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AMERICA'S DASHBOARDRank & Score Every US State
REAL DATA
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The Best States for Outdoor Access (2026)

Access to parks, public land, and recreation facilities is a key quality-of-life factor. Our outdoor access score combines recreation facilities per capita from Census County Business Patterns (40%), percentage of state area that is public land from USGS PAD-US (35%), and national park acreage per capita from the National Park Service (25%). Outdoor access carries a 6% weight in the composite. Western states with vast public lands and national parks dominate this category, while densely populated Eastern states with fewer public lands score lower despite often having more recreation facilities per capita.

Weight6%
National Avg29.4
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Outdoor Access Score by State

RankStateGradeOutdoor Access ScoreOverall ScoreKey MetricsRegion
1Alaska
D
100.039.361.8% public land · 6.82 rec facilities/10K · 74.54 park acres/capitaWest
2Wyoming
B+
95.768.248.2% public land · 7.19 rec facilities/10K · 4.13 park acres/capitaWest
3Montana
B+
71.770.829.9% public land · 6.8 rec facilities/10K · 1.12 park acres/capitaWest
4Vermont
A+
55.677.517.9% public land · 8.65 rec facilities/10K · 0.04 park acres/capitaNortheast
5Oregon
B
53.460.052.6% public land · 3.43 rec facilities/10K · 0.05 park acres/capitaWest
6Idaho
B+
50.269.262.5% public land · 2.85 rec facilities/10K · 0.4 park acres/capitaWest
7South Dakota
A+
45.880.25.4% public land · 6.96 rec facilities/10K · 0.3 park acres/capitaMidwest
8Maine
A
45.076.85.8% public land · 9.53 rec facilities/10K · 0.07 park acres/capitaNortheast
9Colorado
B+
44.567.436.2% public land · 2.74 rec facilities/10K · 0.12 park acres/capitaWest
10New Mexico
D
44.332.634.7% public land · 2.83 rec facilities/10K · 0.19 park acres/capitaWest
11New Hampshire
A+
43.086.613.5% public land · 4.99 rec facilities/10K · 0.01 park acres/capitaNortheast
12California
C
40.842.945.8% public land · 1.86 rec facilities/10K · 0.2 park acres/capitaWest
13Nevada
D
39.339.284.9% public land · 1.66 rec facilities/10K · 0.24 park acres/capitaWest
14North Dakota
A
39.177.13.9% public land · 5.49 rec facilities/10K · 0.09 park acres/capitaMidwest
15Utah
A+
38.381.564.9% public land · 1.32 rec facilities/10K · 0.63 park acres/capitaWest
16Arizona
C
37.744.338.6% public land · 1.55 rec facilities/10K · 0.37 park acres/capitaWest
17Rhode Island
B+
37.469.34.4% public land · 5.29 rec facilities/10K · 0 park acres/capitaNortheast
18Hawaii
B
36.364.815.1% public land · 3.9 rec facilities/10K · 0.25 park acres/capitaWest
19Washington
B
35.463.228.5% public land · 2.39 rec facilities/10K · 0.26 park acres/capitaWest
20Massachusetts
B+
32.070.37.7% public land · 4.3 rec facilities/10K · 0.01 park acres/capitaNortheast
21Minnesota
A+
30.777.110.9% public land · 3.8 rec facilities/10K · 0.05 park acres/capitaMidwest
22Kansas
B
30.459.50.6% public land · 4.86 rec facilities/10K · 0.01 park acres/capitaMidwest
23New York
B
30.256.815.1% public land · 3.33 rec facilities/10K · 0 park acres/capitaNortheast
24Florida
C+
27.851.726.3% public land · 1.82 rec facilities/10K · 0.11 park acres/capitaSouth
25Wisconsin
B
23.963.75.8% public land · 3.55 rec facilities/10K · 0.01 park acres/capitaMidwest
26Delaware
C+
23.952.42.7% public land · 3.88 rec facilities/10K · 0 park acres/capitaNortheast
27Connecticut
A
23.873.50.9% public land · 4.06 rec facilities/10K · 0 park acres/capitaNortheast
28Iowa
B+
22.468.71.1% public land · 3.87 rec facilities/10K · 0 park acres/capitaMidwest
29Nebraska
A
22.074.51.4% public land · 3.79 rec facilities/10K · 0 park acres/capitaMidwest
30Virginia
A
20.174.310.5% public land · 2.59 rec facilities/10K · 0.05 park acres/capitaSouth
31Pennsylvania
B
19.858.25.6% public land · 3.09 rec facilities/10K · 0.01 park acres/capitaNortheast
32Michigan
C
17.845.013.4% public land · 2.01 rec facilities/10K · 0.07 park acres/capitaMidwest
33West Virginia
D
16.732.512% public land · 2.03 rec facilities/10K · 0.05 park acres/capitaSouth
34Missouri
C+
15.048.75.4% public land · 2.55 rec facilities/10K · 0.01 park acres/capitaMidwest
35Mississippi
D
14.731.46.5% public land · 2.38 rec facilities/10K · 0.04 park acres/capitaSouth
36Arkansas
F
14.729.910.5% public land · 1.96 rec facilities/10K · 0.04 park acres/capitaSouth
37North Carolina
C+
13.553.59.3% public land · 1.95 rec facilities/10K · 0.04 park acres/capitaSouth
38Tennessee
C
13.345.37.2% public land · 2.13 rec facilities/10K · 0.06 park acres/capitaSouth
39Oklahoma
C
12.741.82.2% public land · 2.61 rec facilities/10K · 0 park acres/capitaSouth
40Maryland
B+
11.866.97.9% public land · 1.91 rec facilities/10K · 0.01 park acres/capitaNortheast
41Louisiana
F
10.325.24.2% public land · 2.12 rec facilities/10K · 0.01 park acres/capitaSouth
42Ohio
C+
10.049.11.5% public land · 2.37 rec facilities/10K · 0 park acres/capitaMidwest
43Kentucky
D
9.938.05.4% public land · 1.94 rec facilities/10K · 0.02 park acres/capitaSouth
44Indiana
C+
9.849.62.1% public land · 2.29 rec facilities/10K · 0 park acres/capitaMidwest
45South Carolina
C
8.943.26% public land · 1.77 rec facilities/10K · 0.01 park acres/capitaSouth
46Georgia
C+
7.651.36.1% public land · 1.61 rec facilities/10K · 0 park acres/capitaSouth
47Alabama
C
6.639.43.7% public land · 1.74 rec facilities/10K · 0 park acres/capitaSouth
48New Jersey
B
6.565.17.3% public land · 1.35 rec facilities/10K · 0 park acres/capitaNortheast
49Illinois
C+
5.850.52.4% public land · 1.78 rec facilities/10K · 0 park acres/capitaMidwest
50Texas
C
4.745.91.8% public land · 1.69 rec facilities/10K · 0.04 park acres/capitaSouth

Top 10 States for Outdoor Access

1Alaska
100.0
2Wyoming
95.7
3Montana
71.7
4Vermont
55.6
5Oregon
53.4
6Idaho
50.2
7South Dakota
45.8
8Maine
45.0
9Colorado
44.5
10New Mexico
44.3

Bottom 10 States for Outdoor Access

50Texas
4.7
49Illinois
5.8
48New Jersey
6.5
47Alabama
6.6
46Georgia
7.6
45South Carolina
8.9
44Indiana
9.8
43Kentucky
9.9
42Ohio
10.0
41Louisiana
10.3

Frequently Asked Questions

What is the best state for outdoor access in 2026?

Alaska ranks #1 for outdoor access in 2026, followed by Wyoming and Montana, based on recreation facilities, public land, and national park acreage per capita.

Which states have the least outdoor access?

The states with the lowest outdoor access scores in 2026 are Texas, Illinois, and New Jersey, due to limited public land and fewer recreation facilities per capita.

How is the outdoor access score calculated?

The outdoor access score combines Census CBP recreation facilities per capita (40%), USGS PAD-US public land percentage (35%), and NPS national park acreage per capita (25%). It carries a 6% weight in the composite.

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Data Sources

📎Bureau of Labor Statistics, LAUS (Dec 2025)📎U.S. Census Bureau, ACS 2024📎FBI Uniform Crime Reporting, 2024📎America's Health Rankings, 2025📎WalletHub/NAEP, 2025📎U.S. Census Bureau, Vintage 2024📎Cook Political Report, PVI 2024📎Tax Foundation, Facts & Figures 2025📎ALEC Rich States Poor States, 2025📎WalletHub Tax Burden Study, 2025📎U.S. Census Bureau / FHFA, 2025📎BEA Regional Price Parities, 2023📎EPA AirData, Median AQI by County 2024📎EIA State Electricity Profiles, 2024📎FEMA National Risk Index v1.20, 2025📎U.S. Census Bureau, Net Domestic Migration 2024📎FCC / BroadbandNow, Broadband Access 2025📎National Park Service API, 2024📎USGS Protected Areas Database (PAD-US), 2024📎U.S. Census Bureau, County Business Patterns 2022📎U.S. Census Bureau, ACS 2023 (Commuting)📎FHWA Highway Statistics, 2023📎U.S. Census Bureau, County Business Patterns 2022📎EIA State Electricity Profiles, 2024📎EIA Natural Gas Prices, 2024📎DOL National Database of Childcare Prices, 2023📎BEA Regional Price Parities (Food), 2023📎NCES Common Core of Data (CCD), 2023-24📎EDFacts ACGR Graduation Rates, 2021-22📎NCES School District Finance Survey (F-33), 2022-23📎BEA GDP by State (SAGDP9), 2023📎NASBO Fiscal Survey of States, FY2023📎Census Bureau State Government Finances, FY2022📎Pew Charitable Trusts Fiscal 50, FY2023📎Pew Charitable Trusts, FY2022📎S&P/Moody's via Ballotpedia, 2025📎Bureau of Labor Statistics, OES (May 2023)📎IRS Statistics of Income, Migration Data 2021-2022