North Dakota earned the No. 1 spot as the hardest-working state in the U.S., according to a new analysis published by WalletHub.
The personal finance website released its 2025 survey, “Hardest-Working States in America,” on Aug. 25. The ranking is based on an analysis comparing states across 10 key indicators of work, ranging from average workweek hours to annual volunteer hours per resident.
WalletHub compared the 50 states across two dimensions: direct and indirect work factors. Direct work factors were weighted at 80 points and indirect work factors were weighted at 20 points to inform overall scores.
North Dakota had the third-highest employment rate in the country, at nearly 98%, according to WalletHub. Additionally, workers in this state age 16-64 work 39.6 hours per week on average, the fourth-most in the U.S.
Alaska followed North Dakota in the overall ranking of hardest-working states. The average Alaskan worker age 16-64 works 41.6 hours per week, the highest number of hours in the U.S., according to WalletHub.
Below are the 10 hardest-working states and the 10 ranked last. The complete listing from WalletHub is available here.
Hardest-working states
1. North Dakota
2. Alaska
3. South Dakota
4. Texas
5. Hawaii
6. Virginia
7. New Hampshire
8. Wyoming
9. Maryland
10. Nebraska
Bottom of list
1. Michigan
2. West Virginia
3. Rhode Island
4. Nevada
5. New York
6. California
7. Ohio
8. New Mexico
9. Illinois
10. Oregon
