13 States Where People Earn the Least From Their Investments

When investing, you should be thinking long term and not get caught up in calculating how much profit you can make off an investment right now, but ultimately, the value of an investment does come down to its profitability — which is realized in its net capital gains. This is the money you make when you sell an investment. You don’t see net capital gains until you sell an investment, and various factors come into play in the final amount, including taxes.

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Americans are selling assets and bringing in net capital gains everyday, but there are states where we see people making less money off their investments than in other states — in some cases, a lot less. SmartAsset recently ranked U.S. states by the average net capital gains reported on the latest tax return data (2022) from the IRS. Other types of investment gains were also considered. These are the 13 states where people made the least off their investments.

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13. Kentucky

• Average net capital gains: $25,037  

• Average taxable interest: $1,418   

• Average tax-exempt interest: $6,131  

• Average ordinary dividends: $9,396   

• Average qualified dividends: $7,665

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12. Indiana

• Average net capital gains: $24,600  

• Average taxable interest: $1,444  

• Average tax-exempt interest: $5,355 

• Average ordinary dividends: $7,255   

• Average qualified dividends: $5,835

11. Vermont

• Average net capital gains: $23,723  

• Average taxable interest: $1,537  

• Average tax-exempt interest: $5,593  

• Average ordinary dividends: $11,397   

• Average qualified dividends: $9,449

10. Missouri

• Average net capital gains: $23,669  

• Average taxable interest: $1,693  

• Average tax-exempt interest: $6,057  

• Average ordinary dividends: $11,736   

• Average qualified dividends: $10,216

9. North Dakota

• Average net capital gains: $23,127   

• Average taxable interest: $2,065  

• Average tax-exempt interest: $6,209  

• Average ordinary dividends: $7,466   

• Average qualified dividends: $5,568

8. Delaware

• Average net capital gains: $22,850  

• Average taxable interest: $1,726  

• Average tax-exempt interest: $5,545  

• Average ordinary dividends: $9,872   

• Average qualified dividends: $8,217

7. Alaska

• Average net capital gains: $22,829  

• Average taxable interest: $1,744  

• Average tax-exempt interest: $5,624  

• Average ordinary dividends: $7,035   

• Average qualified dividends: $5,757

6. Ohio

• Average net capital gains: $22,066  

• Average taxable interest: $1,640  

• Average tax-exempt interest: $4,912  

• Average ordinary dividends: $8,978  

• Average qualified dividends: $7,522

5. Michigan

• Average net capital gains: $21,585   

• Average taxable interest: $1,865  

• Average tax-exempt interest: $5,613  

• Average ordinary dividends: $9,750  

• Average qualified dividends: $8,094

4. Minnesota

• Average net capital gains: $20,552  

• Average taxable interest: $1,963   

• Average tax-exempt interest: $5,146  

• Average ordinary dividends: $8,549   

• Average qualified dividends: $6,983

3. Iowa

• Average net capital gains: $20,220  

• Average taxable interest: $1,680  

• Average tax-exempt interest: $4,673  

• Average ordinary dividends: $6,649  

• Average qualified dividends: $5,308

2. Wisconsin

• Average net capital gains: $19,590  

• Average taxable interest: $1,549  

• Average tax-exempt interest: $5,060  

• Average ordinary dividends: $7,855   

• Average qualified dividends: $6,358

1. West Virginia

• Average net capital gains: $14,612  

• Average taxable interest: $1,168  

• Average tax-exempt interest: $4,262  

• Average ordinary dividends: $6,438   

• Average qualified dividends: $5,408

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Sources

• SmartAsset, “Where Americans Earn the Most From Investments – 2025 Study“

This article originally appeared on GOBankingRates.com: 13 States Where People Earn the Least From Their Investments