The ranking of debt among U.S. states has been released, and to be honest, the situation is a bit dire.

The states with the least debt are mostly small and sparsely populated ones—Idaho has a debt rate of only 10.68%, while Alaska and Utah are both around 15%, and these states generally have little fiscal pressure.

But things started to go wrong in the Northeast. Illinois directly went bankrupt, with a debt ratio of 295.58%, meaning the debt is nearly three times the assets; New Jersey is also not doing well, with 249.64%; New York is even worse, with a debt ratio of 218.12%. The financial books of these three states are basically in a "more debt than assets" state.

The most outrageous are California and Connecticut—California's debt rate is 111.04% (over a hundred), and Connecticut's is 172.44%. These economically strong states appear prosperous, but in reality, they are buried in debt.

In comparison, the southern and midwestern states have had a slightly better time. The data comes from the 2022 financial reports of each state, which basically reflect the real financial situation in various places after the pandemic.

In short, the debt differentiation among the states in the United States is quite severe—some states are doing well, while others have long been "living beyond their means."