Is New York the Happiest State in America?
New York has a reputation for being aggressive and mean, but do we really need a personality overhaul?
Pop culture loves to depict New Yorkers as jerks with too little time and too much attitude. We're seen as the burnt out 9-to-5 workers who are borderline umbilical with our coffee and cellphones.
Turns out, all of that is smoke and mirrors courtesy of Hollywood magic. Sure, our personality reputation is in the gutter, but a new survey is giving us something to celebrate.
New York is one of the friendliest states in the country
You hear that? We're actually pretty nice in comparison to other states. Looking at you, Montana.
WalletHub issued a new survey studying the friendliness factor of each state and found New York is among the top 20 happiest.
The study looked into several key factors for their latest ranking and based stats off metrics like depression rates, the percentage of adults who feel fulfilled, and the unemployment rate.
New York finished 16th overall, besting other states like Rhode Island, Oregon, Vermont, Georgia, Maine and other head-scratchers.
If you must know the state that came dead last, the honor goes to West Virginia.
When comparing how New York performed across individual key metrics, the results were pretty heartening.
New York among the lowest depression and suicide rates in the nation
WalletHub combined its key metrics across three different factors: Emotional & Physical Well-Being, Work Environment, and Community & Environment.
New York finished seventh in the first category and finished in 39th place in the latter two.
Breaking things down further, New York has the sixth lowest percentage of depressed adults per capita. Additionally, it appears New Yorkers have a more balanced work/life schedule and opportunity for income growth.
WalletHub found the Empire State had the 8th best rate for work hours, followed by a 15th place finish in terms of income growth. For the latter, the state that came in first place was California.
Read More: Is New York the Nerdiest State in America?
Additionally, the state had the 19th lowest separation and divorce rate, followed by a 22nd-place finish in safety and a 23rd-place finish for obtaining an adequate sleep rate.
WalletHub also found that the Empire State has the second lowest suicide rate in the nation, which is a huge accomplishment that reflects the hard work and effort advocates put into saving lives.
New York's Suicide Prevention Center works around the clock to help those dealing with mental crises.
Suicide is the 11th leading cause of death in the United States, according to the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention. In 2021, AFSP said nearly 50,000 Americans died by suicide.
If you are in crisis or know someone in crisis, contact the 988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline by dialing 988, by calling 1-800-273-TALK (8255), or by visiting 988lifeline.org. You can also contact the Crisis Text Line by texting HOME to 741741.
Another survey reported similar findings about New York
A recent survey by Gunther Kia commissioned 3,000 experienced roadtrippers to share their honest feedback about all the states they've visited and placed New York among the top 5 sweetest states.
Read More: Is NY Really the Unfriendliest and Most Aggressive State?
The Empire State scored an impressive score of 7.3 out of 10, which is a mere fraction away from the nation's most welcoming state, Missouri.
Ironically, the state that has a reputation for being kind, sun-kissed and a little vapid was actually voted the meanest state.
That said, it's good to be a New Yorker. We got friendly people here.
Check out more from WalletHub's findings below:
