Neighbor Ranks High For Gambling Addiction

South Dakota ranked No. 2 in WalletHub’s 2026 list of the most gambling-addicted states, while Minnesota landed 25th and Wisconsin sat near the bottom. (wallethub.com) WalletHub published the ranking on April 22, 2025, and compared all 50 states across 20 measures, including lottery sales per capita, the share of adults with gambling disorders, and the availability of treatment. The report put Nevada first, South Dakota second, and Minnesota in the exact middle of the national table. (wallethub.com) South Dakota’s position reflects how available gambling is there as much as how severe gambling problems are. WalletHub ranked the state second overall, with a gambling-friendliness rank of No. 2 and a separate gambling problem-and-treatment rank of No. 13. (wallethub.com) Minnesota’s profile looks different. The state ranked 32nd for gambling-friendliness and 17th for gambling problem and treatment, and the Minnesota Department of Human Services says treatment is available free of charge for qualifying residents through state-approved providers. (wallethub.com, mn.gov) Wisconsin ranked 44th overall in WalletHub’s list, placing it among the least gambling-addicted states in the country by this measure. Wisconsin’s Department of Health Services still describes gambling disorder as a public health issue that can lead to financial ruin, job loss, family breakdown, legal problems, and suicide in extreme cases. (wallethub.com, dhs.wisconsin.gov) The ranking lands as states across the Upper Midwest keep expanding how often residents can gamble, whether through casinos, lotteries, sports betting, or mobile apps. WalletHub said the U.S. gambling industry brought in a record $78.7 billion last year, while consumers lose more than $100 billion a year on gambling overall. (wallethub.com) State agencies in the region frame the issue as a behavioral health problem, not just a money problem. South Dakota’s behavioral health office says gambling can alter the brain’s reward system and says contracted substance-use providers can screen for problem gambling in person or by telehealth, with financial assistance available in some cases. (sdbehavioralhealth.gov) Minnesota’s own research shows how common gambling already is even in a middle-ranked state. In a statewide study prepared for the Department of Human Services, Wilder Research found 67% of Minnesota adults had taken part in some form of gambling in the previous year, including 53% who bought lottery tickets. (wilder.org) Those cross-border differences do not mean one state has solved the problem and another has not. They do mean South Dakota now enters policy debates over prevention, treatment access, and gambling expansion with a fresh national ranking near the very top. (wallethub.com, sdbehavioralhealth.gov)