New Hampshire is one of the best-behaved states, "sinful" study finds
CONCORD, N.H. - A new study of "sinful" states finds that New England is very well-behaved, especially the residents of New Hampshire.
The Granite State placed 49th in WalletHub's ranking of the "Most sinful states in America" for 2024. Only Wyoming was said to be more virtuous.
Every New England state ranked in the bottom half, meaning they were among the least-sinful states. Rhode Island was 34th, Massachusetts 38th, Connecticut 41st, Vermont 46th and Maine was 47th.
What makes a state "sinful"?
The personal finance website says it looked at "55 key indicators of immoral or illicit behavior" to come up with its ranking, breaking them down into categories of anger and hatred, jealousy, excesses and vices, greed and lust. Specific factors included crime rates, drinking and smoking reports, casino prevalence, searches for "adult entertainment websites" and the number of plastic surgeons per resident.
New Hampshire reported some of the fewest violent crimes and thefts per capita, and residents did not spend nearly as much time on adult websites as residents in other states did.
Nevada, the home of "Sin City" and Super Bowl LVIII, was ranked the most sinful. Rounding out the Top 5 are Louisiana, California, Florida and Tennessee.
Click here to see the full ranking.
Last month, WalletHub ranked New Hampshire 7th on its list of "Best States for Families," with Massachusetts coming in first.