North Carolina Was Just Ranked #1 Economy in America

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Charlotte Stories
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North Carolina has once again cemented its reputation as one of the nation’s top places to do business, earning the No. 1 economy in the United States and finishing second overall in CNBC’s annual Top States for Business rankings.

The 2026 rankings placed Ohio first overall, followed closely by North Carolina, with Virginia, Texas, and Minnesota rounding out the top five. CNBC evaluated all 50 states using 138 different metrics across 10 categories that companies consider when deciding where to expand or relocate. South Carolina ranked 23rd overall with the No. 6 economy and the No. 8 workforce in the country.

North Carolina’s biggest strength was its economy, which ranked No. 1 nationwide. The state also earned top-five finishes in workforce (No. 3) and access to capital (No. 5), while placing eighth in both technology and innovation and business friendliness.

America’s Top States for Business 2026

Overall State Infra- structure Economy Workforce Quality of Life Cost of Doing Business Technolgy & Innovation Business Friendliness Access to Capital Education Cost of Living
1 Ohio 1 9 35 18 1 10 16 9 23 9
2 North Carolina 13 1 3 34 20 8 8 5 12 35
3 Virginia 2 23 10 7 26 6 11 10 5 15
4 Texas 12 2 1 49 5 3 23 2 32 30
5 Minnesota 7 8 27 4 31 14 16 21 10 22
6 Michigan 9 24 21 15 4 17 27 13 29 11
7 Georgia 5 17 9 46 11 15 21 8 13 35
8 Florida 32 11 2 30 15 10 33 4 29 48
9 Tennessee 6 11 7 50 9 20 7 15 45 15
10 Indiana 4 27 32 48 2 16 10 20 25 6
11 Washington 16 5 6 12 47 4 40 11 37 41
12 Illinois 3 29 31 22 23 12 44 12 7 41
13 Pennsylvania 11 21 39 17 17 5 42 7 17 11
14 Arizona 8 22 4 36 35 25 13 18 43 33
15 Massachusetts 24 16 26 10 49 8 27 6 1 39
16 Utah 28 13 5 45 25 26 5 22 45 26
17 California 26 3 17 29 46 1 47 1 20 50
18 New York 13 4 50 19 41 2 49 3 7 41
19 Iowa 15 37 38 20 8 23 14 39 23 6
20 Wyoming 37 14 36 24 29 36 2 35 2 5
21 Alabama 10 31 14 43 20 22 24 27 41 3
22 Wisconsin 24 10 29 40 11 30 26 26 13 15
23 Connecticut 29 34 25 5 40 19 21 23 4 44
23 South Carolina 27 6 8 36 31 28 38 31 19 37
25 Colorado 32 28 10 14 38 6 29 17 37 49
26 Nebraska 36 26 18 10 17 45 9 37 20 29
27 Kentucky 17 37 22 30 10 29 32 31 25 14
28 Arkansas 23 20 13 41 17 36 31 27 36 19
29 North Dakota 34 42 46 9 22 42 1 45 11 2
30 Idaho 45 14 16 28 28 34 12 40 47 22
31 New Jersey 41 31 19 3 38 20 50 13 2 39
32 Delaware 41 7 12 21 41 27 46 25 43 15
33 Nevada 20 19 22 39 34 38 15 23 49 37
34 New Hampshire 43 43 15 7 36 45 6 41 9 26
35 Maine 47 39 33 2 23 38 24 43 5 28
36 Maryland 17 49 30 12 44 13 33 15 16 30
37 Kansas 31 46 39 36 15 32 3 34 13 6
38 Missouri 21 29 49 44 5 24 38 19 37 10
39 Oklahoma 21 41 42 41 3 30 18 33 48 19
40 Vermont 37 35 33 1 37 48 18 42 22 21
41 New Mexico 29 33 20 32 29 40 35 37 32 33
42 Oregon 17 39 24 22 43 18 43 27 34 45
43 Mississippi 34 36 48 26 13 43 36 35 41 11
44 South Dakota 44 45 47 33 14 50 3 46 28 3
45 Montana 48 18 36 35 33 35 40 46 18 30
46 West Virginia 40 48 44 24 27 44 30 49 25 1
47 Louisiana 39 47 45 46 7 32 48 27 29 22
48 Rhode Island 46 50 28 16 44 40 37 48 40 45
49 Alaska 49 44 41 26 47 47 20 50 50 22
50 Hawaii 50 24 43 6 50 49 45