Questionable Study Claims Illinois is Happier Than Missouri

When you see something on the internet claiming one thing is better than another, it's fair to ask the question why. I'm gonna do that in a just-published ranking that claims Illinois is a happier place than Missouri.

This is the new 2021 version of WalletHub's Happiest States in America ranking. Look at their fancy map, then we can discuss.

I'll attempt to simplify this for you. Illinois is ranked right in the middle as the 25th happiest state in America while Missouri trails at #29. It gets interesting when you look at WalletHub's methodology. Here are their categories where they pulled data from:

• Emotional & Physical Well-Being
• Work Environment
• Community & Environment

If you dig into those numbers, Illinois is ranked near the bottom for work environment and community & environment but are nearly top 10 for emotional & physical well-being. Missouri, on the other hand, is top 20 for work environment and community & environment while getting dinged in the mid-30's for emotional & physical well-being.

Paint me confused. It would seem that it would be better to be near the top in 2 categories instead of in the bottom 2, right?

This isn't meant to be any kind of a slam on Illinois, but I don't understand how their numbers come out with the result they claim. That being said, I have no doubt that the number crunchers at WalletHub are way smarter than me. (Editor's Note: Yes)

Check out the full study on WalletHub and see if you agree with their conclusion that Illinois is happier than Missouri.