Here’s How Much Salary It Takes to Be ‘Happy’ in New York State

Sometimes we feel challenged here in the Empire State to make ends meet, and to have enough disposable income to really enjoy life to its fullest.

Researchers from Purdue University looked at stats from all 50 states to figure out how much money you'd need to reach an ideal level of "life satisfaction"--in other words, happiness with little stress. In almost every state, it's over 90 GRAND. First, the good news: New York doesn't rank at the bottom of this survey. But, here's the bad news: we're pretty close.

The study was published at GoBankingRates.com. They said "happiness" was "based on various income satiation levels, identified by Purdue University researchers. Global income satiation levels were defined as: $95,000 for 'life evaluation' and $60,000-$75,000 for 'emotional well-being'."

The state where happiness costs the most is Hawaii. Here are the five most expensive states for happiness:

1. Hawaii, $201,000
2. California, $145,000
3. New York, $144,000
4. Oregon, $141,000
5. Massachusetts, $137,000

The state where you can truly be happy on the cheapest budget is Mississippi at $89,000, followed by Oklahoma and Arkansas, both at $91,000.