Energy costs are among the most expensive bills Americans pay each year.
The U.S. Department of Energy reports that the average American family spends at least $2,000 on utilities each year. Of that $2,000, 50% goes toward heating and cooling costs. But energy goes beyond that and Americans spent roughly $2,109 on average on motor fuel and oil, up $141 from last year, despite fuel and oil costs being on the decline.
In this week’s Map Monday, we take a look at which states are among the least and most energy efficient states.
WalletHub, a personal finance website, recently measured the efficiency of auto- and home-energy consumption in 48 U.S. states. (Alaska and Hawaii were left out of the analysis due to limited data being available). Using data from the U.S. Census Bureau, the National Climatic Data Center, the Energy Information Administration, the U.S. Department of Transportation – Federal Highway Administration and Insurance Institute for Highway Safety.
So which states top the list as the most energy efficient states in 2019?
| 1 |
New York |
88.47 |
3 |
1 |
| 2 |
Rhode Island |
85.82 |
5 |
2 |
| 3 |
Utah |
84.29 |
1 |
10 |
| 4 |
Massachusetts |
80.82 |
8 |
3 |
| 5 |
Vermont |
79.06 |
4 |
11 |
| 6 |
California |
78.15 |
13 |
4 |
| 7 |
Colorado |
76.62 |
6 |
13 |
| 8 |
Minnesota |
76.29 |
2 |
30 |
| 9 |
Wisconsin |
75.64 |
7 |
12 |
| 10 |
Connecticut |
72.85 |
16 |
6 |
The Peach State didn’t fare too well, though.
Coming it at No. 42, Georgia was the 7th worst for energy efficiency. Our state scored in at No. 44 on Home Energy Efficiency and at No. 22 on Auto Energy Efficiency.
Southern states as a whole were among the worst with South Carolina coming in dead last, followed by Louisiana, Alabama, and Tennessee respectively.
See the interactive map from WalletHub below:
