State scorecard
North Dakota in the US Political Rank
Every place North Dakota holds across our state rankings, in one scorecard. Economy, taxes, education, crime, healthcare, and more, each measured the same way for all 50 states and each linked to the full cited ranking.
#1
of 20 on States Ranked by Fiscal Health: Reserves, Pensions, and What They Owe
#46
of 50 on States Ranked by Dependence on Federal Money
61.7%
Governor Kelly Armstrong performance score, rank 4 of 50
10
state rankings that score North Dakota
Governor
North Dakota's governor, Kelly Armstrong (Republican), holds performance rank 4 of 50 at 61.7% this week in the Governor Performance Rankings, scored on 263 metrics and updated every Monday.
| Ranking | North Dakota's place | Score |
|---|---|---|
| States Ranked by Fiscal Health: Reserves, Pensions, and What They OweThe best balance sheet in America by Truth in Accounting's measure: a $63,300 surplus per taxpayer, the highest in the nation (TIA, Financial State of the States 2025). Reserves could run the state for 137.9 days (Pew, FY2025 data). | #1 of 20 | 96.2 |
| The Top 20 Energy-Producing StatesThe Bakken shale keeps North Dakota the nation's third-largest crude oil producer at roughly 1.2 million barrels per day, atop lignite coal and wind; its 2021 SEDS total was 4,310 trillion Btu (EIA). | #7 of 20 | 16.0 |
| States Ranked by Housing AffordabilityEnergy-supported incomes against Plains-level home prices produce one of the better ratios in the nation (Best Interest research, 2026). | #14 of 25 | 84.7 |
| States Ranked by Total Tax BurdenResidents bear a modest burden because oil severance revenue does much of the work, even though the state ranks third for collections per capita at $9,834 (Tax Foundation, FY2023). Collections and burden diverge sharply here. | #16 of 50 | 78.9 |
| States Ranked by Violent Crime Rate254.3 per 100,000 with a murder rate of 2.6, both well below the national averages (FBI Crime Data Explorer, 2024). | #17 of 50 | 254.3 |
| States Ranked by Health Care OutcomesA middle-tier state with above-average life expectancy and a low uninsured rate after expanding Medicaid (CDC NCHS, 2023; Commonwealth Fund, 2025). | #21 of 50 | 80.4 |
| States Ranked by K-12 Education OutcomesNear the national average in math with one of the higher graduation rates in the country (NCES, NAEP 2024; NCES ACGR). | #21 of 50 | 82.3 |
| Voting With Their Feet: States Ranked by Migration and Population GrowthNear migration balance in the Vintage 2025 estimates (Census Bureau, 2025). The energy economy holds workers when prices are firm, though 2025 GDP growth was the nation's slowest (BEA, 2026). | #32 of 50 | 51.5 |
| Ranking the 50 State Economies of 2026Second-lowest unemployment in America at 2.4 percent (BLS, 2026), but the slowest full-year 2025 GDP growth of any state at 0.3 percent (BEA, 2026). An energy economy tied to commodity cycles. | #33 of 50 | 67.1 |
| States Ranked by Dependence on Federal MoneyThe lowest federal share of state revenue in the nation in fiscal 2022 at 22.2 percent and among the lowest in fiscal 2023 at 27.3 percent, a budget built instead on oil and gas revenue (Pew Charitable Trusts, 2025). | #46 of 50 | 45.8 |
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