Most Patriotic States in America (2026)

There are many different ways to express patriotism, from hanging up a flag or attending a parade to voting, joining the military or actively working to improve conditions for your fellow Americans. Being a patriot means loving your country and its people while also recognizing its flaws and striving to make it the best it can be. And there’s no better time to get into the spirit of patriotism than July 4th, the most patriotic day of the year.

In order to determine where Americans have the most red, white and blue pride on Independence Day and during the rest of the year, WalletHub compared the states across 13 key indicators of patriotism. Our data set ranges from the state’s military enlistees and veterans to the share of adults who voted in the 2024 presidential election to AmeriCorps volunteers per capita.

Most Patriotic States in the U.S.

Note: With the exception of “Total Score,” all of the columns in the table above depict the relative rank of that state, where a rank of 1 represents the best conditions for that metric category.

In-Depth Look at the Most Patriotic States

Virginia

Virginia is 2026’s most patriotic state. For every 100,000 civilians in Virginia, there are nearly 1,761 active-duty military personnel, the third-most in the country. And for every 1,000 civilians, there are nearly 103 veterans, the second-most in the country.

Old Dominion is also patriotic on the civic side. It has a high voter turnout rate, with 72.9% of residents having voted in the 2024 presidential election, compared to the national average of 66%. To top things off, Virginia has the fifth-highest number of peace corps volunteers per capita, and it is one of the many states that require standalone course in civics for high school graduation.

Montana

Montana is the second-most patriotic state, in part because it has a relatively large voter turnout. 69.2% of the state’s voting population turned out for the 2024 presidential election, and nearly 46% voted in the 2020 primary election (the highest primary turnout in the country).

Montana ranks second in the nation for jury service, a result of its notably high participation rate , it also has the second-highest number of Americorps volunteers, and over 37% of residents volunteer for some sort of organization in general. For comparison, in only 10 states, the volunteer rate is above 35%.

In addition, Montana has nearly 101 veterans for every 1,000 civilians, the fifth-highest number in the country.

Vermont

Vermont is the third-most patriotic state, with the second-highest volunteer rate, showing residents who volunteered for organizations in general and the highest Peace Corps volunteers per capita. Additionally, the Green Mountain State has the eighth-highest share of military reserves. Together, these rankings highlight Vermont’s strong commitment to civic engagement and community service.

Many Vermonters have also fulfilled their patriotic duty of jury service, with the state having the highest number of people per capita who served as jurors over the past year. In addition, Vermont has the highest Americorps volunteers per capita, so plenty of residents show their patriotism by serving others in need.

Blue States vs. Red States

The methodology can be found on the full version of the article on WalletHub.