Tennessee dubbed “America’s Worst Place to Live in 2026” by CNBC
NASHVILLE– After sixteen years of complete Republican control, Tennessee has earned the ignominious title of “America’s Worst Place to Live in 2026” from CNBC. Though Tennessee ranked 9th on CNBC’s “America’s Top States for Business 2026,” it ranked last in the quality-of-life category with an F grade and near the bottom on education with a D+.
“I will always be proud to be a Tennessean and live in the greatest state in the Union, but these rankings shed a much-needed light on the failures and misplaced priorities of Tennessee Republicans,” said Representative John Ray Clemmons, chair of the House Democratic Caucus. “Since taking power, they have completely neglected the quality of life of working families and refuse to acknowledge the very real harm their discriminatory policies have caused. Tennesseans are struggling to make ends meet, and these folks are up here living high on the hog while giving away the farm to out-of-state corporations and billionaires. They’re so focused on proclaiming themselves to be ‘pro-business’ that they have forgotten why it’s so important to recruit new business and facilitate economic growth in the first place.
“For decades Tennessee families benefited from continuous economic progress under governors like Lamar Alexander, Ned McWherter, and Phil Bredesen, each growing our state’s economy for the very purpose of lifting up families and improving Tennesseans’ quality of life. Unfortunately for Tennessee families today, our state’s Republican leadership views business recruitment and economic development as the sole objective and quality of life is a distant afterthought. Governing only for the benefit of businesses and corporate interests without a modicum of concern for the people you represent is exactly how you earn the title of ‘America’s Worst Place to Live.’ After sixteen years of complete control of state government, Bill Lee and these Republicans have finally earned something honestly.”
CNBC: To score the states for quality of life, CNBC used hard data on factors like crime rates, air quality and healthcare, as well as the cost and availability of childcare, inclusiveness of state laws, and reproductive rights (These are America’s 10 worst states to live in for 2026) . To rank America’s Top States for Business 2026, CNBC scored all 50 states on 138 metrics in 10 broad categories of competitiveness, identifying the factors companies consider when making site selection decisions, and where states are focusing their economic development efforts to win jobs and business. Each category is weighted based on how frequently states use them as a selling point.