New Report Says California Is Better Than Idaho, How Do We Feel About That?

In case you've been living under a rock the past half decade, there's a little bit of a rivalry and beef developing between Idaho and California.

Idahoans blame Californians for migrating here in masses and causing the housing crisis that we're all now dealing with. Meanwhile, Californians see Idaho as a cheaper place to live and not have to pay as much money in taxes, while still enjoying a scenic mountain backdrop.

Ask any native Idahoan how they feel about Californians, and you'll get an earful. Or at least a deep sigh with an eye roll.

Needless to say, Idaho doesn't want to lose to California. Whether it's Boise State versus Fresno State or which state is healthier than the other, Idaho does not want to lose to California. In anything.

So, Idahoans can't be pleased with this new list that has California being declared better than Idaho. I know what you're thinking, "better" can be pretty suggestive. "Better" in what? Well, a category that's pretty important, it turns out.

When it comes to happiness and general well-being, a new report says California is the place to be. The study comes from the Sharecare Community Well-Being Index, in partnership with Boston University School of Public Health.

The study focused on "Well-being" of people in each state. To determine the level of well-being, researchers considered dimensions like community, economic security, financial situation, food access, healthcare access, housing and transportation, and more.

Well-being is a pretty important measure of standard of living and health. If your well-being is poor, your health is going to be poor. The two are greatly correlated. It's something you want to do well in. So, how much of a difference was there between California and Idaho? Let's take a look at the top 10.

After the top 10 healthiest states in the U.S., we'll go over the bottom 10 and the least healthiest states in the country. Let's hope we don't end up seeing Idaho brought up there.

Great to see states close by like Utah and Washington make the list, but couldn't help but notice Idaho wasn't mentioned in the Top 10.

So, now let's look at the Bottom 10 states in the country when it comes to well-being and health.

Phew. Idaho was not in the Bottom 10. So, not in the Top 10, not in the Bottom 10...where does Idaho fall nationally in terms of well-being?

According to the Well-Being Index, Idaho placed 38th in the country with an Index Score of 55/100. So, along with South Carolina, we barely missed out on that Bottom 10.

How did we end up this low on the list? Let's go over some of our scores and see where we didn't do well.

The state of Idaho scored very high in the Community category. We have a lot of pride and love for our state and cities. I get that. However, when it comes to Economic Security and Resource Access, Idaho really took a hit.

With it being an election year with some important campaigns being run, I'd expect (or hope) these two issues will be at the forefront of discussion. By improving these categories, we can make our state a better place to live, and improve our well-being. 10/10 people would say yes to improving their well-being. It benefits all of us.

We mentioned it earlier, and it deserves more attention. Here's more on the friction between Idahoans and Californians.