Minnesota and Wisconsin have always had a rivalry with one another, which is to be expected from two states that share a border.

From the collegiate level to the professional, this rivalry is fueled a lot by sports, as any Green Bay Packers or Minnesota Vikings fan can tell you. However, it's important to note that it's generally a friendly rivalry as Wisconsinites and Minnesotans simply enjoy giving each other a hard time, especially when their teams face off.

It was actually during the first Vikings game against the Packers this season when a friend of mine, who happens to be a Vikings fan, was playfully mentioning to our Packers fans that she saw research that showed Wisconsinites are dumber than Minnesotans.

Needless to say, that drew a lot of laughter and then the inevitable chants to "prove it, prove it". I decided to do a little digging into what she said and I did find answers.

Are Wisconsintes Really Dumber Than Minnesotans?

Before we get to the research, I am happy to report that when compared to all the other states in America, both Wisconsin and Minnesota rank well when it comes to having intelligent people. However, there is one state that does fare a little better.

One recent study created an index of every state that combines the percentage of adults without a high school diploma with those without a college degree.

It started by gathering data from the 2018-2022 American Community Survey for every state, it next combined it with data from Saturday Night Science and applied the following criteria:

  • % of the state’s population with less than a high school education (Age 25+)
  • % of the state’s population without a college degree (Age 25+)
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The study then ranked each state from 1 to 50, with 1 being the state with the dumbest.

Minnesota Versus Wisconsin

Since the state that gets ranked #1 is considered the dumbest in America, the goal would be to be ranked at #50, which neither state did. Both states did finish well, but there was a clear winner.

Wisconsin Finishes #34

At the time of the study, Wisconsin had a population of 5,882,128 and the following data applied:

  • % Adult High School Dropout: 7.0%
  • % Highly Educated: 32.0%

Minnesota Finishes #48

At the time of the study, Minnesota had a population of 5,695,292 and the following data applied:

  • % Adult High School Dropout: 6.0%
  • % Highly Educated: 38.0%

So, based on this study, Wisconsinites are smarter than people in over half of the other states, Minnesota had only two states ranked ahead of them, New Hampshire (49) and Vermont, the smartest state.

Another study, conducted by World Population Review, named Minnesota the second-smartest state in the nation. A major reason was that Minnesota consistently has the best SAT scores in America, especially in math. The average SAT score in Minnesota was 1284 at the time of the 2024 study.

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So, while both states have incredible people, these studies give Minnesota a slight edge and bragging rights in the "Which state is smarter" debate. However, I think most people are more excited about who will win the next Vikings/Packers game.

What Is The Dumbest State In America?

We know Vermont was named the smartest state, but if you're wondering where the dumbest state is in America, that would be Nevada. At the time of the study, Nevada had a population of 3,104,817 and the following data applied:

  • % Adult High School Dropout: 13.0%
  • % Highly Educated: 26.0%

Southern states show up a lot in the rest of the top 10, which includes Mississippi (2), Arkansas (3), New Mexico (4), Alabama (5), Louisiana (6), West Virginia (7), Kentucky (8), Texas (9), and Tennessee (10).

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