Texas struggles as one of the 15 worst states to live in 2026

After earning its worst-ever ranking last year, Texas has improved a couple of spots on an evaluation of the best states to live in, but it's still at the bottom of the pack.

Each year, WalletHub's analysts compare all 50 states using 51 livability metrics to measure their affordability, economy, education and health, quality of life, and safety. Factors include the cost of living, homeownership rates, population and income growth rates, wealth gaps, public school system quality, road quality, crime rates, and many others.

The Lone Star State landed at No. 36 in 2026, making it the 15th-worst state to live right now. That's on par with its 2024 ranking, and it's a two-spot improvement over its 2025 performance.

While Texas residents can brag about living in a state with the No. 1 highest number of restaurants per capita and the 7th best quality of life in the country, that's about it. Texas earned middling-to-poor scores among the four remaining livability rankings: safety (No. 33), affordability (No. 35), economy (No. 37), and education and health (No. 40).

Here's how Texas fared in other rankings in the study out of all 50 states:

• No. 46 – Homeownership Rate
• No. 49 – Percentage of Population Aged 25 and Older with a High School Diploma or Higher
• No. 49 – Average Weekly Work Hours
• No. 50 – Percentage of Insured Population

Texas has a lot of work to do to improve its livability for all of its residents, but especially for women, according to several other 2026 WalletHub studies. Texas is the fourth-worst state for women, the ninth-worst state for working mothers, and the seventh-worst place to have a baby based on limited access to maternal and pediatric healthcare.

But the very worst states to live prove that life could be much worse. New Mexico ranks 50th overall, with Louisiana (No. 49), Mississippi (No. 48), Alaska (No. 47), and Arkansas (No. 46) rounding out the bottom of the list.

After holding on as the No. 1 best state to live for a few years in a row, Massachusetts now ranks No. 4 and was overtaken by Idaho (No. 1), New Jersey (No. 2), and Wisconsin (No. 3). New Hampshire rounds out the top five best states to live.WalletHub's top 10 best states to live in 2026 are:

• No. 1 – Idaho
• No. 2 – New Jersey
• No. 3 – Wisconsin
• No. 4 – Massachusetts
• No. 5 – New Hampshire
• No. 6 – Wyoming
• No. 7 – Utah
• No. 8 – Minnesota
• No. 9 – Pennsylvania
• No. 10 – Florida