State Scores

How free is each state? Scored out of 100 on taxes, guns, schools, cost and jobs. Red is more free, blue less. Tap a state.

2026 midterms · projected

Power changed hands in 15 states

  • +5Governors to Democrats
  • +7U.S. Senate seats to Democrats
  • +12State chambers to Democrats

Now: 17 states under full Republican control, 22 Democratic, 7 split, 4 still counting. As of November 7. None of it moves a freedom score until the laws change.

AlaskaAlabamaArkansasArizonaCaliforniaColoradoConnecticutWashington, DCDelawareFloridaGeorgiaHawaiiIowaIdahoIllinoisIndianaKansasKentuckyLouisianaMassachusettsMarylandMaineMichiganMinnesotaMissouriMississippiMontanaNorth CarolinaNorth DakotaNebraskaNew HampshireNew JerseyNew MexicoNevadaNew YorkOhioOklahomaOregonPennsylvaniaRhode IslandSouth CarolinaSouth DakotaTennesseeTexasUtahVirginiaVermontWashingtonWisconsinWest VirginiaWyoming
Freedom scoreLessMore

All 50, freest first

  1. 1WyomingRed89
  2. 2TennesseeRed84
  3. 3IowaFlippedSplit82
  4. 3IdahoRed82
  5. 5OklahomaRed81
  6. 6LouisianaRed80
  7. 7TexasFlippedSplit79
  8. 8IndianaRed78
  9. 8MontanaRed78
  10. 8South DakotaRed78
  11. 11AlaskaPending77
  12. 11AlabamaRed77
  13. 11ArkansasRed77
  14. 11UtahPending77
  15. 15New HampshireFlippedSplit76
  16. 16North DakotaRed74
  17. 17FloridaRed73
  18. 18MissouriRed71
  19. 18West VirginiaRed71
  20. 20ArizonaFlippedBlue70
  21. 20OhioFlippedSplit70
  22. 22North CarolinaFlippedPending68
  23. 23MississippiRed65
  24. 23NebraskaRed65
  25. 25KansasFlippedPending63
  26. 26South CarolinaFlippedRed61
  27. 27GeorgiaFlippedSplit60
  28. 28KentuckySplit57
  29. 29MaineFlippedBlue56
  30. 30VermontSplit49
  31. 31WisconsinFlippedBlue48
  32. 32New MexicoBlue46
  33. 33MichiganFlippedBlue41
  34. 33NevadaFlippedBlue41
  35. 35PennsylvaniaFlippedBlue37
  36. 36DelawareBlue35
  37. 36MinnesotaFlippedBlue35
  38. 38ColoradoBlue31
  39. 38VirginiaBlue31
  40. 40IllinoisBlue30
  41. 40Rhode IslandBlue30
  42. 42HawaiiBlue26
  43. 43ConnecticutBlue24
  44. 43MassachusettsBlue24
  45. 45OregonBlue23
  46. 46MarylandBlue22
  47. 47WashingtonBlue21
  48. 48New YorkBlue19
  49. 49CaliforniaBlue18
  50. 50New JerseyBlue17
How the State Freedom Score works

Five things, weighted equally: taxes, the Second Amendment, school choice, cost of living and jobs. Each is scored 0-100 between the best and worst real state, so a 100 is the best in the country. Permitless carry and universal school choice are yes-or-no laws, scored 100 or 25.

Who holds power is not part of the score. Control after the 2026 midterms (projected until certified) and the 2024 presidential result are shown beside it, so a change in who wins never moves the score until the laws change too.