GOBankingRates
States Whose Economies Are Failing vs. States Whose Economies Are Thriving
CrackerClips / Getty Images/iStockphoto
CrackerClips / Getty Images/iStockphoto
John Csiszar
11 min read

The swiftness with which the coronavirus pandemic wiped out the U.S. economy in early 2020 was breathtaking. Seemingly overnight, the U.S. unemployment rate shot up to an all-time record of 14.7% in April 2020. Both the overall rate of 14.7% and the 10.3% jump from the prior month were the highest on record since the Bureau of Labor Statistics began keeping statistics in January 1948. Since then, the economy as a whole has been steadily improving, both in terms of the unemployment rate and year-over-year GDP. However, as the U.S. is such a large country, with a wide diversity of states and economies, the recovery is not what you'd call consistent. Some states have already made a rebound almost all the way back to pre-pandemic levels, while others have continued to struggle to return to a state of balance.

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To determine which economies are thriving and which are failing, GOBankingRates took a look at a variety of economic factors, from year-over-year GDP and unemployment rates to wage changes and the percentage of a state's population that is living in poverty. States were divided into the top 15 and the bottom 15.

Read on to find out which states are at the bottom and the top of this split recovery.

urbazon / Getty Images
urbazon / Getty Images

States Whose Economies Are Failing

These states have not yet seen the benefits of the economic recovery some others have. Although overall unemployment trends are improving, residents of these states are still having trouble finding jobs and contributing to the state's GDP.

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DenisTangneyJr / iStock.com
DenisTangneyJr / iStock.com

1. Michigan

  • March 2022 unemployment rate: 4.4%

  • Year-over-year change in unemployment Feb. 2021: 4.2%

  • Q4 2021 GDP per capita: $43,580

  • GDP growth Q3 2021-Q4 2021: 5.8%

  • Average weekly wages Sept. 2020: $1,154

  • Percent change in average weekly wages Sept. 2020-Sept. 2021: 5.3%

  • Percent of population below poverty line 2020: 10.6%

Kruck20 / Getty Images/iStockphoto
Kruck20 / Getty Images/iStockphoto

2. South Carolina

  • March 2022 unemployment rate: 3.4%

  • Year-over-year change in unemployment Feb. 2021: 2.7%

  • Q4 2021 GDP per capita: $54,280

  • GDP growth Q3 2021-Q4 2021: 6.8%

  • Average weekly wages Sept. 2020: $988

  • Percent change in average weekly wages Sept. 2020-Sept. 2021: 6.9%

  • Percent of population below poverty line 2020: 14.2%

Sean Pavone / Getty Images/iStockphoto
Sean Pavone / Getty Images/iStockphoto

3. Arkansas

  • March 2022 unemployment rate: 3.1%

  • Year-over-year change in unemployment Feb. 2021: 2.8%

  • Q4 2021 GDP per capita: $49,732

  • GDP growth Q3 2021-Q4 2021: 5.1%

  • Average weekly wages Sept. 2020: $963

  • Percent change in average weekly wages Sept. 2020-Sept. 2021: 7.8%

  • Percent of population below poverty line 2020: 14.1%

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