Montana Is One of the Least Hated States in America

If you've ever had to move away from Montana you know that leaving this state is like an amicable breakup. It's the ex that you can still be friends with. It may even be "the one that got away" for some.

Montana also is a pretty good neighbor. The lack of sales tax alone makes our state inviting to people living in surrounding states. This may be why Montana was ranked very low on a "hateability" index by Zippia for its list of "The Most (and Least) Hated States, According to its Neighbors and People Who Live There."

But it's not just Montana that was one of the least hated states.

Four Western States are Least Hated in America

The Mountain West took the top four spots for the least hated states in America.

How did they decide which states were hated? After all, Montana has been named one of the least friendly states in the past, but not being friendly isn't the same as being hated.

Related: Tourists Vote Montana One of the Least Friendly States

Zippia determined the most hated states by focusing on:

• if people who lived in the state didn't like it
• if the state's population was shrinking
• if other states said they hated that state

Given those parameters, it is easy to see that when locals weigh in about Montana, they think of Montana favorably. Here's how Montana and four other mountain states ranked:

• #4 Idaho
• #3 Montana
• #2 Utah
• #1 Colorado

Get our free mobile app

Most Hated States in America

With Colorado being the least hated state in America, which states are the most hated?

• #5 California
• #4 West Virginia
• #3 New York
• #2 New Jersey
• #1 Illinois

Even though California ranked overall as the #5 most hated state, Zippia's research showed it was the state most hated by other states. That probably won't come as a surprise to most Montanans.