After three years of consistent drops in its overall ranking, Tennessee has finally risen in U.S. News & World Report's Best States analysis.
U.S. News recently released its annual analysis
of the best states in the U.S. in categories such as economy, education, health care, environment and opportunity. Tennessee sat directly in the middle of the ranking, but improved or stayed equal to its 2025 placement in all categories.This ranking comes a few weeks after CNBC ranked Tennessee as the worst state to live in.
According to the analysis, Tennessee's annual GDP is $589.8 billion, up from $549.7 billion in 2025. The population grew from 7,227,750 in 2025 to 7,315,076 in 2026. The largest increase for Tennessee was in the median household income,
which rose from $41,556 in 2025 to $71,997 in 2026.
Here is how Tennessee ranked across the major categories in the analysis.
Is Tennessee a good state to live in?
For the first time since 2022, Tennessee has gone up in its overall state ranking to be No. 25.
In 2025, Tennessee ranked No. 32, No. 27 in 2024 and No. 24 in 2023.
According to U.S. News & World Report, more weight was given to some categories than others, based on a survey of what matters most to residents, such as health care and education. Then came state economies, infrastructure and the opportunities states offer their citizens. Fiscal stability followed closely, along with measures of crime and corrections and a state's natural environment.
Is Tennessee a safe place?
Tennessee ranked as the 40th state for crime and corrections in the country, including:
- 8th best for corrections outcomes
- 46th best for public safety
The study reports that Tennessee has an incarceration rate of 341 per 100,000 residents, which is above the national average of 318, and up from the previous year's 334.
The juvenile incarceration rate, however, is much lower than the average, as only 11 juveniles per 100,000 are incarcerated, and the national rate is 46.
Additionally, the violent crime rate is almost double the nation's, but it has gone down since 2025. The violent crime rate was 628 crimes per 100,000 residents in 2025, and it dropped to 592 in 2026. The national average is only 359 crimes.
Does Tennessee have a good economy?
The ranking shows Tennessee as having the 13th best economy in the nation, which is much higher than 2025's 24th best. Tennessee ranked as:
- 17th state for business environments
- 15th state for employment
- 11th state for growth
Tennessee has $2.65 in venture capital per GDP, which is a drop from 2025's $3.18. Both measurements are significantly below the national average of $7.91.
The state also has a job growth rate of 1.4%, which is higher than the national average of 0.6%.
The Volunteer State has a net migration percentage of 1.1%, and the national average is 0.6%.
Is Tennessee a good state for education?
Tennessee is the 31st state for education, which is the same placement it had last year. Here is how it ranked:
- 37th for higher education
- 20th for Pre-K through 12th grade education
On average, students in the United States graduate with $13,631 in debt, but Tennesseans graduate with $13,532 in debt, which is much lower than 2025's $14,149 debt.
Tennessee's graduation rate, 87.3%, is almost two points higher than the national average of 85.8%. Both of these metrics are the same as what was measured in 2025.
Tennessee's National Report Card math score is 276, two points higher than the national average.
Is health care good in Tennessee?
Tennessee was the 39th overall state for health care in the nation. This is up two spots from 2025's 41st spot. Here is how it ranked:
- 37th for health care access
- 21st for health care quality
- 48th for public health
The population of people without health insurance in Tennessee is 13.6%, which is higher than last year's measurement of 13.3% and the national average of 10.2%.
In Tennessee, there are 2,950 preventable hospital admissions per 100,000 Medicare patients, compared to the national average of 2,726 patients.
Tennessee has a high obesity rate of 37.8%, which is four points higher than the national average of 34.2%.
Does Tennessee have strong infrastructure?
The ranking placed Tennessee as the 17th best state for infrastructure, which is up from 2025's 23rd best spot. Here is how it ranked:
- 31st for energy
- 13th for internet access
- 14th for transportation
The state uses 6.4% renewable energy, half the national average of 8.8%. The national average dropped from 2025's 10.8%, but Tennessee's increased from 5.4%.
The national average commute time is 27.2 minutes, and Tennessee has a smaller commute time of 26.5 minutes.
The study shows that only 4.2% of Tennessee roads are in poor condition, compared to the national average of 18.9%.
Does Tennessee have a good natural environment?
Tennessee ranked 34th for natural environment, the same as in 2025. Here is how it ranked:
- 16th in air and water quality
- 39th in pollution
Tennessee has unhealthy air quality for 132 days, compared to the national average of 152 days. Additionally, Tennessee has 1,852 pounds of industrial toxins per square mile, compared to the national average of only 930 pounds.
Though the air may not be, Tennessee's drinking water is extremely safe. There were 0.28 drinking water violation points per 100,000 customers. The national average is 2.29 points.
Are there good job opportunities in Tennessee?
Tennessee was the 22nd best state for opportunity, which is the same rank it earned in 2025. The state was also:
- 17th in affordability
- 39th in economic opportunity
- 26th in equality
The cost of living index in Tennessee is 91.9, which is down from 2025's 92.5, while the national average is 100.
- The median household income in the Volunteer State is $71,997.
- The median household income nationally is $81,604.
Tennessee has a poverty rate of 13.5%, which is over one percentage point higher than the national average of 12.1%.
How were the rankings determined?
To determine the rankings, U.S. News analyzed 71 metrics across eight categories: Education, health care, economy, infrastructure, opportunity, fiscal stability, natural environment, and crime and corrections. Some categories were weighted more than others. For example, health care and education were weighted more than crime and corrections and natural environment. Within the categories, each state was given points out of 100, with the best state given 100 points and the worst given zero.
Here's a closer look at how the categories were analyzed:
- Education: 2-year and 4-year college graduation rates, educational attainment, low college debt, low college tuition and fees, college readiness, high school graduation rate, National Assessment of Educational Progress math and reading scores and preschool enrollment
- Health care: Health insurance enrollment, child wellness and dental visits, adult wellness and dental visits, health care affordability, low preventable hospital admission rates, Medicare quality, nursing home and hospital quality, low infant mortality rate, low mortality rate, low obesity and smoking rates, mental health and low suicide rate
- Economy: Business creation rate, top company headquarters, patent creation rate, low tax burden, venture capital invested, job growth, labor force participation, low unemployment rate, net migration, Gross Domestic Product growth and young population growth
- Infrastructure: Electricity prices, power grid reliability, renewable energy usage, internet subscription rate and access to gigabit internet, bridge and road qualities, commute times and public transit usage
- Opportunity: Cost of living, housing affordability, low food insecurity and poverty rate, income dispersion, household income, and education, unemployment and labor force participation gap by race, gender, disability status
- Fiscal stability: Government credit rating, pension fund liability, liquidity, budget balancing
- Natural environment: Drinking water and air quality, low industrial toxins, low pollution health risk
- Crime and corrections: Jailing equality, low juvenile incarceration, low incarceration rate, low property and violent crime rates
USA TODAY contributed to this report.
Jordan Green covers trending news for The Commercial Appeal and Tennessee. She can be reached at jordan.green@commercialappeal.com.
This article originally appeared on Memphis Commercial Appeal: TN climbs 7 spots in most recent best state ranking from U.S. News
