Columbus, Ohio, July 09, 2026 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine, Lt. Gov. Jim Tressel, JobsOhio President and CEO J.P. Nauseef, and Ohio Department of Development Director Lydia Mihalik today announced that Ohio has been named the No. 1 state for business in CNBC’s 2026 America’s Top States for Business rankings, the first time the state has held the top spot since the study launched in 2007. It is also the first time a Midwestern state has led the rankings since Minnesota in 2015.
Ohio climbed from No. 5 in 2025 to No. 1 in 2026, capping a run of five straight years of improvement and a rise of 33 spots since 2010, when Ohio ranked No. 34. CNBC’s study evaluated all 50 states across 138 metrics in 10 categories of competitiveness, the most metrics the study has ever used.
“This number one ranking proves that Ohio is the best place in America for business and all that comes along with it, including jobs, quality of life and opportunities for everyone to live up to their God-given potential,” said Governor DeWine. “Ohio’s long-term workforce and economic development strategy is working. We are outpacing every other state in the nation because we have worked together to create a strong economy, pro-business environment and a workforce that is ready to innovate.”
Ohio Investing in Workforce Development
Lt. Gov. Tressel, who leads Ohio’s workforce development strategy, points to the state’s focus on connecting Ohioans directly to in-demand careers as a major factor in Ohio’s successful strategy to become the top state for business.
“Opportunities are everywhere in Ohio right now! We have so many innovative workforce development programs that create talent pipelines that align with real employer demand, like WorkOhio and JobsOhio’s Experiential Learning Initiative, just to name a few,” said Lt. Governor Tressel. “We’re proud to be ranked as the No. 1 state for business, and it should come as no surprise. This ranking reflects years of hard work from our administration, the General Assembly and other partners across the state to attract new businesses, support the companies already calling Ohio home and prepare our workforce to succeed.”
Speed and Infrastructure
CNBC re-weights the study’s 10 categories each year based on the pitches states themselves are making to attract business. For 2026, Infrastructure became the top-weighted category for the first time, accounting for nearly 18% of a state’s score, as CNBC found states leaning harder than ever on their roads, bridges, ports, airports, project sites and utilities to win companies over.
For the first time, CNBC also factored the speed of state permitting processes into its rankings and added new metrics examining power grid generating capacity and costs, along with how states are treating emerging industries such as artificial intelligence, quantum computing and prediction markets.
Ohio’s performance reflects the categories CNBC weighted most heavily this year:
- Infrastructure (17.6% of total score): No. 1 rank, A+ grade. Ohio’s transportation network ranks among the strongest in the nation, anchored by the fourth-largest interstate highway system and the fourth-largest network of operating freight railroads in the country, along with the fifth-highest volume of warehousing and storage capacity in the U.S. The state sits within a one-day drive of 60% of the U.S. and Canadian populations. Ohio continues to expand its inventory of certified, industry-ready sites through the Brownfield Remediation Program and JobsOhio’s Ohio Site Inventory Program. House Bill 15, signed by Gov. DeWine, modernized Ohio’s energy policy for the first time in a generation, and the JobsOhio Energy Opportunity Initiative, an up to $100 million initiative, is helping communities prepare natural gas, nuclear and site infrastructure ahead of demand.
- Cost of Doing Business (11.4% of total score): No. 1 rank, A+ grade. Ohio has no corporate income tax. In 2025, Ohio doubled the exclusion amount from its Commercial Activity Tax from $3 million to $6 million, exempting about 90% of Ohio-based businesses. Ohio ranked No. 2 nationally for Cost of Doing Business in the 2025 CNBC study, for the second consecutive year.
Ohio also ranked in the top 10 in the study’s Economy (No. 9), Access to Capital (No. 9) and Cost of Living (No. 9) categories. Ohio holds a Triple-A bond rating from all three major credit rating agencies, a distinction reflecting decades of fiscal discipline. Since 2011, Ohio’s real GDP has grown by $154.1 billion, the largest increase in the Midwest and the 11th-highest in the nation, and Ohio ranks 7th nationally in industrial diversity, underscoring an economy built to support sustained growth across a wide range of industries.
“This Top State recognition belongs to Team Ohio,” said Nauseef. “Ohio succeeds because the state government, JobsOhio, the Ohio Department of Development, the JobsOhio Network Partners, regional economic development organizations, higher education, employers, workforce partners, Ohio business advocates, and local communities all work toward the same goal. That alignment is one of Ohio’s greatest competitive advantages.”
“Ohio didn’t become the No. 1 state for business overnight. We earned it by investing in our people, strengthening our communities, and creating an environment where companies can build for the long term,” said Director Mihalik. “Ohio offers low cost of doing business, low cost of living, and an exceptional quality of life—giving companies every advantage to grow while creating opportunity for the people who call Ohio home. That’s what it means to Have It All in the Heart of It All.”
Projects of Historic Scale
Ohio’s rise in the rankings has coincided with a string of the largest economic development projects in state history and JobsOhio’s current five-year strategy, JobsOhio 2030, which introduced the concept of super sectors to Ohio for the first time. Super sectors are cross-cutting trillion-dollar industries that converge with complementary technologies, markets, workforces, supply chains and customers – creating a hyper-growth ecosystem. These include Advanced Aerospace & Defense, Artificial Intelligence, Energy, Life Sciences & Biotechnology, and Semiconductors & Microelectronics.
- Intel’s semiconductor investment in Licking County stands as the largest capital investment project in Ohio history.
- Anduril Industries’ $910 million Arsenal-1 manufacturing campus in Pickaway County, expected to create more than 4,000 jobs, is the largest job creation project in Ohio history.
- Joby Aviation’s advanced air mobility manufacturing site is the largest aviation project in Ohio history.
- The LG Energy Solution-Honda battery plant – now known as L-H Battery Company – stands as one of the most significant global manufacturing investments ever made in the state.
Growth isn’t just happening with large companies; economic development in Ohio extends to small businesses and communities. Since 2019, JobsOhio has invested $24 million in small businesses through the JobsOhio Small Business Grant and $26 million in communities through its Vibrant Communities Program.
From 2019 through 2025, JobsOhio completed 3,117 economic development projects, a 59% increase over the prior seven-year period. Those projects created 159,000 net new direct jobs, grew annual payroll by 35% to over $9.2 billion, and more than doubled capital investment to over $99 billion, an increase of 117%.
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About JobsOhio
JobsOhio, Ohio’s private nonprofit economic development corporation, enhances company growth and personnel development through business attraction, retention, and expansion across ten competitive industry sectors. With a team of seasoned professionals, JobsOhio utilizes a comprehensive network to foster talent production in targeted industries and attract talent through Find Your Ohio. Collaborating with seven regional partners, including Dayton Development Coalition, Lake to River Economic Development, Ohio Southeast Economic Development, One Columbus, REDI Cincinnati, Regional Growth Partnership, and Team NEO, JobsOhio delivers world-class customer service to provide companies with a competitive advantage. Learn more about what makes Ohio the No. 1 state for business at www.jobsohio.com. Follow us on LinkedIn, X and Facebook.
For more information, contact:
Daniel Tierney, Governor’s Press Office
614-995-2500
[email protected]
Matt Englehart, JobsOhio
614-300-1152
[email protected]
Mason Waldvogel, Ohio Department of Development
614-466-2609
[email protected]
- Ohio Named Top State for Business