North Dakota Ranked As One Of The “Least Fun” States By New Study

A new study conducted by the financial website WalletHub looked to determine which states are the most fun to live in. In a result that is sure to rise the ire of North Dakota residents, our state was ranked 40th — which is just another way of saying we were ranked the 10th least fun state. What the heck!

To come up with its rankings, WalletHub looked at two main categories — "Entertainment and Recreation" and "Nightlife" — and then weighed 26 relevant metrics to come up with scores for each category.

A few of the areas that hurt North Dakota in the rankings were: Number of restaurants per capita (50th), fitness centers per capita (46th), and marinas per capita (48th).

It wasn't all bad though, as North Dakota managed to tie with Wyoming for the highest state and local expenditures on parks and recreation, something WalletHub viewed as a positive.

North Dakota's neighboring states all faired better in the rankings. Minnesota finished the highest (7th), while South Dakota (31st) and Montana (36th) each finished closer to the middle of the pack.