly the best in the Midwest?