When it comes to the energy-efficiency of states in the U.S., Oklahoma ranks 34th in a WalletHub study while South Carolina, West Virginia, Alabama, Mississippi, Arkansas and Tennessee are considered the least energy-efficient.
Who’s considered to be the most energy efficient? Vermont, California, Washington, New York and Massachusetts, in that order. WalletHub contended Vermont is number one because “it’s the most vehicle-fuel efficient in the country.” The study found that Vermonters drive an average of around 21 miles per gallon of gasoline, more than any other U.S. state.
The study concluded Oklahoma had a home energy efficiency ranking of 30 while its auto energy efficiency ranking was 36.
The average U.S. family spends at least $2,000 per year on utilities, according to the U.S. Department of Energy, with heating and cooling of spaces alone accounting for about half the bill. In 2022, the average consumer spent another $3,120 on motor fuel and oil.
Methodology
In order to determine which states are doing more with less energy, WalletHub compared 48 states across two key dimensions, “Home Energy Efficiency” and “Auto Energy Efficiency.” We obtained the former by calculating the ratio of total residential energy consumption to annual degree days. For the latter, we divided the annual vehicle miles driven by gallons of gasoline consumed to determine vehicle-fuel efficiency and measured annual vehicle miles driven per capita to determine transportation efficiency.
Each dimension was weighted proportionally to reflect national consumption patterns and graded on a 100-point scale, with a score of 100 representing optimal energy efficiency.
Finally, we calculated the total score for each state and used the resulting scores to rank-order our sample. Due to data limitations, we were unable to include Alaska and Hawaii in our analysis.
Home Energy Efficiency – Total Points: 50
- Home Energy Efficiency = Total Residential Energy Consumption per Capita / Annual Degree Days
Auto Energy Efficiency – Total Points: 50
- Vehicle-Fuel Efficiency = Annual Vehicle Miles Driven / Gallons of Gasoline Consumed
- Transportation Efficiency = Annual Vehicle Miles Driven per Capita
