Washington slips in 2025 best states ranking

• Besting us in the 2025 rankings were Utah, New Hampshire, Idaho, Minnesota, Nebraska, Florida, Vermont, South Dakota and Massachusetts.

Zoom in: Washington got solid marks for our natural environment and infrastructure, ranking 7th among U.S. states in both areas.

• We also ranked in the top 10 for equality (No. 8) and economic opportunity (No. 9).

Yes, but: We got dinged for our cost of living, ranking 46th when it comes to affordability.

• We also got low marks for public safety, where we ranked 44th.
• And we came in second-to-last for short-term fiscal stability (the U.S. News team must have heard about our state's multibillion-dollar budget shortfall this year).

Between the lines: Washington and other western states, including California, Idaho and Nevada, performed better when it came to college-level education than K-12 education, according to the report.

• While Washington ranked third in higher education, it ranked 31st in K-12 education, the report found.

The bottom line: We're still not moving to Idaho.