How well-rested is your ZIP code? In Boulder, Colorado’s 80305 ZIP code, just 22.8%, meaning fewer than 1 in 4, adults said that they got less than seven hours of sleep on a typical night, as sleep experts recommend at minimum. But in Jacksonville, Florida’s 32209 ZIP code, 54.3%, meaning more than half, of adults got less than seven hours of sleep. That’s a whopping 31.5-percentage point gap for that survey question. The typical U.S. ZIP code had about 1 in 3 adults (35.9%) saying they got less than 7 hours of sleep. Using the CDC’s most recent nationwide estimates, we ranked all 32,520 U.S. ZIP codes and dug into what some of the most-and least-sleep deprived ZIP codes in each state have in common, and you can look up yours, too.
Some ZIP Codes Have More Than Twice as Many Short Sleepers
Across ZIP codes with at least 10,000 residents, the proportion of adults sleeping less than seven hours ranges from 22.8% to 54.3%. In 104 of these ZIP codes, more than half of the adults sleep less than seven hours. Within a single state, the variation can be almost as broad as across the country. Florida’s range of variation between low and high is 29.0 percentage points (from 25.3% in Naples 34108 to 54.3% in Jacksonville 32209). South Dakota has the smallest range (7.4 percentage points).
South Dakota Sleeps Best; Hawaii Sleeps Least
In the typical ZIP code in South Dakota, only 29.5% of adults sleep less than seven hours a night. In Hawaii’s typical ZIP code, it’s 42.8%. Green (rust) bars show better (worse) values than in the nation’s typical ZIP code (35.9%).
State extremes in adult sleep patterns are nothing new. Eight years ago, South Dakota and Hawaii were also poles apart, albeit at the opposite ends of the rankings: In a 2014 survey by the CDC, Hawaii had the lowest percentage of adults reporting seven hours of sleep (56.1%), and South Dakota, the highest (71.6%). States in the Upper Midwest, Mountain West and Vermont tended to be on the more-rested end of the spectrum; Alaska, Hawaii, Appalachia and the Southeast on the less-rested end.
Hawaii’s Paradox: Long Lives, Short Nights
Hawaii women have the longest life expectancy of any state (83.1 years according to 2021 federal life tables), yet the typical ZIP there has the highest share of short sleepers (42.8%) in the country. Its most-rested ZIP code, Kailua-Kona 96740 (37.2% short sleepers) is still less well-rested than the typical ZIP in 33 states. Its least-rested, Waianae 96792 (54.2%), is also where 29% of workers endure an hour-plus commute in each direction (versus 6.7% in the typical ZIP in Hawaii). According to 2014 CDC data, Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander adults also reported the lowest share getting seven hours of sleep of any racial/ethnic group (53.7%).
Money Stress Is the Strongest Signal We Found
Other factors that compete for people’s 24 hours also correlate with short sleep: housing insecurity (r = 0.74), with prevalence rising from 31.3% in the fifth of ZIP codes with the most secure housing to 40.8% in the fifth with the least secure; food insecurity (r = 0.73); not having reliable transportation (r = 0.70); and poverty (r = 0.57). All this suggests that not getting enough sleep often comes down to circumstance, needing to work a second job, having to work at night, needing to crowd the kids onto the couch because you don’t have an extra bedroom, having no other option but to endure a two-hour bus ride each way, more than willpower. Note: housing, food, and transportation measures include data from 47 states. The CDC does not have data for FL, KY, PA, or VT for 2023 for these measures.
Long Commutes Matter Less than You’d Think; Working from Home Matters More
When commute time falls away, so does short sleep: ZIPs with the highest proportion of work-from-home residents contain 32.6% short sleepers, vs 38.4% where the fewest do. And the actual commute time has a minimal impact. While the typical ZIP in the top quintile for commute time has an average of 35 minutes one way, the commute length has almost no relationship with the prevalence of short sleepers (r = 0.11). In contrast, the share of people who work remotely correlates much more strongly (r = -0.43). But that share of work-from-home residents is tied up with how much money they make, because well-compensated workers are more likely to have remote work opportunities.
City or Country Makes Almost No Difference
For urban ZIP codes (which have more than 5,000 residents per square mile), the typical short-sleep share was 37.0%; for suburbs, it was 35.9%; small towns, 35.7%; rural ZIPs, 36.3%. There is no link at all between walkability and the amount of sleep people get in different areas (r = -0.03). Both the best-rested and the worst-rested lists include plenty of each. (Boulder and Montpelier made the top two lists; Detroit and Selma, Alabama, the bottom.)
Retirement Towns Rest Easiest
Among the 364 ZIP codes where at least 40% of residents are at least 65, the median short-sleep share is 30.9%, compared to 36.1% for a regular ZIP. Four state winners are retiree-heavy (Arizona, Delaware, Florida and South Carolina), while Laguna Woods, California, and The Villages, Florida, just miss. It fits the national survey: in 2014, 73.7% of adults 65 and older got seven hours, the highest of any age group.
College Towns Land Right in the Middle
All-nighters are a campus cliche, yet the 45 ZIP codes built around colleges and universities have a typical short-sleep share of 35.2%, close to the national 35.9%. They range from Hanover, New Hampshire (Dartmouth, 27.2%), to Tuscaloosa, Alabama (44.1%). In the CDC’s 2014 data, 67.8% of 18- to 24-year-olds got seven hours, more than any older group short of retirees.
Short Sleep Travels with Bad Days, Not with Diagnoses
ZIP codes with higher numbers of short sleepers have higher rates of frequent mental distress (≥14 bad mental health days per month) (r=0.62), higher rates of loneliness (r=0.59) and lower levels of emotional support (r=0.67). Surprisingly, the prevalence of ever being diagnosed with depression shows virtually no correlation at all (r=0.04). Your sleep is connected to how you feel from day to day, but it doesn’t seem to affect whether or not you’ve been formally diagnosed with a depressive disorder.
The Party ZIPs Aren’t the Tired Ones
The ZIP codes with the highest rates of binge drinking actually have fewer short sleepers (33.3%) than those with the lowest rates (38.1%; r = -0.32). This isn’t an argument for a nightly dose of alcohol. In fact, binge drinking is more prevalent in younger and wealthier ZIP codes (it drops as the percentage of people living in poverty increases, r = -0.33, and as the percentage of residents aged 65 and up increases, r = -0.38), and those places are getting better sleep for a variety of other reasons.
Where Nights Are Short, Lives Are Too
As for sleep, in the fifth of ZIP codes with the lowest life expectancy, 39.7% of residents sleep fewer than seven hours; in the fifth with the highest life expectancy, it’s 32.7%. The same applies to TheGreenest’s Wellness Score (r = -0.52), as well as obesity, smoking and physical inactivity, all of which had r values above 0.5. This is a correlation between neighborhoods, not evidence of causation between sleep and any of these.
How to Bank More of Your Seven Hours
And your sleeping environment (i.e., bedroom) needs to be conducive to sleeping. But that’s really the extent of environment setup for better sleeping, a one-time (well, maybe once in a while) setting of the stage. Everything else is really habits you need to follow on a regular basis. For instance, both the American Academy of Sleep Medicine and the Sleep Research Society recommend at least 7 hours of sleep for adults. The CDC offers more details, including 7 or more hours for ages 18–60, 7–9 hours for ages 61–64, and 7–8 hours for 65+. It also includes keeping to regular bed and waking times (even on weekends!), a quiet/relaxing bedroom that is a comfortable temperature, no screens before bed, not overdoing it on food/drink (especially alcohol and/or late in the day), cutting back on caffeine later in the day, and remaining physically active during the day.
The Best-Rested and Most Sleep-Deprived ZIP Code in Every State
Each state’s picks come from ZIP codes with at least 10,000 residents. Percentages are the share of adults who usually sleep less than seven hours.
Alabama
Just 9.5% of residents live below 150% of the poverty line (Alabama typical: 27%).
28% of adults report housing insecurity in the past year, vs 14% in the typical Alabama ZIP.
Alaska
Runner-up: Soldotna 99669 at 30.2%.
11% of households have no car, vs 4.9% in the typical Alaska ZIP.
Arizona
An age-restricted retirement community. 86% of residents are 65 or older, vs 17% in the typical Arizona ZIP.
Seat of the White Mountain Apache Tribe on the Fort Apache Indian Reservation. 36% of adults report housing insecurity in the past year, vs 12% in the typical Arizona ZIP.
Arkansas
20% of workers work from home, vs 5.0% in the typical Arkansas ZIP.
32% of adults report housing insecurity in the past year, vs 14% in the typical Arkansas ZIP.
California
7.7% of residents live below 150% of the poverty line, vs 18% in the typical California ZIP.
23% of adults report housing insecurity in the past year, vs 13% in the typical California ZIP.
Colorado
No commute for many: 40% of workers work from home (Colorado typical: 16%).
Only 5.1% of workers can work from home (Colorado typical: 16%).
Connecticut
Older than most: 30% of residents are 65+ (Connecticut typical: 18%).
30% of adults report housing insecurity in the past year, vs 8.2% in the typical Connecticut ZIP.
Delaware
42% of residents are 65 or older, vs 18% in the typical Delaware ZIP.
Getting around is harder: 29% of households have no car (Delaware typical: 3.8%).
District of Columbia
Just 3.8% of residents live below 150% of the poverty line (D.C. typical: 18%).
16% of workers commute an hour or more each way, vs 4.9% in the typical D.C. ZIP.
Florida
Only 2.2% of workers commute an hour or more each way (Florida typical: 7.8%).
52% of residents live below 150% of the poverty line, vs 20% in the typical Florida ZIP.
Georgia
5.5% of residents live below 150% of the poverty line, vs 25% in the typical Georgia ZIP.
25% of households have no car, vs 4.4% in the typical Georgia ZIP.
Hawaii
Runner-up: Kamuela 96743 at 37.5%.
Long drives: 29% of commuters spend 60+ minutes each way (Hawaii typical: 6.7%).
Idaho
Runner-up: Hailey 83333 at 28.6%.
Runner-up: Idaho Falls 83402 at 36.6%.
Illinois
Just 5.8% of residents live below 150% of the poverty line (Illinois typical: 17%). Tied with Lake Forest 60045.
35% of adults report housing insecurity in the past year, vs 10% in the typical Illinois ZIP.
Indiana
25% of workers work from home, vs 6.9% in the typical Indiana ZIP.
27% of adults report housing insecurity in the past year, vs 10% in the typical Indiana ZIP.
Iowa
Only 1.4% of workers commute an hour or more each way (Iowa typical: 4.2%).
28% of adults report housing insecurity in the past year, vs 8.5% in the typical Iowa ZIP.
Kansas
4.1% of residents live below 150% of the poverty line, vs 17% in the typical Kansas ZIP.
28% of adults report housing insecurity in the past year, vs 9.9% in the typical Kansas ZIP.
A pause between states: if your own ZIP code runs short on sleep, two items on the CDC’s list are a steady bedtime and a quiet, comfortable bedroom.
The Part You Set Up Once
Most of the spread in these cards tracks money, shift work and housing pressure. The bedroom is the one-time setup.
Kentucky
Just 7.7% of residents live below 150% of the poverty line (Kentucky typical: 28%).
Getting around is harder: 30% of households have no car (Kentucky typical: 5.3%).
Louisiana
No commute for many: 18% of workers work from home (Louisiana typical: 4.7%).
38% of adults report housing insecurity in the past year, vs 17% in the typical Louisiana ZIP.
Maine
2.8% of residents live below 150% of the poverty line, vs 19% in the typical Maine ZIP.
17% of adults report housing insecurity in the past year, vs 10% in the typical Maine ZIP.
Maryland
Just 3.7% of residents live below 150% of the poverty line (Maryland typical: 13%).
25% of adults report housing insecurity in the past year, vs 11% in the typical Maryland ZIP.
Massachusetts
4.7% of residents live below 150% of the poverty line, vs 11% in the typical Massachusetts ZIP.
12% of homes are crowded (more than one person per room), vs 1.0% in the typical Massachusetts ZIP.
Michigan
Just 6.0% of residents live below 150% of the poverty line (Michigan typical: 19%).
35% of adults report housing insecurity in the past year, vs 10% in the typical Michigan ZIP. Tied with Detroit 48213.
Minnesota
3.3% of residents live below 150% of the poverty line, vs 15% in the typical Minnesota ZIP.
27% of adults report housing insecurity in the past year, vs 8.7% in the typical Minnesota ZIP.
Mississippi
Just 5.9% of residents live below 150% of the poverty line (Mississippi typical: 32%).
34% of adults report housing insecurity in the past year, vs 17% in the typical Mississippi ZIP.
Missouri
2.8% of residents live below 150% of the poverty line, vs 23% in the typical Missouri ZIP.
34% of households have no car, vs 4.7% in the typical Missouri ZIP.
Montana
Just 9.6% of residents live below 150% of the poverty line (Montana typical: 21%).
33% of residents live below 150% of the poverty line, vs 21% in the typical Montana ZIP.
Nebraska
Runner-up: Lincoln 68516 at 27.6%.
29% of adults report housing insecurity in the past year, vs 8.3% in the typical Nebraska ZIP.
Nevada
Older than most: 30% of residents are 65+ (Nevada typical: 16%).
33% of adults report housing insecurity in the past year, vs 14% in the typical Nevada ZIP.
New Hampshire
Home of Dartmouth College; next-best ZIP without a campus is Dover 03820 at 29.7%.
15% of adults report housing insecurity in the past year, vs 7.8% in the typical New Hampshire ZIP.
New Jersey
34% of residents are 65 or older, vs 17% in the typical New Jersey ZIP.
52% of residents live below 150% of the poverty line, vs 9.6% in the typical New Jersey ZIP.
New Mexico
6.3% of residents live below 150% of the poverty line, vs 33% in the typical New Mexico ZIP.
A Navajo Nation community in the state’s northwest corner. Only 2.1% of workers can work from home (New Mexico typical: 9.1%).
New York
No commute for many: 21% of workers work from home (New York typical: 11%).
32% of adults report housing insecurity in the past year, vs 11% in the typical New York ZIP.
North Carolina
Just 5.5% of residents live below 150% of the poverty line (North Carolina typical: 24%).
Getting around is harder: 26% of households have no car (North Carolina typical: 4.4%).
North Dakota
8.3% of residents live below 150% of the poverty line, vs 16% in the typical North Dakota ZIP.
Runner-up: Minot 58703 at 39.0%.
Ohio
Just 4.5% of residents live below 150% of the poverty line (Ohio typical: 19%).
Unemployment runs 22%, vs 4.1% in the typical Ohio ZIP.
Oklahoma
13% of residents live below 150% of the poverty line, vs 27% in the typical Oklahoma ZIP.
15% of households have no car, vs 4.1% in the typical Oklahoma ZIP.
Oregon
29% of workers work from home, vs 13% in the typical Oregon ZIP.
9.9% of homes are crowded (more than one person per room), vs 2.6% in the typical Oregon ZIP.
Pennsylvania
Just 5.8% of residents live below 150% of the poverty line (Pennsylvania typical: 17%).
5.5% of homes are crowded (more than one person per room), vs 0.9% in the typical Pennsylvania ZIP.
Rhode Island
Runner-up: Tiverton 02878 at 29.1%.
5.5% of homes are crowded (more than one person per room), vs 0.6% in the typical Rhode Island ZIP.
South Carolina
Includes the Sun City Hilton Head retirement community. Older than most: 62% of residents are 65+ (South Carolina typical: 19%).
26% of adults report housing insecurity in the past year, vs 15% in the typical South Carolina ZIP.
South Dakota
9.9% of residents live below 150% of the poverty line, vs 18% in the typical South Dakota ZIP.
27% of residents live below 150% of the poverty line, vs 18% in the typical South Dakota ZIP.
Tennessee
Only 1.5% of workers commute an hour or more each way (Tennessee typical: 7.8%).
Unemployment runs 19%, vs 4.8% in the typical Tennessee ZIP.
Texas
Just 7.0% of residents live below 150% of the poverty line (Texas typical: 23%).
Unemployment runs 17%, vs 4.7% in the typical Texas ZIP.
Utah
6.1% of residents live below 150% of the poverty line, vs 15% in the typical Utah ZIP.
11% of workers commute an hour or more each way, vs 4.5% in the typical Utah ZIP. Tied with West Valley City 84119.
Vermont
No commute for many: 23% of workers work from home (Vermont typical: 14%).
Getting around is harder: 9.0% of households have no car (Vermont typical: 3.8%).
Virginia
35% of workers work from home, vs 10% in the typical Virginia ZIP.
28% of households have no car, vs 4.1% in the typical Virginia ZIP.
Washington
No commute for many: 36% of workers work from home (Washington typical: 13%).
Only 6.0% of workers can work from home (Washington typical: 13%).
West Virginia
Just 12% of residents live below 150% of the poverty line (West Virginia typical: 26%).
Only 1.8% of workers can work from home (West Virginia typical: 6.3%).
Wisconsin
Only 1.7% of workers commute an hour or more each way (Wisconsin typical: 5.6%).
37% of adults report housing insecurity in the past year, vs 8.8% in the typical Wisconsin ZIP.
Wyoming
Only 1.5% of workers commute an hour or more each way (Wyoming typical: 5.8%).
Only 2.1% of workers can work from home (Wyoming typical: 8.1%).
Sleep Is Local, but the Fix Starts at Home
The 31.5-point difference between Boulder and Jacksonville tracks money, work and time much better than population or location, and implies nothing about caring less about rest. If your ZIP code score is higher than 35.9%, you have plenty of company. Find the closest best-rested ZIP in the tool above and begin with the room you own.
Start With the Room You Own
The CDC list above starts with a quiet, cool bedroom. That is the piece you set once.
How We Did It
- Measure: short sleep duration, the share of adults 18+ who report sleeping less than seven hours in a 24-hour period on average, from CDC PLACES (2025 release, ZIP code tabulation area file, crude prevalence). In the 2025 release this measure is carried over from the 2022 Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System survey, which is why Kentucky and Pennsylvania are included.
- What the numbers are: model-based estimates, not a survey of each ZIP code. The CDC models answers by age, sex, race and ethnicity, education and county poverty, then applies them to each area’s population. Some of the patterns above are partly built into the estimates.
- Coverage: 32,520 ZIP codes in all 50 states and D.C. The typical (median) U.S. ZIP code is 35.9%; each state’s typical ZIP is the median of all its ZIP codes.
- Picks: lowest and highest share among ZIP codes with at least 10,000 residents (9,710 ZIPs; every state had at least 14). ZIP codes that are mostly a military installation were excluded (23511, 28307, 28547, 31905, 42223, 60088, 65473, 66442, 71459, 73503, 76544, 80902, 98433). College and retirement ZIPs were kept and noted. Ties go to the larger ZIP. Each ZIP is assigned to a state through a 2020 Census ZIP-to-county crosswalk.
- Comparisons: Pearson correlations (r) across ZIP codes with at least 1,000 residents. Commute and work-from-home shares: American Community Survey 2019-2023. Poverty and age: ACS 2018-2022 via the CDC Social Vulnerability Index. Housing, food, transportation and emotional support: CDC PLACES 2025 (2023 survey). Life expectancy: CDC/NCHS small-area estimates for 2010-2015. Density: 2020 Census land area. Correlation is not causation.
- Sources checked October 16, 2026; data file retrieved May 2026.
Cory Jones has spent 20 years in media and publishing and now leads the data and editorial operation behind The Greenest.
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