Data / Rankings / Adult obesity rate / US states

US states by adult obesity rate

Mississippi had the highest adult obesity rate of 50 states in 2019, at 40.8%. District of Columbia had the lowest, at 23.8%. The median was 32.1% and the figure for the United States was 31.4%. Source: Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

Highest40.8Mississippi
Lowest23.8District of Columbia
Median32.150 states
United States31.4History

All states, 2019

CSVChart (SVG)

MississippiMississippi: 40.8 %40.8West VirginiaWest Virginia: 39.7 %39.7ArkansasArkansas: 37.4 %37.4OklahomaOklahoma: 36.8 %36.8KentuckyKentucky: 36.5 %36.5TennesseeTennessee: 36.5 %36.5AlabamaAlabama: 36.1 %36.1MichiganMichigan: 36 %36LouisianaLouisiana: 35.9 %35.9South CarolinaSouth Carolina: 35.4 %35.4IndianaIndiana: 35.3 %35.3KansasKansas: 35.2 %35.2MissouriMissouri: 34.8 %34.8North DakotaNorth Dakota: 34.8 %34.8OhioOhio: 34.8 %34.8DelawareDelaware: 34.4 %34.4WisconsinWisconsin: 34.2 %34.2NebraskaNebraska: 34.1 %34.1North CarolinaNorth Carolina: 34 %34TexasTexas: 34 %34IowaIowa: 33.9 %33.9PennsylvaniaPennsylvania: 33.2 %33.2GeorgiaGeorgia: 33.1 %33.1South DakotaSouth Dakota: 33 %33MarylandMaryland: 32.3 %32.3VirginiaVirginia: 31.9 %31.9New HampshireNew Hampshire: 31.8 %31.8MaineMaine: 31.7 %31.7New MexicoNew Mexico: 31.7 %31.7IllinoisIllinois: 31.6 %31.6ArizonaArizona: 31.4 %31.4NevadaNevada: 30.6 %30.6AlaskaAlaska: 30.5 %30.5MinnesotaMinnesota: 30.1 %30.1Rhode IslandRhode Island: 30 %30WyomingWyoming: 29.7 %29.7IdahoIdaho: 29.5 %29.5UtahUtah: 29.2 %29.2ConnecticutConnecticut: 29.1 %29.1OregonOregon: 29 %29MontanaMontana: 28.3 %28.3WashingtonWashington: 28.3 %28.3New YorkNew York: 27.1 %27.1FloridaFlorida: 27 %27VermontVermont: 26.6 %26.6CaliforniaCalifornia: 26.2 %26.2MassachusettsMassachusetts: 25.2 %25.2HawaiiHawaii: 25 %25ColoradoColorado: 23.8 %23.8District of ColumbiaDistrict of Columbia: 23.8 %23.8
%. Source: CDC. Retrieved 2026-10-09.

Full ranking

RankStates2019 (%)Change on 2018
1Mississippi40.8+1.3 pts
2West Virginia39.7+0.2 pts
3Arkansas37.4+0.3 pts
4Oklahoma36.8+2 pts
5Kentucky36.5-0.1 pts
5Tennessee36.5+2.1 pts
7Alabama36.1-0.1 pts
8Michigan36+3 pts
9Louisiana35.9-0.9 pts
10South Carolina35.4+1.1 pts
11Indiana35.3+1.2 pts
12Kansas35.2+0.8 pts
13Missouri34.8-0.2 pts
13North Dakota34.8-0.3 pts
13Ohio34.8+0.8 pts
16Delaware34.4+0.9 pts
17Wisconsin34.2+2.2 pts
18Nebraska34.10 pts
19North Carolina34+1 pts
19Texas34-0.8 pts
21Iowa33.9-1.4 pts
22Pennsylvania33.2+2.3 pts
23Georgia33.1+0.6 pts
24South Dakota33+2.9 pts
25Maryland32.3+1.4 pts
26Virginia31.9+1.5 pts
27New Hampshire31.8+2.2 pts
28Maine31.7+1.3 pts
28New Mexico31.7-0.6 pts
30Illinois31.6-0.2 pts
31Arizona31.4+1.9 pts
32Nevada30.6+1.1 pts
33Alaska30.5+1 pts
34Minnesota30.10 pts
35Rhode Island30+2.3 pts
36Wyoming29.7+0.7 pts
37Idaho29.5+1.1 pts
38Utah29.2+1.4 pts
39Connecticut29.1+1.7 pts
40Oregon29-0.9 pts
41Montana28.3+1.4 pts
41Washington28.3-0.4 pts
43New York27.1-0.5 pts
44Florida27-3.7 pts
45Vermont26.6-0.9 pts
46California26.2+0.4 pts
47Massachusetts25.2-0.5 pts
48Hawaii25+0.1 pts
49Colorado23.8+0.8 pts
49District of Columbia23.8-0.9 pts

Other periods

About this ranking

Percentage of adults aged 18 and over with obesity, defined as a body mass index of 30 or more calculated from self-reported height and weight. Crude prevalence, not age-adjusted.

United States: CDC Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System (BRFSS), a telephone survey. Self-reported measurements give lower figures than measured surveys such as NHANES. The national figure pools respondents from the 50 states and DC; a state that did not meet BRFSS data standards in a year (California, Mississippi and Nevada in 2025) has no value and is left out of that year's national figure. Territories are not included. The series starts in 2011, when BRFSS changed its weighting and added cell phones, so earlier estimates are not comparable.

Every value in the ranking comes from the same publisher and the same period, so the states are compared on one definition. 1 states with data in other periods have no value for 2019 and are left out rather than filled from another source. Equal values share a rank.

How to cite

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). Nutrition, Physical Activity, and Obesity: Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System (hn4x-zwk7), percent of adults aged 18 years and older who have obesity, total. https://data.cdc.gov/resource/hn4x-zwk7.json?%24order=%3Aid&%24limit=50000&%24where=questionid%3D%27Q036%27+AND+stratificationid1%3D%27OVERALL%27+AND+datavaluetypeid%3D%27VALUE%27. Retrieved 2026-10-09.

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Questions

Which state has the highest adult obesity rate?

Mississippi, with 40.8% in 2019, according to Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

Which state has the lowest adult obesity rate?

District of Columbia, with 23.8% in 2019.

Where does this ranking come from?

Every value comes from one source and one period, so the places are comparable: Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Nutrition, Physical Activity, and Obesity: Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System (hn4x-zwk7), percent of adults aged 18 years and older who have obesity, total. Retrieved 2026-10-09. 1 states have no value for 2019 and are not ranked.

US states: more rankings