State ranking · Employment

Best States for Remote Workers

Rewards low living costs and favourable income tax treatment for earners whose pay is set elsewhere.

Published Mar 19, 2026 · Reviewed Jul 1, 2026 · US360 analysis of the published state dataset

Compare states

Methodology

Where does a location-independent salary go furthest?

Weights, planned factors and limitations are published before the table so the result can be judged fairly.

Factors and weights

income tax40%
cost index35%
median home25%

Planned factors — not yet sourced

Broadband coverage
Coworking density
Time-zone overlap with major hubs

Limitations

Broadband availability is a household-level fact and is not yet sourced per state.

Full methodology

Full ranking

All state hubs, scored identically

Best States for Remote Workers — US360 composite score out of 100, computed from the published state dataset.
Rank	State	Score	State income tax treatment (40%)	Cost of living index (35%)	Median home value (25%)
1	MississippiSouth	99.8	100Flat state income tax	10083	99$175,000
2	IowaMidwest	96.9	100Flat state income tax	9687	93$215,000
3	KentuckySouth	96.4	100Flat state income tax	9687	91$225,000
4	IndianaMidwest	95.5	100Flat state income tax plus county rates	9588	89$240,000
5	MichiganMidwest	94.6	100Flat state income tax	9390	88$245,000
6	PennsylvaniaNortheast	92.1	100Flat state income tax plus local wage taxes	8895	85$265,000
7	IllinoisMidwest	91.8	100Flat state income tax	8895	84$275,000
8	GeorgiaSouth	90.4	100Flat state income tax	9192	74$340,000
9	North CarolinaSouth	88.8	100Flat state income tax	8895	72$355,000
10	IdahoWest	84.3	100Flat state income tax	8598	58$450,000
11	ArizonaWest	83.3	100Flat state income tax	80102	61$425,000
12	AlabamaSouth	79.8	60Graduated state income tax with low top rate	9588	90$230,000
13	UtahWest	79.4	100Flat state income tax	79103	47$520,000
14	ColoradoWest	77.6	100Flat state income tax	76106	44$545,000
15	MassachusettsNortheast	61.1	100Flat state income tax with surtax on high incomes	36145	34$610,000
16	West VirginiaSouth	60	0Graduated state income tax	10083	100$165,000
17	OklahomaSouth	58.4	0Graduated state income tax	9984	95$200,000
18	ArkansasSouth	57.8	0Graduated state income tax	9885	94$205,000
19	KansasMidwest	57	0Graduated state income tax	9786	92$220,000
20	LouisianaSouth	56.4	0Graduated state income tax	9489	94$205,000
21	OhioMidwest	56.4	0Graduated state income tax with municipal income taxes	9687	91$225,000
22	MissouriMidwest	56.1	0Graduated state income tax	9687	90$235,000
23	NebraskaMidwest	54.7	0Graduated state income tax	9489	87$250,000
24	North DakotaMidwest	53.1	0Low graduated state income tax	9192	85$265,000
25	WisconsinMidwest	52.7	0Graduated state income tax	9291	82$285,000
26	South DakotaMidwest	52.5	0No state personal income tax	9291	81$290,000
27	New MexicoWest	51.9	0Graduated state income tax	9192	80$300,000
28	South CarolinaSouth	51.9	0Graduated state income tax	9192	80$300,000
29	TennesseeSouth	51.8	0No tax on wage income	9390	77$320,000
30	WyomingWest	50.2	0No state personal income tax	8994	76$330,000
31	TexasSouth	50	0No state personal income tax, higher property taxes	9093	74$340,000
32	MinnesotaMidwest	48.9	0Graduated state income tax	8697	75$335,000
33	DelawareSouth	45.6	0Graduated state income tax, no state sales tax	81101	69$375,000
34	VirginiaSouth	44.3	0Graduated state income tax	80102	65$400,000
35	FloridaSouth	43.9	0No state personal income tax	79103	65$400,000
36	MaineNortheast	43.4	0Graduated state income tax	76106	67$390,000
37	NevadaWest	43.3	0No state personal income tax	80102	61$430,000
38	MontanaWest	43.2	0Graduated state income tax, no general sales tax	82100	58$450,000
39	VermontNortheast	40.8	0Graduated state income tax	70112	65$400,000
40	ConnecticutNortheast	39.7	0Graduated state income tax	69113	62$420,000
41	Rhode IslandNortheast	39	0Graduated state income tax	70112	58$450,000
42	MarylandSouth	38.6	0Graduated state income tax plus county rates	66116	62$420,000
43	AlaskaWest	38	0No state personal income tax	57125	72$355,000
44	New HampshireNortheast	37.9	0No tax on wage income, no general sales tax	69113	55$470,000
45	OregonWest	36.9	0Graduated state income tax, no general sales tax	69113	51$495,000
46	New JerseyNortheast	36.3	0Graduated state income tax with high property taxes	68114	50$500,000
47	New YorkNortheast	34.5	0Graduated state income tax, plus city income tax in New York City	57125	58$450,000
48	WashingtonWest	31.6	0No tax on wage income, capital gains tax on high earners	66116	34$610,000
49	Washington, D.C.South	19.8	0Graduated district income tax	33148	33$620,000
50	CaliforniaWest	16.7	0Graduated income tax with the highest top rate in the country	42139	8$785,000
51	HawaiiWest	0	0Graduated state income tax	0180	0$840,000

Trust & transparency

How this ranking is maintained

How reports are created

A researcher drafts from the shared state dataset, a second researcher recomputes every composite, and an editor reviews the wording before publication.

How data is verified

A measure only enters a ranking when the same field exists for all 51 hubs. Anything partial stays a labelled placeholder.

When reports are updated

Annual reports are re-published yearly with a mid-year review. Rankings recompute with the dataset and are reviewed at least twice a year.

Known limitations

State-level figures cannot describe a specific city or neighbourhood, and several important measures are still unsourced. Each report lists its own limits.

Corrections process

Corrections are published on the report page with the date and the change, and the version history records what moved.

Reader feedback

Anyone can flag a figure through the contact page. Flagged figures are re-checked before the next review date.

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