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We've always suspected it, but now a new survey confirms that Minnesota is one of the smartest states in the country.

The results are in, and we're pretty smart here in the Land of 10,000 Lakes. Now, that's not bragging, mind you, it's a fact-- at least according to a new national survey that says that Minnesota is the second-smartest state in America.

In fact, only one other state-- that'd be New Hampshire, in case you're curious-- ranked higher than the North Star State did in this new survey from the online education platform Guru99.com.

Gur99.com looked at six different categories to compile their new list:

  • Average IQ
  • Graduation rates
  • Percentage of the population with low literacy rates
  • Average SAT scores
  • Percentage of states that don’t have a high school diploma or GED and GDP per capita.

Each of these individual categories was then rated on a scale of 1 to 10 and then combined to give a total score out of 60. And while New Hampshire came in first overall with a score of 56.82, the Gopher State ranked second in the country with a score of 55.82.

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Here's what Guru99.com said about Minnesota in the survey:

Minnesota ranks as the second smartest state. Only 5.8% of the entire population don’t have a high school diploma or GED and the average SAT score is 1225, which is one of the highest figures in America. On top of that Minnesota has high graduation rates of 94.13%.

Our neighbors to the east, behind the Cheddar Curtain over in Wisconsin, placed in the top ten in the survey with a score of 52.45, which was ranked ninth in the survey. North Dakota placed sixth, while South Dakota came in ranked eighth in the rankings.

Here's the entire Guru99.com list of the Smartest States in America in 2024: 

  1. New Hampshire - 56.82
  2. Minnesota - 55.82
  3. Wyoming - 54.98
  4. Vermont - 54.91
  5. Montana - 54.64
  6. North Dakota - 54.38
  7. Maine - 53.83
  8. South Dakota - 52.61
  9. Wisconsin - 52.45
  10. Utah - 52.21

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Gallery Credit: Meagan Drillinger

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