These Are The 10 Most Boring States In America

There's no denying it: There are plenty of states in America that are full of excitement. These are the places where there's an energy in the air, and where a young, vibrant community is actively involved.

Unfortunately, not all states are so lucky. In fact, lots of states are kinda boring.

You know the places: The ones where seemingly everyone has an AARP card, and the most exciting thing they do all day is post a picture of their grandchild on Facebook.

Like Idaho, for instance. In our latest analysis, we found that The Gem State was the most boring state in all of America.

But don't feel bad if you're a resident of Idaho. There are plenty of other boring, lackluster states in the nation as well.

Here they are. Try not to jump out of your seat with excitement:

1. Idaho
2. Utah
3. Kansas
4. Iowa
5. Arkansas
6. Montana
7. Nebraska
8. South Dakota
9. Oklahoma
10. Maine

This doesn't really look too far off. After all, these are some of the least densely populated places in America. And if you did an actual poll, you might just see that many of these states would probably be at the top of the list.

Rest assured that we didn't use personal opinion when it comes to what classifies a state as "boring" or "exciting". We crunched actual numbers to figure out which states are statistically more boring.

And keep in mind: We aren't saying these places aren't beautiful, or that there are plenty of exciting things to do in all of them. We're measuring the demographics of the people who live there, not the amenities.

How We Measured The Most Boring States In America

To figure out how boring a place is, we rely on a complex algorithm that factors in things we generally think make a pale exciting, and then we figure out which states have the least number of those things.

Using AreaVibes and U.S. Census data, we measured each city on the following criteria:

• % of Population Over 65 (higher is more boring)
• % of Households With Kids (higher is more boring)
• % of Married Households (higher is more boring)
• Population density

Then, our algorithm ranks each state for each of the criteria, takes an average of the individual ranking, and identifies the state that scores as most boring across the board.

Grab your rocker and hold on.

1. Idaho

Population: 1.6 million
Married households: 55%
Households with kids: 35%
Density: 7th lowest

Welcome to snoozeville, America. The data has spoken, and it looks like Idaho is the most boring state in our great nation. Is that a shocker?

What makes this such a boring place? First off, more than half of the population is married, and at 55%, Idaho has the 2nd highest rate of hitched individuals in the nation. As we all know, married people are far less exciting than single people are. It's just a fact.

On top of that, more than a third of the population has kids at home. That means an exciting night for many Idaho families is trying to figure out who broke the iPad.

Finally, there are only 19 people per square mile in Idaho. There's a great benefit to having wide open spaces, but let's be honest - solitude and excitement are practically opposites. But we're sure that Idahoans will probably agree that things might be boring where they live, but they like it just the way it is, thank you very much.

2. Utah

Population: 2.8 million
Married households: 56%
Households with kids: 42%
Density: 10th lowest

Sure, Utah has some great skiing, and some really pretty landscapes can take your breath away. But the residents of Utah? Pretty boring.

You won't find a population in America with more married households with kids than in Utah. 56% of people are married, and a whopping 42% of homes have at least one child at home. Face it, Utah, not many of you have time to get out and cut a rug once in a while.

The only saving grace for Utah is they are the 2nd youngest residents in the nation, where only 10% are over the age of 65. The oldest state, Florida, is double that. If Utah's population wasn't so young, it would have won this by a landslide.

3. Kansas

Population: 2.8 million
Married households: 53%
Households with kids: 33%
Density: 11th lowest

If you've ever driven across Kansas on your way to your actual final destination, you get it - this place is practically empty. But it isn't just the low population density and long (long) stretches of farm land that can put you to sleep.

More than half of the families in Kansas tied the knot and a third of homes have kids at home. Both factors indicate that a large majority of the people of Kansas are content with a night at home, pouring over homework.

And most midwesterners know, the 'more fun' Kansas City is actually in Missouri.

4. Iowa

Population: 3.1 million
Married households: 52%
Population over 65: 15%
Density: 15th lowest

The website HomeSnacks ran the data on the 'best' states to live in America, and the top two states were Nebraska and Iowa. So a place with great jobs, solid schools and low crime is certainly appealing to many Americans.

But fun? Sheesh. Iowa is certainly not a fun place to live. The population is the eighth oldest in the nation, and there are only three other states where people are married at a higher rate.

For a large number of people in Iowa, excitement is getting a truck stuck in the mud or a night out at Denny's.

5. Arkansas

Population: 2.9 million
Population over 65: 15%
Married households: 51%
Density: 17th lowest

If you're a college student, Arkansas is probably non-stop fun. If you're a regular guy with a wife and two kids at home, Arkansas is probably snoozeville

While Arkansas doesn't rank in the bottom ten in any one particular category, across the board, it scores consistently low on our 'boring' scale. The worst of it: 1 in 6 residents is collecting Social Security.

6. Montana

Population: 1.06 million
Population over 65: 16%
Married households: 52%
Density: 3rd lowest

Montana is the 4th lowest in terms of households with kids at 28%. So, while the population of Montana is one of the oldest and most married, people in Montana have held off from bearing children. So, a night out doesn't have to involve a baby sitter as often here as it does in most other states. That can go a long way.

But don't plan on running into too many people on a Friday night. As you can imagine, this is the 3rd least densely populated place in America, where you just might see more deer than people on your drive into town.

7. Nebraska

Population: 1.8 million
Married households: 53%
Households with kids: 32%
Density: 8th lowest

Earlier, we mentioned how Nebraska has been called the 'best' state in the nation due to several factors. But fun? Not a chance.

While it's a fairly young state, 53% of Nebraskans are hitched, which means lots of curling up on the couch binge watching on Netflix. And this is the 8th least-densely populated place in the nation, too.

There are probably people in Scottsbluff scratching their heads, wondering how their home state didn't rank higher on this list.

8. South Dakota

Population: 834,000
Population over 65: 52%
Density: 5th lowest

How in the world is South Dakota not more boring than North Dakota?

They're both sparsely populated, but North Dakota has a much lower percentage of people with kids. The fact is, outside of Mount Rushmore, there really isn't a lot to do in South Dakota unless you live in Sioux Falls, Rapid City or Pierre. That's about three-quarters of the entire population of the state right there.

If you don't live in a "big" South Dakota city, you've not much to do to pass your time, and hardly anyone with which to do so.

9. Oklahoma

Population: 3.8 million
Households with kids: 33%
Married households: 51%
Density: 16th lowest

For some people, thunderstorms and tornadoes are exciting, right?

Across the board, OK really is just okay, fun wise. The Sooner State isn't in the top 10 for any one boring factor. Which means the population is Oklahoma is just kinda boring, not mind-numblingly so.

10. Maine

Population: 1.3 million
Households over 65: 17%
Married households: 51%
Density: 13th lowest

We round out the list of the most boring states in America with Maine, a really pretty place for 12 months a year.

Florida is the only 'older' state in the country. Funny thing is, you either stay in Maine and brave the cold each winter, or you move somewhere warmer like Florida. But when 1 in 6 people in your state qualifies for handicapped parking, and more than half are married, it simply has to be really quiet after 8 p.m. in every nook and cranny outside of the Portland metro area.

Now that you're asleep

If you're measuring the states where a high percentage of the population is old, married and with kids, and where there are far less people per square mile, this is an accurate list.

On a list like this, there are usually no winners, but since America isn't necessarily the most boring nation, the states on this list can at least take solace that there are, in fact, more boring places around the globe.

Where are the most exciting states? It looks like the northeast dominates the fun. They are as follows:

• New York
• Rhode Island
• Massachusetts
• Maryland
• Florida