It's hard to make ends meet in Montana. Living paycheck-to-paycheck is the norm in Big Sky Country, and while many of us already know this because we feel the financial pinch each and every month a new report only just solidifies what we experience. 

Business Insider just named the Best and Worst States to Make a Living in 2015 and before we share the obvious, lets share a few highlights (and lowlights, is that even a word?)

The BEST states in America to make a living are:

1. Texas with an average income of $45,330

2. Washington ($52,540)

3. Wyoming ($44,930)

4. Virginia ($50,750)

5. Illinois ($48,780)

One thing to note, while the cities above might seem out of order with their average incomes vs. ranks, other factors place them into their appropriate positions with things like state tax average incomes, unemployment and workplace incidents.

And now onto the worst places to make a living. Here's the bottom five:

1. Hawaii ($46,230)

2. Oregon ($47,850)

3. Maine ($42,140)

4. West Virginia ($37,880)

5. Vermont  ($44,540)

Montana ranked very close to the bottom of this chart as well landing at #44 with an average income of $39,880, a state tax of $2,209 along with an unemployment rate of 4% and workplace incidents per 100 workers at 3.8.

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