Ohio Tops CNBC's 2026 Best States for Business Rankings for the First Time. North Carolina, Virginia, Texas and Minnesota Round Out the Top Five.

Ohio has never finished first in CNBC's America's Top States for Business rankings. On July 9, 2026, that changed.

CNBC correspondent Scott Cohn announced the results in Columbus with Governor Mike DeWine present. The rankings, now in their 20th year, score all 50 states across 138 metrics in 10 categories. States can earn up to 2,500 points.

How Ohio Got Here

Ohio's climb has been steady and measurable. According to the Ohio Governor's office, the state ranked No. 34 in 2010, moved to No. 15 in 2022, No. 12 in 2023, No. 7 in 2024, No. 5 in 2025, and No. 1 in 2026.

CNBC credited Ohio's win to the nation's best infrastructure score and the lowest cost of doing business in the country. Ohio's logistics position gives it prime access to a majority of U.S. consumers within a single day's drive, according to 247wallst's coverage of Cohn's announcement. The state has also attracted significant data center investment, with hyperscalers chasing cheap power and available industrial land.

"This number one ranking proves that Ohio is the best place in America for business," Governor DeWine said in a statement from his office. DeWine credited long-term investments made during his administration, along with workforce development programs run through Lt. Governor Jon Husted, who leads Ohio's workforce strategy.

Ohio's housing costs are among the most affordable in the country, according to CNBC's scoring. The state's cost-of-living index sits well below the national average.

For context on how much the state has shifted: in 2007, CNBC's inaugural year, Ohio finished 30th overall, ranked 33rd for cost of doing business, and had shed 250,000 manufacturing jobs between 2000 and 2007. The turnaround is one of the more dramatic 20-year arcs in the study's history.

The Rest of the Top Five

North Carolina finished second. According to Cohn's presentation as reported by 247wallst, North Carolina has ranked either first or second in each of the last five years. CNBC cited the state's No. 1 economy and No. 3 workforce as strengths. The drawback: an elevated cost of living and a state legislature that has struggled to pass a budget, per 247wallst. Bureau of Economic Analysis data puts North Carolina's cost-of-living index at 94.326 and per capita personal income at $65,598.

Virginia came in third, with the second-best infrastructure and fifth-best education scores in the study. Its weakness is economics. Virginia has the highest per capita income of the top five states at $77,277, but its cost of living sits above the national average at 101.104 on the index. Federal budget cuts weighed on the state's business case, according to 247wallst.

Texas placed fourth, posting the nation's top workforce score and second-best economy. The problem is quality of life. Texas finished 49th out of 50 states in that category. Cohn specifically cited poor healthcare access, high crime rates, and low inclusiveness scores. That's a real drag on a state that otherwise has one of the strongest economic stories in the country.

Minnesota rounded out the top five with the fourth-best quality-of-life score and world-class infrastructure marks. The trade-off: it ranks 31st for cost of doing business and 44th nationally on tax competitiveness, making it one of the most expensive business environments among the top-ranked states.

The Fairness Case for High-Tax, High-Service States

The strongest argument for states like Minnesota and Connecticut, which climbed five spots to 23rd place in 2026 according to Hartford Business Journal, is that businesses don't operate in a vacuum. Connecticut ranked 4th nationally in education and 5th in quality of life. Hartford Business Journal noted Connecticut's strong scores in technology and innovation (19th), business friendliness (21st), and access to capital (23rd). The argument from state boosters is straightforward: a talented, educated, healthy workforce has real economic value that offsets higher taxes. Connecticut's own weaknesses are real, ranking 40th for cost of doing business and 44th for cost of living, but the counterpoint is that companies building knowledge-economy operations weigh workforce quality heavily.

Whether this case outweighs the cost burden is what the actual location decisions reveal over time.

Big Movers, Big Losers

The 20-year view exposes some stark divergence. Michigan, which ranked 41st overall in 2007 as GM and Chrysler were months from bankruptcy, now sits at No. 6, the largest improvement over the study's full history, according to CNBC.

Going the other direction: South Dakota topped the rankings in 2013 but has fallen to 44th in 2026, including the No. 45 economy. Idaho, which ranked 6th in 2007 with the nation's lowest business costs, now sits 30th overall with a 28th-place cost ranking.

Arkansas posted the biggest single-year improvement, jumping 13 spots to 28th place. CNBC attributed the move to population inflow driven by remote workers and corporate relocations tied to Walmart, Tyson Foods, and J.B. Hunt Transport Services, all headquartered in Northwest Arkansas.

What's Driving the Methodology This Year

CNBC made one meaningful structural change for 2026: infrastructure replaced economy as the top-weighted category. The network cited company demand for transport access, utilities, water, energy, and, for the first time in the study's history, ease of permitting. That last factor is new this year.

The permitting addition is worth watching. States that have cut red tape on construction and site development have a structural advantage that compounds over time, particularly as data center and advanced manufacturing buildouts require faster approvals.