New data has revealed the top 10 most cultured states in the U.S. 

The Cultural States Index, by student travel company Rustic Pathways analyzed each state against five factors: the number of National Historic Landmarks (NHLs), museums and galleries, live performance spaces, film and media sites, and literary sites. Each factor was compared against the state's population and land area (sq mi). Results for each category were converted into an overall score out of 100 to determine the ranking.  

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Massachusetts topped the list as the number one most cultural state in the U.S., scoring 86. The study revealed that Massachusetts ranked in the top 10 for nearly every category apart from film and media sites. Massachusetts ranked second for both the highest number of NHLs per land area, 192, and for museums & galleries, with 1,048 in the state alone. It also ranked fifth for its number of live performance spaces and literary sites with 1,199 and 531 located within Massachusetts.

Connecticut is closely behind in second place, with an index score of 84. The state has the third and fourth highest volume for museums & galleries and NHLs by land area and is in the top 10 states for live performance spaces and literary sites.   

In third place is Rhode Island, with a score of 82. The study revealed that Rhode Island came first for most NHLs and museums & galleries nationally. The state has 45 NHLs and 181 museums & galleries within its 2,678 (km2) land area. Rhode Island also ranked in the top 10 for live performance spaces, where is placed sixth.  

Maryland comes in fourth place, with a Culture Index score of 78. Maryland's highest scoring index category includes museums & galleries, which ranked fourth. Within Maryland there are 848 museums & galleries located within the state.  

New York Ranked 5th Most Cultured State

In fifth place is New York, with an index score of 74. The state scored within the top 10 for live performance spaces and museums & galleries, ranking fourth and seventh. There are 63% more live performances spaces located in New York than museums & galleries.  

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Rounding out the top 10 is New Jersey, followed by Vermont, Delaware, New Hampshire and Pennsylvania.

It’s important to note the top 10 are all on the east coast which could be due to them being the earliest states established in America and so naturally possess a higher concentration of National Historic Landmarks (NHLs)" says Shayne Fitz-Coy, CEO of Rustic Pathways. This historical bias is crucial to acknowledge, as it gives these states a head start in accumulating cultural assets. 

See the full list of top 50 Most Cultural U.S. States below.

Rank 

State 

NHLs 

Live Performance Spaces 

Film & Media Sites 

Literary Sites 

Museums & Galleries 

Index Score 

1 

Massachusetts 

192 

1,199 

393 

531 

1,048 

86.21 

2 

Connecticut 

65 

543 

240 

255 

558 

84 

3 

Rhode Island 

45 

178 

60 

55 

181 

82.7 

4 

Maryland 

153 

860 

330 

395 

848 

78.43 

5 

New York 

275 

3,442 

1,276 

1,267 

2,116 

74.56 

6 

New Jersey 

58 

1,117 

385 

445 

630 

71.43 

7 

Vermont 

18 

155 

85 

72 

209 

67.38 

8 

Delaware 

14 

84 

38 

67 

116 

65.62 

9 

New Hampshire 

23 

250 

118 

118 

283 

63.88 

10 

Pennsylvania 

169 

1,792 

733 

760 

1,419 

61.31 

11 

Maine 

44 

261 

131 

157 

417 

53.39 

12 

Virginia 

123 

795 

405 

455 

914 

48.63 

13 

Hawaii 

33 

116 

86 

43 

107 

47.79 

14 

Illinois 

89 

1,765 

723 

653 

1,196 

46.13 

15 

Ohio 

76 

1,256 

582 

568 

1,102 

44.42 

16 

South Carolina 

76 

512 

185 

262 

451 

41.37 

17 

Indiana 

44 

748 

360 

366 

646 

38.36 

18 

Iowa 

28 

471 

304 

194 

624 

38.18 

19 

Michigan 

42 

1,158 

566 

560 

964 

35.38 

20 

California 

149 

4,852 

1,451 

1,736 

2,837 

34.86 

21 

Wisconsin 

45 

703 

329 

333 

702 

34.79 

22 

Wyoming 

28 

71 

76 

65 

140 

34.56 

23 

North Carolina 

39 

1,156 

508 

568 

874 

33.77 

24 

Missouri 

36 

836 

442 

277 

656 

31.606 

25 

Louisiana 

53 

526 

178 

200 

374 

31.601 

26 

Florida 

47 

1,917 

832 

957 

1,290 

30.46 

27 

Oregon 

17 

604 

316 

287 

470 

29.65 

28 

South Dakota 

16 

119 

111 

44 

191 

29.32 

29 

West Virginia 

17 

179 

86 

94 

253 

29.12 

30 

Montana 

28 

150 

113 

77 

209 

29.089 

31 

Tennessee 

32 

683 

306 

326 

598 

29.083 

32 

Georgia 

50 

1,092 

436 

472 

774 

28.91 

33 

Nebraska 

22 

225 

185 

122 

308 

28.56 

34 

Kentucky 

32 

401 

196 

221 

442 

27.35 

35 

Colorado 

28 

725 

325 

350 

626 

26.58 

36 

North Dakota 

7 

84 

95 

43 

137 

26.44 

37 

Alaska 

50 

92 

69 

52 

158 

26.07 

38 

Minnesota 

25 

679 

417 

232 

610 

25.95 

39 

Washington 

24 

869 

419 

346 

643 

25.63 

40 

Alabama 

39 

460 

196 

262 

423 

25.6 

41 

Kansas 

26 

283 

233 

152 

544 

25.51 

42 

New Mexico 

46 

209 

143 

131 

327 

24.08 

43 

Oklahoma 

22 

339 

242 

222 

484 

22.28 

44 

Arkansas 

17 

289 

155 

158 

310 

21.89 

45 

Utah 

14 

377 

192 

158 

308 

20.66 

46 

Mississippi 

40 

230 

105 

121 

265 

20.54 

47 

Idaho 

11 

198 

122 

94 

215 

19.17 

48 

Texas 

50 

2,545 

1,245 

1,205 

1,959 

16.33 

49 

Arizona 

47 

545 

304 

328 

456 

15.7 

50 

Nevada 

8 

169 

133 

109 

205 

3.46

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