Natural Hazard Intelligence
This State
Wants to Kill You
Every venomous creature, tornado corridor, earthquake fault, and disease vector — ranked.
50
States Analyzed
13
Hazard Vectors
3
Extreme Danger
9
High Danger
38
Avg Score
Sources: USGS · CDC · NOAA · USDA APHIS
All 50 States — Ranked #1 Most Dangerous
How the danger score is computed
Each state is rated on 13 hazards: black widow density, scorpions, venomous snakes, tarantula range, brown recluse range, armadillo-borne leprosy risk, mosquito-borne illness, Asian giant hornet range, and the risk of hurricanes, tornadoes, earthquakes, wildfires and floods. Ten of them get a level from minimal to extreme, worth 0 to 4 points, three (brown recluse, tarantula and hornet range) are yes or no, and each is multiplied by a weight that reflects how much harm the hazard does: hurricanes count 8, tornadoes 7, brown recluse and armadillo exposure 6, earthquakes, wildfires, scorpions and hornets 5, and the rest 3 or 4. The weighted points are added and scaled so a state carrying the worst level of every hazard would score 100. A score of 70 or more is labeled extreme, 50 to 69 high, 30 to 49 moderate and below 30 low.
In the current data, Texas scores highest at 81 and Vermont lowest at 15; 3 states are labeled extreme, 9 high, and the average across the 50 states is 38. Hazard levels come from the USGS seismic hazard model, NOAA hurricane tracks and tornado climatology, CDC disease surveillance, USDA APHIS and iNaturalist range data, and USGS wildfire science, as of May 2026. The score ranks exposure at the state level; a coastal county and an inland one in the same state face different risks, and the county map carries FEMA's county-level risk index for that.
Natural hazards are only part of the picture. Taxes, cost of living, healthcare, and crime all factor in.
Compare all 50 states on taxes, cost of living, and more →Sources: USGS National Seismic Hazard Model, NOAA National Hurricane Center historical tracks, NOAA Storm Prediction Center tornado climatology, CDC ArboNET mosquito-borne disease surveillance, USDA APHIS invasive species data, iNaturalist species range data, USGS Wildland Fire Science. Danger scores are composite indices across 13 weighted hazard vectors. Scores are for informational and entertainment purposes — actual risk depends on specific location within a state. Updated May 2026.