The definitive American
relocation reference.
Nine million data points. Fifty states. Every tax that matters. Live or Die Here is a non-partisan data publication built for the most consequential decision of your adult life — where to live.
What We Do
Most people choose a state based on where they grew up, where a job is, or where someone they love lives. Rarely on the actual numbers — because finding those numbers takes weeks and still leaves gaps.
We built the tool we wished existed: every meaningful dimension of state-level life in one place, updated continuously from primary government sources, presented without editorial spin.
The interactive map scores all 50 states — and thousands of counties — against your personal priorities. Income tax. Property tax. Gun laws. Crime. Life expectancy. School quality. Days of sunshine. The weight of each factor is yours to set.
We don't tell you where to live. We give you the data to decide for yourself.
The Data
All data is sourced from free public datasets — Census Bureau, CDC, federal agencies, and open research organizations. Nothing is paywalled. Nothing is estimated. Every value traces to a primary source.
U.S. Census Bureau (ACS 5-Year)
Income, housing, poverty, demographics — tract to state
8.85M
records
2022
vintage
County Health Rankings
Life expectancy, obesity, uninsured rates, air quality
98K
records
2024
vintage
CDC PLACES
22 county-level health measures
62K
records
2023
vintage
Redfin Market Tracker
Days on market, sale-to-list ratio, months of supply
10.8K
records
Weekly
vintage
Zillow Research
Home value index, for-sale inventory, price cuts, new listings
11.6K
records
Monthly
vintage
BLS Quarterly Census of Employment & Wages
Average annual wages and industry employment mix by county
9.6K
records
2024
vintage
USDA Food Environment Atlas
Grocery store access, food insecurity rate, diabetes & obesity by county
22K
records
2020–23
vintage
USDA Natural Amenities Scale
County-level climate score: winter warmth, sunshine, humidity, topography, water
18.6K
records
—
vintage
USDA County Typology Codes
13 county economic flags: farming, mining, manufacturing, recreation, retirement, persistent poverty
40.9K
records
2025
vintage
USDA Rural-Urban Continuum Codes
9-level urban to rural county classification
3.2K
records
2023
vintage
MIT Election Lab / MEDSL
2024 presidential county margins
3.1K
records
2024
vintage
OpenElections
Actual 2024 presidential precinct results aggregated to county
582
records
2024
vintage
HUD Fair Market Rents
Rental costs by bedroom type
2.5K
records
2026
vintage
BLS Labor Area Unemployment Statistics
State unemployment rates
52
records
2025
vintage
CMS Hospital Compare
Hospital quality star ratings by state
100
records
2024
vintage
NCES Common Core of Data
Per-pupil spending, graduation rates, pupil-teacher ratio
150
records
2023
vintage
U.S. Religion Census (USRC 2020)
State-level adherents by denomination: Catholic, Evangelical, Mainline, LDS, Muslim, Jewish, Buddhist, Hindu
50 states × 10 denominations
records
2020
vintage
DISA State Marijuana Laws
Cannabis legalization status (recreational/medical/decriminalized/prohibited) updated continuously
50 states
records
Live
vintage
KFF State Health Facts
Abortion gestational limits by state
50 states
records
Live
vintage
MERIC Cost of Living Data Series
Composite and component cost of living indices (grocery, housing, utilities, transport, health)
50 states
records
Quarterly
vintage
FEMA National Risk Index
Natural hazard risk composites: tornado, hurricane, wildfire, flood, winter storm by state
50 states
records
2024
vintage
American Gaming Association (AGA)
Sports betting legality, commercial and tribal casino status, online gambling status
50 states
records
2024
vintage
VA.gov / Military.com State Benefits Guide
Veteran property tax exemptions, military pay income tax treatment, veteran population share
50 states
records
2025
vintage
American Pyrotechnics Association (APA)
Consumer fireworks legality by state: aerial, ground, sparkler-only, or prohibited
50 states
records
2025
vintage
NCSL / SIECUS / Guttmacher Institute
Age of consent laws, sex education mandates and grades, reproductive law classifications
50 states
records
2026
vintage
Brewers Association / TTB Craft Distillery Registry
Craft breweries per capita, distillery count, major live music venue density
50 states
records
2024
vintage
State Wildlife Agencies / USFS / BLM
Hunting and fishing grades, public land percentage, resident license costs, key species seasons
50 states
records
2026
vintage
NOAA Climate Normals (1991–2020)
Average, max, and min temperatures by county; used for climate scoring
3.1K
records
2020
vintage
EPA Air Quality System (AQS)
Median AQI, good-air days, and unhealthy-air days by county
1.2K
records
2024
vintage
Ookla Speedtest Intelligence
Average download and upload speeds by county; broadband quality proxy
3.1K
records
2024
vintage
IRS Statistics of Income — Migration Data
Net migration flows and wealth premium (income per return) by county
3.2K
records
2022
vintage
Opportunity Insights (Harvard / Brown)
Income mobility index — expected income at 35 for children raised in poverty (p25) by county
3.1K
records
2018
vintage
Data is managed by DataSpine, the Artists & Robots geographic intelligence API — 9M+ data points across 331,007 geographies.
Advertise With Us
Our readers are actively deciding where to move, retire, or buy a home. That makes them in-market for mortgages, real estate services, financial planning, insurance, and relocation logistics — at the moment they're ready to act.
We work with partners whose products genuinely serve people making major life decisions. No spray-and-pray. Placements are contextual and editorial-first.
Mortgage lenders & brokers
Real estate platforms
Financial advisors & planning tools
Moving & relocation services
Home & renters insurance
State-specific legal services
Custom Data Requests
Need a custom dataset? We can pull bespoke state and county comparisons from our geographic intelligence layer — income distributions, health outcomes, housing cost indices, political lean scores, and more — matched to your exact use case.
We work with journalists, researchers, real estate analysts, HR teams benchmarking relocation packages, and businesses evaluating new markets.
Journalists & newsrooms
Academic researchers
Corporate site selection teams
Real estate & investment analysts
HR & talent mobility teams
Developers via DataSpine API
Developer? DataSpine API →
Editorial Team
Dana Mercer
Tax Research EditorFormer licensed CPA who spent eight years in state and local tax consulting before moving to data journalism. Dana specializes in translating tax code into real decisions — where to live, how to structure retirement, and what the effective rate actually costs you. She has advised clients in 14 states on domicile strategy.
Covers: Taxes
Marcus Webb
Relocation Intelligence EditorEx-residential real estate analyst with a decade tracking migration data across the Sun Belt and Mountain West. Marcus left the industry to write about it when he realized most relocation guides were written by people who had never moved. He has lived in seven states and counting.
Covers: Relocation · Crime & Safety
Sonia Varga
Policy & Lifestyle EditorSpent six years as a policy reporter covering state legislatures before joining Live or Die Here. Sonia tracks the laws that shape daily life — gun regulations, reproductive rights, labor protections, and the political shifts that change them. She reads primary legislation so readers don't have to.
Covers: Policy & Lifestyle
Cal Hendricks
Health & Environment EditorFormer public health researcher who spent five years analyzing county-level health outcomes at a university policy center. Cal now applies that rigor to questions about where Americans can expect the longest lives, best-funded schools, and lowest exposure to natural disaster risk.
Covers: Schools · Climate & Environment · Healthcare
Editorial Standards
Live or Die Here publishes data-driven analysis of state-level taxes, laws, and cost of living. All statistics are sourced from government datasets, academic research, or authoritative third-party sources and are current as of publication date. Posts are updated when material facts change. We do not accept sponsored content or affiliate placement that influences editorial coverage. Data carries inherent limitations — always consult a licensed professional before making relocation or financial decisions.