These Are The 10 Dumbest States In America For 2017

Americans like to think they’re the best when it comes to just about everything when measured against other nations. While we’re certainly the richest, most freedom loving, and pretty much the bodyguards for the poor and defenseless, we’ve known for years that we’re certainly not the smartest country on earth.

Recently, we ranked 28th when it came to math and science scores, according to the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD).

We’re really smart, people. Just not the smartest. And we’re working on it.

We wanted to measure the states to see where the most dummies live.

So, how do you decide which state is the dumbest? By measuring the college graduation rate of the entire population, that’s how.

After analyzing every state in America, we came up with this list as The Dumbest States in America:

1. West Virginia (Photos)
2. Mississippi (Photos)
3. Kentucky (Photos)
4. Arkansas (Photos)
5. Alabama (Photos)
6. New Mexico (Photos)
7. Louisiana (Photos)
8. Nevada (Photos)
9. Indiana (Photos)
10. Tennessee (Photos)

Are we seeing a pattern here? The south isn’t ideal for intelligence (Roy Moore anyone?).

Also, we’re not saying the people in these states are bad. We’re just making an observation that as a majority, they’re not the brightest bulbs in the room. And, interestingly enough, the dumbest cities in the country come from states nowhere near the top ten here.

Read on below to see where your state ranked. Or for more reading, , check out:

• Best Cities In America To Raise A Family
• These Are The 10 Cheapest States In America
• Most Dangerous States In America

What stupid criteria did we use?

In order to rank the dumbest States in the USA of A, we had to determine what criteria define a dumb person.

We started by getting data from the 2011-2015 American Community Survey for every we state. We then looked at our criteria:

• % Of Residents over 25 without a degree

We ranked each state from 1 to 50 with 1 being the state with the lowest number of college grads. As it turns out, the dumbest states in America mostly voted for Trump. Who woulda guessed?

Here’s a look at the top ten with a detailed chart to follow for the whole country.

1. West Virginia

Population: 1,851,420
Percent With College Degree: 11.7%

2. Mississippi

Population: 2,988,081
Percent With College Degree: 12.9%

3. Kentucky

Population: 4,397,353
Percent With College Degree: 13.1%

4. Arkansas

Population: 2,958,208
Percent With College Degree: 13.6%

5. Alabama

Population: 4,830,620
Percent With College Degree: 14.8%

6. New Mexico

Population: 2,084,117
Percent With College Degree: 14.8%

7. Louisiana

Population: 4,625,253
Percent With College Degree: 14.8%

8. Nevada

Population: 2,798,636
Percent With College Degree: 15.2%

9. Indiana

Population: 6,568,645
Percent With College Degree: 15.4%

10. Tennessee

Population: 6,499,615
Percent With College Degree: 15.9%

So there you have it

If you’re measuring the states in America where there are a low number of college grads, this is an accurate list.

If you’re curious enough, here are the least stupid states in America. Or, the smartest, if you will:

1. Colorado
2. Massachusetts
3. New Jersey

We also wrote about the worst cities in America if you didn’t happen to see it.

Detailed List Of The Dumbest States In America

Rank	State	% With A Degree
1	West Virginia	11.7%
2	Mississippi	12.9%
3	Kentucky	13.1%
4	Arkansas	13.6%
5	Alabama	14.8%
6	New Mexico	14.8%
7	Louisiana	14.8%
8	Nevada	15.2%
9	Indiana	15.4%
10	Tennessee	15.9%
11	Oklahoma	16.1%
12	Ohio	16.4%
13	South Carolina	16.5%
14	Michigan	16.5%
15	Missouri	16.9%
16	Wyoming	17.1%
17	Arizona	17.3%
18	Pennsylvania	17.4%
19	Florida	17.5%
20	Idaho	17.7%
21	Delaware	17.8%
22	Alaska	17.9%
23	Georgia	18.1%
24	Texas	18.2%
25	Iowa	18.2%
26	North Carolina	18.4%
27	Wisconsin	18.4%
28	Maine	18.7%
29	South Dakota	19.0%
30	Rhode Island	19.1%
31	Oregon	19.3%
32	New York	19.4%
33	Nebraska	19.6%
34	California	19.8%
35	Illinois	19.9%
36	Montana	20.0%
37	Kansas	20.0%
38	North Dakota	20.1%
39	Hawaii	20.4%
40	Maryland	20.6%
41	Utah	20.8%
42	Washington	20.9%
43	Connecticut	21.0%
44	Virginia	21.0%
45	Vermont	21.7%
46	New Hampshire	21.8%
47	Minnesota	22.5%
48	New Jersey	22.8%
49	Massachusetts	22.8%
50	Colorado	24.1%