Ranking The Most Patriotic States In America

O Say, Can You See...The Most Patriotic States

Americans are a very patriotic people. But what states are the most patriotic? It's a good question and one that WalletHub attempted to answer using a number of different criteria.

Going beyond flags on the front porch and cheering on Olympic athletes, WalletHub looked at two main criteria in order to come up with a ranking: Military Engagement and Civic Engagement. But while those are the two overarching categories, there are upwards of 13 various metrics within those categories that determined a state's overall score.

Military Engagement (25 Points)

For this rank, they looked at: Average Military Enlistees per 1,000 Civilian Adults Between 2015 & 2020 (No Prior Service), Veterans per 1,000 Adult Civilians, Active-Duty Military Personnel per 100,000 Adult Civilians, and Share of Adult Civilian Population in Military Reserves.

Civic Engagement (75 Points)

This one is worth more points and takes more things into account: Share of Adults Who Voted in 2020 Presidential Election, 2020 Primary Elections, Volunteer Hours per Resident, AmeriCorps and Peace Corps Volunteers per Capita, Volunteers per Capita, Trial & Grand-Jury Participation per Civilian Adult Population, Share of Residents Who Participate in Any Groups, Organizations or Associations in the Past Year (Civic Life), and US History/Civics Education Requirements in the State.

For each main category, a state received a ranking of 1 to 50 (in relation to its place among all the states), and an overall score out of 100 was calculated and used to determine the final rankings.

So, where does your state rank among the most patriotic? Let's find out...

Patriotic States L

50: Arkansas

Score: 26.19

Military Engagement Rank: 29

Civic Engagement Rank: 50

Note: Arkansas ranked 50th in "Percentage of Adults who Voted in 2020 Presidential Election".

A view of the Arkansas State Capitol HAL333, CC BY-SA 4.0, Wikimedia Commons

49: New York

Score: 32.09

Military Engagement Rank: 49

Civic Engagement Rank: 38

Note: New York ranked 49th in "Veterans Per Capita".

Pearl Street in Albany, New York, United States UpstateNYer, CC BY-SA 3.0, Wikimedia Commons

48: Massachusetts

Score: 32.20

Military Engagement Rank: 50

Civic Engagement Rank: 30

Note: Massachusetts ranked 47th in both "Veterans per Capita" and "Average Number of Military Enlistees".

Boston -Massachusetts State House Ajay Suresh, CC BY 2.0, Wikimedia Commons

47: Rhode Island

Score: 32.65

Military Engagement Rank: 39

Civic Engagement Rank: 42

Note: Rhode Island ranked 48th in "Average Number of Military Enlistees".

Downtown Providence Rhode Island Kenneth C. Zirkel, CC BY-SA 4.0, Wikimedia Commons

46: Florida

Score: 33.64

Military Engagement Rank: 22

Civic Engagement Rank: 49

Note: Florida ranked 50th in "Volunteer Rate".

The Florida Supreme Court Urbantallahassee, CC BY-SA 4.0, Wikimedia Commons

45: Indiana

Score: 34.76

Military Engagement Rank: 35

Civic Engagement Rank: 40

Indianapolis colloquially known as Indy tpsdave, Wikimedia Commons

44: Louisiana

Score: 34.85

Military Engagement Rank: 26

Civic Engagement Rank: 45

Note: Louisiana ranked 47th in "Peace Corps Volunteers per Capita".

New Orleans Skyline thepipe26, CC BY 2.0, Wikimedia Commons

43: Alabama

Score: 35.54

Military Engagement Rank: 16

Civic Engagement Rank: 48

Note: Alabama ranked 46th in "Percentage of Adults Who Voted in 2020 Presidential Election" and 47th in "Volunteer Rate".

Aerial View Of Montgomery, Alabama Carol M. Highsmith, Wikimedia Commons

42: Connecticut

Score: 36.26

Military Engagement Rank: 43

Civic Engagement Rank: 30

Connecticut State Capitol, Hartford jglazer75, CC BY 2.0, Wikimedia Commons

41: West Virginia

Score: 36.92

Military Engagement Rank: 32

Civic Engagement Rank: 39

Note: West Virginia ranked 49th in both "Peace Corps Volunteers per Capita" and "Percentage of Adults Who Voted in 2020 Presidential Election".

The state capitol of Charleston, West Virginia F McGady, CC BY-SA 4.0, Wikimedia Commons

40: Pennsylvania

Score: 37.20

Military Engagement Rank: 45

Civic Engagement Rank: 29

View of Philadelphia Skyline from University of Pennsylvania Adam Jones, CC BY-SA 2.0, Wikimedia Commons

39: Nevada

Score: 37.28

Military Engagement Rank: 15

Civic Engagement Rank: 46

Note: Nevada is 49th in "Volunteer Rate".

State Capital of Nevada in Carson City teofilo, CC BY 2.0, Wikimedia Commons

38: Oklahoma

Score: 38.20

Military Engagement Rank: 8

Civic Engagement Rank: 47

Note: Oklahoma was 48th in "Percentage of Adults Who Voted in 2020 Presidential Election".

Downtown Oklahoma City Skyline At Twilight Greater Oklahoma City Chamber, CC BY-SA 3.0, Wikimedia Commons

37: Tennessee

Score: 38.25

Military Engagement Rank: 31

Civic Engagement Rank: 36

Landscape Photo of the The Parthenon in Nashville's Centennial Park White.alister.t, CC BY-SA 4.0, Wikimedia Commons

36: Texas

Score: 38.66

Military Engagement Rank: 14

Civic Engagement Rank: 44

Note: Texas ranked 3rd in "Average Number of Military Enlistees".

Texas State Capitol LoneStarMike, CC BY 3.0, Wikimedia Commons

35: California

Score: 39.04

Military Engagement Rank: 30

Civic Engagement Rank: 32

Note: California ranked 48th in both "Veterans per Capita" and "Volunteer Rate".

Sacramento, California Skyline Quintin Soloviev, CC BY 4.0, Wikimedia Commons

34: Michigan

Score: 39.88

Military Engagement Rank: 46

Civic Engagement Rank: 24

State Capital And Statue Lansing, Michigan Andrew Martin, CC BY 3.0, Wikimedia Commons

33: Kentucky

Score: 40.13

Military Engagement Rank: 17

Civic Engagement Rank: 41

St. Clair St, Frankfort Kentucky, Central Frankfort Historic District Kenneth C. Zirkel, CC BY-SA 4.0, Wikimedia Commons

32: Wisconsin

Score: 40.30

Military Engagement Rank: 44

Civic Engagement Rank: 25

Note: Wisconsin ranks fifth in "Percentage of Adults Who Voted in 2020 Presidential Election".

Aerial View Of Campus, With Helen C. White Hall In Foreground college.library, CC BY 2.0, Wikimedia Commons

31: Nebraska

Score: 40.35

Military Engagement Rank: 27

Civic Engagement Rank: 34

Aerial View Of The Old Haymarket And West Haymarket Hanyou23, CC BY-SA 4.0, Wikimedia Commons

30: New Jersey

Score: 43.22

Military Engagement Rank: 48

Civic Engagement Rank: 13

Note: New Jersey ranked 50th in "Veterans per Capita" but was number one in "Percentage of Adults Who Voted in 2020 Presidential Election".

NJ State House or Capitol, Trenton Lowlova, CC BY-SA 4.0, Wikimedia Commons

29: Ohio

Score: 43.71

Military Engagement Rank: 34

Civic Engagement Rank: 23

Downtown Columbus, Ohio, view from Main St. Bridge Paul Wasneski, Wikimedia Commons

28: Illinois

Score: 43.82

Military Engagement Rank: 40

Civic Engagement Rank: 18

Chicago skyline from Cellular Field Andrew Horne, CC BY 2.0, Wikimedia Commons

27: New Mexico

Score: 43.83

Military Engagement Rank: 9

Civic Engagement Rank: 37

Note: New Mexico ranked 45th in "Volunteer Rate".

Downtown Albuquerque in the U.S. state of New Mexico Debernardi, CC BY-SA 3.0, Wikimedia Commons

26: South Carolina

Score: 44.63

Military Engagement Rank: 4

Civic Engagement Rank: 43

Note: South Carolina ranked 4th in "Average Number of Military Enlistees".

Skyline of downtown Columbia, SC, USA Akhenaton06, CC BY-SA 3.0, Wikimedia Commons

25: Mississippi

Score: 45.79

Military Engagement Rank: 18

Civic Engagement Rank: 27

Mississippi State Capitol Building formulanone, CC BY-SA 2.0, Wikimedia Commons

24: South Dakota

Score: 46.23

Military Engagement Rank: 19

Civic Engagement Rank: 26

Note: South Dakota ranked fifth in "Volunteer Rate" but 46th and 47th in "Peace Corps Volunteers per Capita" and "Percentage of Adults Who Voted in 2020 Presidential Election" respectively.

Soldiers and Sailors World War Memorial, Capitol Avenue w_lemay, CC BY-SA 2.0, Wikimedia Commons

23: Georgia

Score: 46.61

Military Engagement Rank: 6

Civic Engagement Rank: 35

Note: Georgia is ranked number one for "Average Number of Military Enlistees".

View of Atlanta Cityscape Paul Brennan, Wikimedia Commons

22: Missouri

Score: 47.10

Military Engagement Rank: 28

Civic Engagement Rank: 21

Areal view of Jefferson City, Missouri Sarah Minor, Wikimedia Commons

21: North Carolina

Score: 48.19

Military Engagement Rank: 5

Civic Engagement Rank: 31

Downtown Charlotte, North Carolina from the west, with Bank of America Stadium in the foreground Precisionviews, CC BY-SA 4.0, Wikimedia Commons

20: Idaho

Score: 48.32

Military Engagement Rank: 21

Civic Engagement Rank: 22

State Capitol located in Boise, Idaho JSquish, CC BY-SA 3.0, Wikimedia Commons

19: Utah

Score: 49.22

Military Engagement Rank: 36

Civic Engagement Rank: 12

Note: Utah has the highest "Volunteer Rate" in the country, but ranks 46th in "Veterans per Capita" and 48th in "Peace Corps Volunteers per Capita".

Front View Of Utah State Capitol Building Kiranedara, CC BY-SA 4.0, Wikimedia Commons

18: Minnesota

Score: 50.37

Military Engagement Rank: 47

Civic Engagement Rank: 6

Note: Minnesota ranks 46th in "Average Number of Military Enlistees" but second and third in "Percentage of Adults Who Voted in 2020 Presidential Election" and "Volunteer Rate" respectively.

Minnesota State Capitol 2017 McGhiever, CC BY-SA 4.0, Wikimedia Commons

17: Iowa

Score: 50.95

Military Engagement Rank: 41

Civic Engagement Rank: 7

The Des Moines River leading to the Des Moines, Iowa skyline, as viewed from the SE 6th Street bridge Tony Webster, CC BY 2.0, Wikimedia Commons

16: Delaware

Score: 51.02

Military Engagement Rank: 25

Civic Engagement Rank: 14

Skyline of downtown Wilmington, Delaware and the Christina River Tim Kiser, CC BY-SA 2.5, Wikimedia Commons

15: Arizona

Score: 51.16

Military Engagement Rank: 20

Civic Engagement Rank: 15

Downtown Phoenix Aerial Looking Northeast DPPed, CC BY-SA 3.0, Wikimedia Commons

14: Kansas

Score: 51.45

Military Engagement Rank: 13

Civic Engagement Rank: 19

Aerial View of Topeka, Kansas Skyline in the Morning Jacob Boomsma, Shutterstock

13: Vermont

Score: 52.43

Military Engagement Rank: 42

Civic Engagement Rank: 5

Note: Vermont is 49th in "Average Number of Military Enlistees", but tied for first in "Peace Corps Volunteers per Capita".

Commercial blocks on Main Street in Montpelier, Vermont Farragutful, CC BY-SA 4.0, Wikimedia Commons

12: North Dakota

Score: 53.27 10 16

Military Engagement Rank: 10

Civic Engagement Rank: 16

Note: North Dakota is 50th in "Average Number of Military Enlistees" and tied for 49th in "Peace Corps Volunteers per Capita".

North Dakota State Capitol, Bismarck Bobak Ha'Eri, CC BY 3.0, Wikimedia Commons

11: Wyoming

Score: 54.30

Military Engagement Rank: 7

Civic Engagement Rank: 17

Note: Wyoming ranks third in "Veterans per Capita" and second in "Volunteer Rate".

Wyoming State Capitol building Bradlyons, CC BY-SA 4.0, Wikimedia Commons

10: Hawaii

Score: 56.53

Military Engagement Rank: 2

Civic Engagement Rank: 28

Note: Hawaii is tied for 45th in "Volunteer Rate" but ranks fifth in both, "Average Number of Military Enlistees" and "Veterans per Capita".

Downtown Honolulu and the Hawaii State Capitol ArdentArbitration, Wikimedia Commons

9: Maryland

Score: 57.04

Military Engagement Rank: 24

Civic Engagement Rank: 8

Note: Maryland is fifth in both: "Peace Corps Volunteers per Capita" and "Percentage of Adults Who Voted in 2020 Presidential Election".

An aerial photograph of the Fell's Point waterfront in Baltimore Matthew Binebrink, CC BY-SA 4.0, Wikimedia Commons

8: Washington State

Score: 57.11

Military Engagement Rank: 12

Civic Engagement Rank: 11

Drone photo of Downtown Seattle, as seen from above Queen Anne Hill Spicypepper999, Wikimedia Commons

7: New Hampshire

Score: 57.16

Military Engagement Rank: 33

Civic Engagement Rank: 4

Note: New Hampshire ranks third in "Peace Corps Volunteers per Capita" and fourth for "Percentage of Adults Who Voted in 2020 Presidential Election".

Manchester, New Hampshire Skyline Quintin Soloviev, CC BY 4.0, Wikimedia Commons

6: Colorado

Score: 57.64

Military Engagement Rank: 11

Civic Engagement Rank: 10

Note: Colorado ranks fourth in "Peace Corps Volunteers per Capita".

Colorado State Capitol On A Cloudy Day Onetwo1, CC BY-SA 3.0, Wikimedia Commons

5: Oregon

Score: 57.65

Military Engagement Rank: 38

Civic Engagement Rank: 2

Note: Oregon is third in "Percentage of Adults Who Voted in 2020 Presidential Election".

Drone photo of Portland, Oregon Spicypepper999, Wikimedia Commons

4: Maine

Score: 58.42

Military Engagement Rank: 37

Civic Engagement Rank: 1

Note: Maine has the fourth highest "Volunteer Rate".

Maine State House Exterior View Quintin Soloviev, CC BY 4.0, Wikimedia Commons

3: Montana

Score: 61.73

Military Engagement Rank: 23

Civic Engagement Rank: 3

Note: Montana ranks fourth in "Veterans per Capita" and is tied for first in "Peace Corps Volunteers per Capita". Also, 73.5% of the state’s voting population voted in the 2020 presidential election, and almost 46% voted in that year's primary (the highest of any state).

Billings, Montana skyline Quintin Soloviev, CC BY 4.0, Wikimedia Commons

2: Alaska

Score: 63.40

Military Engagement Rank: 1

Civic Engagement Rank: 20

Note: Alaska is second in "Average Number of Military Enlistees" and first in "Veterans per Capita". Also, Alaska has a high number of AmeriCorps volunteers per capita and the 5th-highest number of folks per capita who served as jurors.

Alaska State Capitol Building Jay Galvin, CC BY 2.0, Wikimedia Commons

1: Virginia

Score: 64.34

Military Engagement Rank: 3

Civic Engagement Rank: 9

Note: Virginia ranks second in "Veterans per Capita". Also, the state has the third most active duty military personnel for every 100,000 civilians in the country. And on the civic side, Virginia has a high voter turnout and the seventh highest number of peace corps volunteers per capita. They also require courses in US history or civics to get a high school diploma.