The ONE REASON Utah Ranked #1 Happiest State by WalletHub

WalletHub just released its annual happiness rankings and would ya look at that, Utah is ranked number one!

This goes against some of the stuff we usually hear about Utah, like that it's high on debt, anti-depressants, etc...but WalletHub used one interesting category that helped propel Utah to number one: "Mean Work Hours" (Full report here)

According to the report, Utah works less hours than any other state. Really? I wouldn't have guessed this given how high Utah's state economy usually ranks on these lists, but then again everybody I know in Utah works a job that they can never quite explain fully, and most of them can be at their kid's T-ball game at 11 a.m. on a Tuesday.

Here's the math behind how Utah ranked number one in "Work Environment"

Number of Work Hours: Double Weight (~5.00 Points)
Commute Time: Half Weight (~1.25 Points)
Share of Households Earning Annual Incomes Above $75,000: Full Weight (~2.50 Points)
Share of Adults with Financial Anxiety: Half Weight (~1.25 Points)
Note: This metric measures the percentage of adults who agree that thinking about their personal finances makes them feel anxious.
Current Unemployment Rate: Half Weight (~1.25 Points)
Share of Civilian Labor Force Unemployed 15 Weeks or Longer: Half Weight (~1.25 Points)
Underemployment Rate: Full Weight (~2.50 Points)
Job Security: Full Weight (~2.50 Points)
Note: This metric measures the probability of unemployment.
Share of Work-Related Stressed Tweets: Full Weight (~2.50 Points)
Note: This metric is based on PlushCare’s analysis of retrieved geotagged tweets from 340 major cities in the U.S.
Income-Growth Rate: Half Weight (~1.25 Points)
Economic Security: Full Weight (~2.50 Points)
Note: This metric is based on Sharecare’s “Community Well-Being Index”, particularly the “Economic Security” element, defined as “community members who are employed, insured, and otherwise stable financially.”
Median Credit Score: Half Weight (~1.25 Points)