New York Ranks in Top 30% of America’s Smartest States

As the class of 2022 walks across stages nationwide to receive their diplomas, PennStates decided to analyze both test scores and education credentials in each state in an effort to find in which state the most intelligent people live.

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In order to come to its conclusion, PennStates created an index that considered six key factors pulling data from sources such as the Census Bureau, Pesta (2022), Scholarship Institute, and Test Geek. The six factors are:

1. The percentage of the population with an ‘Advanced Degree'
2. The percentage of the population with a ‘Bachelor’s Degree’
3. Average IQ scores
4. Percentage of population with a ‘High School Diploma’
5. Mean SAT score
6. Average ACT score

Falling in at number 15 on the list of most intelligent states is New York with a smartest index score of 57.8 out of 100 which puts New York in the top 30 percent of smartest states in America.

Taking the top spot as the most intelligent state is the home of Harvard and MIT and that is Massachusetts which scored 93.9 out of 100 on the intelligence index. Massachusetts is the state which is home to America’s highest average ACT score as well as the highest percentage of people to hold an advanced degree.

In line right behind Massachusetts is Connecticut which scored 73.8 out of 100. Connecticut holds the second-highest ACT score and the highest percentage of residents who hold an advanced degree.

The rest of the top 15 most intelligent states in order are Maryland, Virginia, Vermont, New Hampshire, New Jersey, Colorado, Minnesota, Washington, New York, Maine, Utah, Kansas, and Nebraska.

The least intelligent state is West Virginia with a Smartest US State Index Score of 12.6 out of 100. West Virginia is the state with the second-lowest number of people who hold an advanced degree, the home of the lowest number of people with a Bachelor’s degree, and the state with the 8th lowest IQ among the states.

Just behind West Virginia on the least intelligent side of the list are Mississippi and Louisiana. Mississippi has an intelligence score of 13.3 out of 100. With the second-lowest IQ, Mississippi narrowly beat West Virginia thanks only to above SAT scores of 1,202.

The rest of the top 15 least intelligent states in order are Lousianna, Arkansas, Nevada, New Mexico, Alabama, Oklahoma, Texas, South Carolina, Kentucky, Florida, Tennessee, Arizona, and Idaho.