Business & Policy Environmental Policy The 10 Eco-Friendliest States in the US By Melissa Breyer Editorial Director Hunter College F.I.T., State University of New York Cornell University Melissa Breyer is Treehugger’s editorial director. She is a sustainability expert and author whose work has been published by the New York Times and National Geographic, among others. our editorial process Melissa Breyer Updated May 08, 2020 DenisTangneyJr / Getty Images Share Twitter Pinterest Email Business & Policy Corporate Responsibility Environmental Policy Economics Food Issues How green is your state? A new report details which states are sustainability superstars. That the greenest state in The States is Vermont, according to a new report, doesn't come as much of a surprise. It is, after all, The Green Mountain State. Call it a self-fulfilling prophecy. But some of the other results may not be so obvious. Methodology The report was compiled by financial site WalletHub (because climate change is expensive and living sustainably is generally cheaper), but they don't seem to have skimped in doing the research. They compared each of the 50 states on 23 key metrics, using data from a wide variety of sources, from the U.S. Census Bureau and Natural Resources Defense Council to the Green Building Council and Environmental Protection Agency.The 23 metrics – which are surprisingly comprehensive – are grouped into three equal categories: Environmental quality, eco-friendly behaviors, and climate-change contributions. Results Once all the number were crunched, the following states came out on top. 1. Vermont2. Oregon3. Massachusetts4. New York5. South Dakota6. Minnesota7. Connecticut8. New Hampshire9. California10. Rhode Island And at the sad bottom of the list: 41. Arkansas42. Indiana43. Texas44. Oklahoma45. Wyoming46. Alabama47. North Dakota48. Kentucky49. Louisiana50. West Virginia Some of the takeaways are pretty interesting; the comparisons below reveal some of the metrics responsible for the rankings. WalletHub