Which states work the hardest in America? Here's where the nation's work ethic runs deepest
North Dakota just claimed the title of America's hardest-working state, and honestly, the results are hilarious—New York ranked 46th, proving that even hustle culture's supposed epicenter can't out-grind a state famous for, well, not much besides work ethic. Meanwhile, the real plot twist is that workplace culture and work intensity are completely different beasts; DC tops the culture rankings while North Dakota dominates the grind metrics, suggesting that working yourself to the bone doesn't necessarily equal job satisfaction or good management.
According to WalletHub's 2025 analysis measuring 10 indicators across direct and indirect work factors, North Dakota leads with a score of 66.17, driven by a nearly 98% employment rate, 39.6-hour average workweeks, and employees leaving 33.5% of vacation time unused. The top five hardest-working states are North Dakota, Alaska, South Dakota, Texas, and Hawaii, while Americans overall work an average of 1,805 hours annually—470 hours more than Germans but 447 fewer than Colombians, reflecting the nation's complex relationship with productivity and burnout.
