Illinois Ranks Surprisingly Low in Study of Hardest Working States in U.S.

The American Work Ethic Lives On

If there’s one thing we can all agree on, it’s that the spirit of hard work has always been a big part of the American story. And guess what? That work ethic is still alive and well today! There is plenty of data to back up the claim that Americans are still rolling up their sleeves and putting in the hours.

How the Study Measured Hard-Working States

The personal finance site WalletHub recently took a deep dive into just how hard-working each state really is. To come up with their rankings, they compared 11 different factors, grouped into two categories: Direct Work Factors like average workweek hours, employment rate, and even how much vacation time goes unused, and Indirect Work Factors like commuting, multiple jobholders, and volunteer time. Together, these give a pretty interesting picture of how much effort people are putting in, both on and off the clock.

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Illinois’ Surprising Ranking in 2025

So, how did Illinois do in 2025? Well, not great. The Land of Lincoln landed at #42 on the list, making it one of the least hard-working states in the nation. Illinois ranked 43rd in direct work factors and 20th in indirect factors, with the 47^th lowest employment rate in the country.

The news was only slightly better for Illinois’ Tri-State neighbors. Indiana ranked as the 33^rd hardest-working state in the country, while Kentucky just barely edged out Illinois with a 39th-place ranking.

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At the end of the day, the numbers are just one way to measure effort. Hard work comes in many forms – and whether it’s through our jobs, our families, or our communities, there’s no doubt the Midwest still knows how to hustle!

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Scroll over the map below to see the rankings for the rest of the country. You can always check out the FULL REPORT to take a deeper dive into the data.