How Does MT and SD Rank When It Comes To Gambling Addiction?

Our friends over at WalletHub again crunched the numbers, and this time some states in the region are not hitting the jackpot.

The financial website looked at several factors, including casinos, gaming machines, and lotteries per capita, as well as gambling-related arrests and adults with gambling disorders, to find the states with the highest number of gambling addictions.

According to Psychology Today, gambling disorder affects about 1-3 percent of all U.S. adults. According to the Mayo Clinic, “Gambling can stimulate the brain's reward system much like drugs such as alcohol can, leading to addiction.”

Top 5 Most Gambling-Addicted States

Nevada
South Dakota
Montana
Pennsylvania
Mississippi

As we can see from the list above, both South Dakota and Montana are among the worst offenders.

South Dakota

South Dakota has some of the most casinos and gaming machines per capita and is the second-most gambling-addicted state. It also has the 10th highest lottery sales per resident age 18+.

In South Dakota, it is legal to bet on fantasy sports, regular sports, and horse races, and it also allows gambling machines to be put in stores.

Montana

Montana ranks third when it comes to gambling addiction, with approximately 2.5% of the state’s residents identifying as having a gambling disorder, one of the highest percentages in the country.

For a state with such a high addiction rate, Montana does not have gambling counselors and doesn’t require businesses to train their employees on disordered and problem gambling.

Source: WalletHub

Here is the complete list of how every state lines up with gambling addiction.

Most Gambling-Addicted States

Overall Rank*	State	Total Score	Gambling-Friendliness Rank	Gambling Problem & Treatment Rank
1	Nevada	71.83	1	1
2	South Dakota	65.62	2	15
3	Montana	58.59	7	5
4	Pennsylvania	53.75	6	22
5	Mississippi	52.98	8	21
6	Louisiana	52.68	4	37
7	Oklahoma	52.20	5	34
8	West Virginia	51.87	3	48
9	Oregon	50.51	10	8
10	New Jersey	50.41	9	19
11	Texas	47.77	26	3
12	North Dakota	46.49	11	31
13	New York	45.72	14	26
14	Illinois	45.08	15	29
15	California	44.72	23	14
16	Rhode Island	43.60	16	33
17	Wyoming	43.57	24	9
18	Tennessee	43.31	35	4
19	Iowa	42.27	17	41
20	Virginia	42.05	18	39
21	Michigan	41.76	12	47
22	Missouri	41.64	28	7
23	Delaware	41.59	20	36
24	Colorado	41.45	25	23
25	Massachusetts	41.07	21	32
26	Indiana	40.86	19	44
27	North Carolina	40.02	32	11
28	Minnesota	39.99	29	17
29	New Mexico	39.32	13	50
30	South Carolina	38.90	44	6
31	Arizona	38.64	31	18
32	Ohio	38.00	22	46
33	Idaho	36.87	38	20
34	Alabama	36.25	39	16
35	Maryland	35.86	27	40
36	Washington	35.00	36	30
37	Arkansas	34.76	37	28
38	Georgia	33.87	42	25
39	Kentucky	33.59	30	43
40	Florida	33.43	34	42
41	Kansas	33.38	43	24
42	New Hampshire	32.63	46	10
43	Hawaii	31.30	49	2
44	Wisconsin	30.90	41	38
45	Connecticut	30.19	33	49
46	Nebraska	29.52	40	45
47	Maine	29.26	45	35
48	Vermont	26.91	47	27
49	Alaska	26.64	48	12
50	Utah	24.45	50	12

Where To Find Gold In Montana

Montana is known as the Treasure State due to its abundance of precious metals. As long as you know where to look, these metals are still available. Take a look at some of the more popular areas for gold panning in Montana.

Gallery Credit: Canva, Jason Laird

Filed Under: Montana, South Dakota

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