Just came across this breakdown of America's wealthiest states based on GDP, median income and poverty rates. Interesting to see how the rankings shake out. California leads with a massive 3.6 trillion in gross state product, followed by Texas at 2.4 trillion and New York at 2.53 trillion. Those three basically dominate the economy.

What's surprising though is that California's median income sits at around 84k, while Maryland actually has the highest median income at over 91k. So highest GDP doesn't always mean the best income for residents. Alaska and New Hampshire also have pretty solid median incomes despite smaller GDP numbers.

Looking at poverty rates, Utah and New Hampshire are doing pretty well at under 8-9%, but Texas and New York are higher at 14% and 13.5%. The data from mid-2023 shows these wealthier states still have significant variation in how prosperity is actually distributed. Worth noting that these rankings combine multiple factors - not just one metric. The richest states in America aren't just about raw GDP numbers apparently.