United States
What each state charges — in dollars, in work hours, and in mental distress — and what it gives back in well-being, against the US average (100).
Ranked by Money · lighter burden first
Maryland
Expensive in dollars and in work hours, cheap in mental distress, but high in well-being.
Money index: 121.1 · 21% more expensive than the US average
What costs $100 nationally costs about $121 here.
Work hours index: 121.4 · 48.5 hrs/wk · 21% more work than the US average
A 40-hour US-average week costs about 48.5 hours of work here.
Psych index: 91.0 · 9% less mental distress than the US average
14.2% of adults report frequent mental distress (CDC BRFSS, 2024)
Well-being index: 125.3 · 25% more well-being than the US average
Scores 64.13 across 30 happiness metrics, against a 50-state mean of 51.2 (WalletHub, 2025)
Average hourly wage: $37.33/hr (BLS CES, April 2026)
Source: MERIC, Q1 2026 · How Money is calculated