Oklahoma ranks near the bottom for business in the U.S., scoring well in the cost category, but grading poorly in education, quality of life and workforce, according to rankings in a recent poll.
CNBC has released its 2026 “America’s Top States for Business” list, and Oklahoma came in at 39th out of 50 states.
Each state was evaluated based on 138 metrics across 10 categories of business competitiveness. CNBC’s rankings, according to the outlet, aim to reflect the factors that matter most to businesses when choosing where to locate operations, invest capital and create jobs.
States were scored on categories including workforce quality, infrastructure, the cost of doing business and quality of life.
For the 20th iteration of the rankings, CNBC reshuffled its methodology to reflect evolving corporate priorities. According to a methodology summary, infrastructure now carries the most weight in the rankings, a category that examines states’ transportation hubs, utilities, water access, energy systems and ease of permitting for development projects. That emphasis reflects increasing concerns from site selection consultants about aging infrastructure and regulatory bottlenecks that can sometimes delay major projects.
Economy ranks as the second-heaviest category, measuring GDP growth, job creation and market dynamics. Workforce came in third, addressing skills gaps that have left employers struggling to find qualified workers despite unemployment remaining low.
According to CNBC, the study has become a tool for companies to reference when evaluating potential locations, with states increasingly citing their rankings in their economic development marketing efforts.
How Oklahoma stacked up in the different categories
Oklahoma dropped two spots in the 2026 rankings from 37 last year.
Oklahoma’s performance in the rankings indicates that it possesses some competitive edges, but also human capital and quality-of-life challenges.
The state’s strongest area in the rankings is the cost of doing business. The Sooner State ranks third nationally in this category with an A+. Oklahoma ranks 19th for cost of living and 18th for business friendliness. Its infrastructure ranking jumped from 34 in 2025 to 21 in 2026.
As for weaknesses, Oklahoma ranks 48th in education, a category that business leaders in the state are increasingly citing during a time when reliance on skilled workers is only increasing. The state’s workforce quality follows closely behind at 42nd. Quality of life ranks 41st, economy dropped from 32nd last year to 41st, and access to capital sits at 33.
Referencing Moody’s and S&P, CNBC noted that Oklahoma has a Aa1, stable/AA+ bond rating.
Ohio takes the top spot, but are they a blueprint?
Oklahoma Gov. Kevin Stitt and the Republican-dominated legislature in recent years have zeroed in on tort reform, lower business filing costs, tax reductions and incentive funds to make the state more business friendly. But it’s Ohio, another state with GOP leadership and control of their legislature, that sits atop CNBC’s list for 2026.
There’s clear overlap between what Oklahoma has focused on, and what Ohio has prioritized.
Ohio House Speaker Matt Huggman, R-Lima, attributed their top ranking to legislation passed in the last 15 years. The Buckeye State rose in CNBC’s rankings from seven in 2024, to five in 2025 and one in 2026.
“Through responsible policies and investments, including the elimination of Ohio’s estate tax, flattening the personal income tax, business income deductions, regulatory reform, free market energy creation, substantial support for vocational training, tools for state and local economic development, and much more, we have continued to make Ohio the best place to live, work, raise a family and do business,” Huggman said in a release after the 2026 rankings were revealed.
Ohio’s legislature lowered their top tax bracket down from 3.5% to 3.125% in tax year 2025, and then further in 2026 to 2.75%. Gov. Mike DeWine signed House Bill 15 in May 2025, in an effort to create a framework that balances consumer protections and utility interests. It encourages new energy generation by reducing property taxes on new power plants and expands behind-the-meter generation rules.
But not everyone in Ohio attributes their ranking as validation of legislative efforts. Policy Matters Ohio believes the ranking reflects inherent advantages the state has.
Organization Executive Director Hannah Halbert said Ohio’s top ranking doesn’t reflect the reality that the most common jobs in the state pay too little for a single person to get by, much less a family.
She said decades of business-friendly tax policy, from the repeal of the corporate franchise tax, to the billion-dollar LLC loophole and the data center sales tax exemption (DeWine did order a freeze on this in May), have left their state without resources residents need, and the benefits haven’t trickled down as wages fall behind the pace of inflation and childcare remains unaffordable.
“If you look at the reasons behind the ranking, you’ll notice that they are built into the state itself: the people, the land, the infrastructure. It’s up to legislators to ensure that the businesses taking advantage of Ohio’s many assets are also taking care of Ohio’s workforce.”
Scott Cohn, journalist for CNBC, said more than 143 million people live within a day’s drive of Ohio, which gives Ohio companies better access to markets than any other state.
What Minnesota governor attributes top-five ranking to
Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz was in Oklahoma City last week for the National Governors Association 2026 Summer Meeting, which was hosted by Oklahoma Gov. Kevin Stitt. On stage during the meeting’s final day, Walz said Minnesota being ranked one of the top states to raise a family by WalletHub and fifth for doing business is evidence that improving life for residents is part of his legacy.
The North Star State received an A for quality of life, an A- for its infrastructure and economy, and a B+ for education as well as the technology and innovation categories in CNBC’s 2026 list.
Walz told meeting attendees Saturday that growing an economy and creating a successful state requires having healthy, well-educated people who have an opportunity to reach their full potential.
“I think for us, it’s that early stuff,” Walz said. “In Minnesota, we provide free breakfast and lunch to every single student, no questions asked. We also have a nation-leading child tax credit that we pay ahead of time on. Minnesota is one of three states with lowest childhood poverty, and those things are altruistic.”
Walz said when poverty is reduced, and families have meals, student achievement and graduation rates go up and the economy grows. He credits his state legislature for passing measures that create this ripple effect.
“(We pass) those things in a bipartisan manner,” Walz said. “I think many of you think of Minnesota as a blue state. My entire time, basically, that I’ve been governor, my state house is tied and the Senate is a one-vote majority, so we too have to work together. A lot of those things were able to be done bipartisan.”
Top/bottom states
Oklahoma coming in at 39 places it ahead of 11 states:
- 40. Vermont
- 41. New Mexico
- 42. Oregon
- 43. Mississippi
- 44. South Dakota
- 45. Montana
- 46. West Virginia
- 47. Louisiana
- 48. Rhode Island
- 49. Alaska
- 50. Hawaii
The highest-ranked states:
- 1. Ohio
- 2. North Carolina
- 3. Virginia
- 4. Texas
- 5. Minnesota
- 6. Michigan
- 7. Georgia
- 8. Florida
- 9. Tennessee
- 10. Indiana
