New York is the place to be for fun—whether you’re catching a Broadway show in New York City, marveling at attractions like the ‘Grand Canyon of the Adirondacks,’ or wandering through charming Upstate towns—but, surprisingly, a new study doesn’t seem to agree.
WalletHub’s “Most Fun States in America (2025)” list not only leaves New York out of the top state, but actually ranks it lower than last year. New York is now the fifth most fun state in America, after being considered fourth in 2024.
So who beat us out? California stole the number one spot from Florida, bumping the sunshine state down to second. Then Nevada took third and Illinois followed behind in fourth.
Top 10 most fun states in the U.S.
- California
- Florida
- Nevada
- Illinois
- New York
- Colorado
- Washington
- Texas
- Minnesota
- Oregon
To determine the ranking, WalletHub took a closer look at nightlife and entertainment and recreation across each of the 50 states. Considering 26 key indicators spanning the cost of movies to accessibility of national parks to nightlife options per capita, each state was assigned an overall fun score.
“Living in one of the most fun states can boost your mental, physical and emotional health by giving you a wide range of activities to choose from, both indoor and outdoor,” said Chip Lupo, WalletHub Analyst. “These states help residents stay active and socialize, and they’re also ideal for travelers who want to make the most out of the limited amount of time that they have to explore.”
Shockingly, New York ranked fifth overall in entertainment and recreation and seventh for nightlife. Meanwhile, California, the most fun state in America, placed first in entertainment and recreation and third in nightlife (first in nightlife went to none other than Nevada).
Even more alarming is that the study went a step further to compare the most fun cities in the U.S.. Somehow, New York City didn’t even make it into the top five—and none were even in California! The top five most fun cities were ranked in order from Las Vegas, NV, Orlando, FL, Miami, FL, Atlanta, GA, and New Orleans, LA.