The Healthiest Counties ranking provides a comprehensive assessment of the general levels of health among residents at the county level. This grade takes into account key indicators of personal health, such as smoking, excessive alcoholic consumption, rates of obesity, as well as the availability and proximity of fitness facilities, doctors, and mental health practitioners, in an attempt to measure an area’s performance in health and fitness. Learn where our data comes from.
| Physical Inactivity | The rate of adults (at the county level) who do not report any leisure-time physical activity. | CDC | 30.0% |
| Obesity | The rate of adults (at the county level) who have a body mass index of 30 or higher. | CDC | 20.0% |
| Access to Doctors | A measure of both the proximity (per square mile) and the availability (per capita) of Offices of Physicians. | Multiple Sources | 10.0% |
| Access to Mental Health Providers | A measure of both the proximity (per square mile) and the availability (per capita) of Offices of Mental Health Practitioners. | Multiple Sources | 10.0% |
| Access to Recreation/Fitness Facilities | A measure of both the proximity (per square mile) and the availability (per capita) of Fitness and Recreational Sports Centers. | Multiple Sources | 10.0% |
| Excessive Drinking | The rate of adults (at the county level) who report heavy drinking (a weekly average of eight or more drinks for women or 15 or more drinks for men) or binge drinking (consuming in a single occasion four or more drinks for women or five or more drinks for men in the last 30 days). | CDC | 10.0% |
| Smoking | The rate of adults (at the county level) who smoke “most days.” | CDC | 10.0% |
The same methodology is used to produce the Health & Fitness Grade for each ranked county as well as additional places. Statistics are primarily obtained from the U.S. Census and represent the most recent data available.
For more details about how we calculate our rankings, click here.