These Are the Best, Worst States for Jobs

After a tumultuous couple of years marred by the pandemic, the job market is looking up, with many employers eagerly seeking new workers for their payrolls. Conditions for the job hunt are better in some states than in others, and WalletHub is here to break it all down. The site looked at all 50 states, using nearly three dozen metrics in two main categories: the job market, which looks at such factors as opportunities, the unemployment rate, job security, and job satisfaction; and economic environment, which includes average starting salaries, average commute times and hours put in on the job each week, and the number of commuter-friendly jobs. Washington state emerged as the best state for job hunters, while West Virginia comes in as the worst option at the moment. Here, the rest of the best and worst:

Best States

1. Washington (No. 1 in "Economic Environment" category)
2. Vermont (No. 1 in "Job Market" category)
3. New Hampshire
4. Colorado
5. Minnesota
6. Rhode Island
7. Massachusetts
8. Virginia
9. Connecticut
10. New Jersey

Worst States

41. Ohio
42. Alabama
43. South Carolina
44. Pennsylvania
45. Oklahoma
46. Arkansas
47. Louisiana
48. Mississippi
49. Kentucky (last in "Economic Environment" category)
50. West Virginia (last in "Job Market" category)

See how other states fared here. (Check out the best US cities for jobs.)