Ohio has retained its 35th position in the Economic Freedom of North America (EFNA) 2025 report, according to findings released by The Buckeye Institute and the Fraser Institute. The annual report evaluates economic freedom across all U.S. states, Canadian provinces, Mexican states, and Puerto Rico. Rankings are determined by examining government spending, taxation, and labor-market freedom.
“Ohio continues to rank in the bottom half of this year’s economic freedom rankings. While recent tax reforms have boosted Ohio’s score, government spending remains a drag on the state’s overall ranking,” said Aswin Prabhakar, an economic research analyst at The Buckeye Institute. “To continue climbing the EFNA rankings, lawmakers must address government spending while building on recent progress in tax policy and labor market reforms.”
For 2025, Ohio scored 6.08 out of a possible 10 points. In terms of government spending, Ohio ranked 39th among the states and Puerto Rico. However, the state improved in taxation; its adjusted ranking moved from 23rd place in 2022 to 18th this year. In labor-market freedom, Ohio slipped one spot to rank 31st.
The EFNA report used updated methodology for this edition and based its results on data collected in 2023.
