What Is The Best Place To Live In America? Pros And Cons For All 50 StatesMichael Snyder, Contributor As our world becomes increasingly unstable, many families are considering moving somewhere else. But what areas are best and what areas should be avoided? Is there really a best place to live in America? Well, the truth is that each family is facing a different set of circumstances. If you have a great support system where you live, it can be really tough to pick up and move 3000 miles away from that support system. If you have a great job where you live now, it can be really tough to move some place where there may be no job at all for you. But without a doubt there are some areas of the country that will be far better off than others in the event of a major economic collapse. This article will take a look at each of the 50 U.S. states and will list some of the pros and cons for moving to each one. Not all of the factors listed below will be important to you, and a few have even been thrown in for humor. But if you are thinking of moving in the near future hopefully this list will give you some food for thought. A few years ago when my wife and I were living near Washington D.C. we knew that we wanted a change and we went through this kind of a process. We literally evaluated areas from coast to coast. In the end, we found a place that is absolutely perfect for us. But different things are important to different people. For example, there are some absolutely wonderful people that live in the state of California, and there are some areas of California that I would not mind visiting at all. But for the times that are coming I am convinced that it is going to be a really bad place to live. Not that I have all the answers either. Hopefully this article can get some debates started, and hopefully those debates will help people that are thinking of moving to another state to be more informed. The following are some pros and cons for all 50 states. Alabama Pros: warm weather, southern hospitality, relatively low population density Cons: hurricanes, tornadoes, crime, not enough jobs, multiple nuclear power plants, rampant poverty Overall Rating: C+ Alaska Pros: great fishing, lots of empty space, low population density, great for rugged individualists Cons: very high cost of living, earthquakes, volcanoes, extremely cold, short growing season, too much snow, potentially cut off from supplies from the lower 48 states during an emergency situation Overall Rating: B Arizona Pros: warm weather Cons: illegal immigration, wildfires, return of dust bowl conditions, not enough jobs, not enough rain, multiple nuclear power plants, crime, gang violence, Phoenix Overall Rating: D+ Arkansas Pros: southern hospitality, warm weather, Ozark National Forest Cons: tornadoes, Clintons, New Madrid fault zone, multiple nuclear power plants, crime, rampant poverty Overall Rating: C California Pros: Disneyland, warm weather, Malibu Cons: high taxes, Jerry Brown, earthquakes, mudslides, wildfires, gang violence, crime, traffic, rampant poverty, insane politicians, ridiculous regulations, bad schools, political correctness, illegal immigration, not enough jobs, air pollution, multiple nuclear power plants, possible tsunami threat along the coast, Los Angeles, San Francisco, Oakland, Stockton, Sacramento, huge drug problem, high population density, the state government is broke, many more reasons to leave California right here Overall Rating: F Colorado Pros: Rocky Mountains, Colorado Springs Cons: wildfires, illegal immigration, short growing season, not enough rain, too much snow, huge drug problem Overall Rating: B Connecticut Pros: beautiful homes Cons: high taxes, insane politicians, ridiculous regulations, political correctness, short growing season, multiple nuclear power plants, high population density Overall Rating: C- Delaware Pros: good fishing Cons: Joe Biden, political correctness, ridiculous regulations, insane politicians, crime, high population density Overall Rating: D Florida Pros: University of Florida Gators, oranges, low taxes, southern hospitality, Disneyworld, Gainesville, warm weather, beautiful beaches, Daytona Cons: hurricanes, most of the state is barely above sea level, high population density, not enough jobs, multiple nuclear power plants, crime, gang violence, illegal immigration Overall Rating: C Georgia Pros: peaches, southern hospitality, warm weather Cons: not enough jobs, multiple nuclear power plants, crime, gang violence, flesh eating disease, Atlanta Overall Rating: B- Hawaii Pros: awesome beaches, warm weather, great vacation destination Cons: vulnerable to tsunamis, very high cost of living, volcanoes, traffic, high population density, high taxes Overall Rating: C- Idaho Pros: awesome people live there, great potatoes, low population density, high concentration of liberty-minded individuals, low crime, Sandpoint, Coeur dAlene, north Idaho has plenty of water compared to the rest of the interior West, beautiful scenery Cons: cold in the winter, wildfires, short growing season, not enough jobs Overall Rating: A Illinois Pros: once you get away from Chicago things are not quite so bad Cons: Barack Obama, drought, New Madrid fault zone, high population density, political correctness, ridiculous regulations, insane politicians, crime, gang violence, Chicago, East St. Louis, not enough jobs, multiple nuclear power plants, mob robberies, the state government is drowning in debt Overall Rating: D- Indiana Pros: it is in better shape than Illinois, good farming, high Amish population Cons: drought, tornadoes, the city of Gary, relatively high population density, near the New Madrid fault zone, a rust belt state Overall Rating: C- Iowa Pros: low population density, low crime, good farming Cons: drought, tornadoes, cold in the winter, multiple nuclear power plants, too much snow, very flat Overall Rating: B- Kansas Pros: low population density, low crime, good farming Cons: drought, tornadoes, return of dust bowl conditions, very flat Overall Rating: B Kentucky Pros: southern hospitality, great horses, Lexington Cons: New Madrid fault zone, not enough jobs, rampant poverty, Louisville Overall Rating: C Louisiana Pros: southern hospitality, warm weather Cons: hurricanes, New Orleans, not enough jobs, tornadoes, multiple nuclear power plants, oil spills, crime, gang violence, rampant poverty Overall Rating: D Maine Pros: low population density, low crime, polite people Cons: extremely cold, short growing season, political correctness, ridiculous regulations, insane politicians, too much snow Overall Rating: B- Maryland Pros: the Washington Redskins play there Cons: Baltimore, borders Washington D.C., high population density, really bad traffic, political correctness, ridiculous regulations, insane politicians, multiple nuclear power plants, crime, gang violence Overall Rating: C- Massachusetts Pros: beautiful homes Cons: high taxes, political correctness, ridiculous regulations, insane politicians, high population density, short growing season, almost everything is illegal in Massachusetts Overall Rating: D+ Michigan Pros: once you get away from Detroit and Flint things get better Cons: Detroit, Flint, Dearborn, extremely cold, short growing season, political correctness, ridiculous regulations, insane politicians, not enough jobs, multiple nuclear power plants, too much snow, a rust belt state Overall Rating: D- Minnesota Pros: land of 10,000 lakes Cons: extremely cold, short growing season, multiple nuclear power plants, too much snow, high taxes Overall Rating: C Mississippi Pros: southern hospitality, relatively low population density, warm weather Cons: hurricanes, tornadoes, not enough jobs, rampant poverty, crime Overall Rating: C+ Missouri Pros: good farming, Branson Cons: drought, tornadoes, New Madrid fault zone, not enough jobs, crime Overall Rating: C Montana Pros: low population density, low taxes, high concentration of liberty-minded individuals, Missoula, Kalispell Cons: extremely cold in the winter, wildfires, short growing season, not enough rain, near Yellowstone super volcano, rampant poverty, too much snow Overall Rating: B+ Nebraska Pros: low population density, good farming Cons: tornadoes, drought, multiple nuclear power plants, cold in the winter, very flat Overall Rating: B Nevada Pros: low population density, lots of empty space, low taxes, warm weather Cons: Harry Reid, Las Vegas, Reno, not enough water, not enough rain, wildfires, hard to grow food, not enough jobs, crime, gang violence, huge drug problem, Yucca Mountain Overall Rating: D+ New Hampshire Pros: low crime, beautiful homes Cons: extremely cold, short growing season, political correctness, ridiculous regulations, insane politicians, too much snow Overall Rating: C New Jersey Pros: anyone got something? Cons: high population density, Camden, Newark, not enough jobs, multiple nuclear power plants, Atlantic City, crime, gang violence Overall Rating: D- New Mexico Pros: low population density, warm weather Cons: illegal immigration, wildfires, return of dust bowl conditions, not enough jobs, not enough rain, crime, gang violence, huge drug problem Overall Rating: C- New York Pros: the entire state is not like New York City Cons: New York City, Mayor Bloomberg, high taxes, cold in the winter, high population density, political correctness, ridiculous regulations, insane politicians, not enough jobs, multiple nuclear power plants, the too big to fail banks Overall Rating: D North Carolina Pros: southern hospitality, warm weather, Great Smoky Mountains National Park Cons: hurricanes, not enough jobs, multiple nuclear power plants Overall Rating: B North Dakota Pros: low crime, lots of oil-related jobs, low population density Cons: extremely cold, short growing season, too much snow Overall Rating: B Ohio Pros: the Cincinnati Reds, the Pro Football Hall of Fame, high Amish population Cons: not enough jobs, cold in the winter, multiple nuclear power plants, high population density, Toledo, Cleveland, a rust belt state Overall Rating: C Oklahoma Pros: warm weather, good farming Cons: drought, tornadoes, wildfires, return of dust bowl conditions, not enough rain, crime, Oklahoma City, rampant poverty Overall Rating: C Oregon Pros: tremendous natural beauty Cons: high taxes, Portland, political correctness, ridiculous regulations, insane politicians, not enough jobs, huge drug problem, possible tsunami threat along the coast Overall Rating: C- Pennsylvania Pros: high Amish population Cons: high population density, Pennsylvania, Pittsburgh, not enough jobs, multiple nuclear power plants, a rust belt state Overall Rating: C Rhode Island Pros: so small that most people dont notice their problems Cons: the state is flat broke, short growing season, political correctness, ridiculous regulations, insane politicians, not enough jobs, high population density Overall Rating: D+ South Carolina Pros: southern hospitality, warm weather, Myrtle Beach Cons: hurricanes, not enough jobs, multiple nuclear power plants, crime, gang violence, rampant poverty Overall Rating: B South Dakota Pros: low population density, fun tourist traps, the Badlands, Mount Rushmore Cons: extremely cold, short growing season, very flat, too much snow Overall Rating: B Tennessee Pros: Nashville, Michael W. Smith, southern hospitality, warm weather, Gatlinburg Cons: Memphis, New Madrid fault zone, multiple nuclear power plants, crime, gang violence, rampant poverty Overall Rating: B- Texas Pros: low taxes, warm weather, Austin Cons: drought, illegal immigration, tornadoes, wildfires, West Nile Virus, the Dallas Cowboys, return of dust bowl conditions, speed traps, not enough rain, multiple nuclear power plants, George W. Bush, crime Overall Rating: B- Utah Pros: beautiful mountains, low crime, low population density Cons: cold in the winter, wildfires, Salt Lake City, short growing season, not enough rain, illegal to collect rain Overall Rating: B- Vermont Pros: low crime, beautiful homes Cons: cold in the winter, insane politicians, ridiculous regulations, short growing season, political correctness, not enough jobs, too much snow Overall Rating: C Virginia Pros: the University of Virginia, southern hospitality, Charlottesville Cons: borders Washington D.C., high population density, multiple nuclear power plants, Richmond, really bad traffic in northern Virginia Overall Rating: B- Washington Pros: the eastern half of the state is quite nice and much different from the coast Cons: way too much rain along the coast, volcanoes, wildfires, insane politicians, ridiculous regulations, political correctness, not enough jobs, possible tsunami threat along the coast, Seattle Overall Rating: C West Virginia Pros: beautiful mountains Cons: not enough jobs, rampant poverty Overall Rating: B Wisconsin Pros: cheese, the Green Bay Packers Cons: extremely cold, short growing season, multiple nuclear power plants, too much snow, Overall Rating: B- Pros: low population density, lots of empty space, low taxes Cons: extremely cold, too windy, too flat, wildfires, short growing season, not enough rain, Yellowstone super volcano Overall Rating: B- What do you think of these rankings? What do you think is the best place to live in America? Do you have any additional pros and cons that should be added to this list? Please feel free to post a comment with your thoughts below. You can support this information by voting on Reddit HERE This article first appeared here at the Economic Collapse. Michael Snyder is a writer, speaker and activist who writes and edits his own blogs The American Dream and Economic Collapse Blog. Follow him on Twitter here. Hopefully, three years later, youve taken the time to find out why illegal immigration can destroy your state and dont ask stupid questions like that one anymore. Im sorry, but this post is WAAAAAAAAAAY to Conservative for me. Every time you said insane politicians, what it meant to me was Liberal. However, I am a borderline DEMOCRATIC Socialist, so I am partial to more Democrat aligned states. Feel free to feel however you wish, but I would have liked to see a more unbiased review of the states. Other than that, this is a pretty good rundown of information that would have taken me hours to compile. 