These 10 States Have the Worst Headache Problems in the US

• Mississippi is the state where people experience the most headaches, with over 441K people reporting pains and migraines. 

• Northeastern states dominate the ranking, with three states from the region experiencing the symptoms most often. 

• Pennsylvanians are looking up information about headaches and their remedies the most, with a rate of nearly 5K questions, double any other state.

More than 45M Americans experience recurring headaches each year, making them one of the most common neurological issues across the U.S. A new study by healthcare AI startup Ubie set out to identify the states where people are suffering from headaches the most.

The analysis considered two key health factors: the number of people reporting migraines and how many people are searching online for headaches and their remedies. These figures were adjusted per 100K residents for a fair comparison and combined into a State Headache Score, highlighting the states with the most neurological issues.

You can find the full research findings by following this link.

Here Is The Summary Of the Findings

Key Takeaway

Mississippi is the state where people are suffering from headaches the most, earning a score of 100/100. Migraines are especially common here, with over 26% of residents living with them, the second-highest share in the country. People are also actively looking for treatments and explanations, with 2.5K headache-related queries per 100K residents, the second-highest rate in the U.S.

Florida lands in second place with a headache score of 93. The state reports 3.3M residents living with regular pains, the second-highest total in the country. With a population of 14M, that equals 24K headache cases per capita. Each month, Floridians research headache medicine 74K times and gather general information 250K times.

Alaska ranks third, with a score of 89. Headache rates here are higher than in Florida, reaching a rate of 24.4K cases. Residents also turn to the internet more often, seeking information about headaches 2.7K times.

Arizona takes fourth place with a headache score of 83. Residents are looking for pain relief at one of the highest rates in the country, reaching 27.6K, almost three times more than in Mississippi. Migraines are also common, with 1.1M Arizonans reporting they suffer from this symptom.

New Jersey rounds out the top five states where people experience headaches most often, earning a score of 82. Migraines affect a large number of residents here, with nearly 1.4M people experiencing the symptoms. People look for headache treatment often, with 1.8K questions to Google each month. 

California holds sixth place, with a headache score of 80. The state stands out for having the largest number of residents living with migraines, at 5.8M, nearly 2.5M more than any other state on the list. Californians turn to the internet for answers the most, looking up headaches and their remedies close to 600K times each month.

New York follows closely in seventh place, with a headache score of 79. Like California, the state stands out with nearly 3M residents living with migraines. With a population of 14M, it means 1 out of 5 residents suffers from the symptoms. Looking online for information and pain relief is also common, with a rate of 2.3K questions, higher than both California and New Jersey.

Pennsylvania ranks eighth, with a headache score of 78. Pennsylvanians are dealing with the country’s highest rate of migraines, with nearly 30% of residents dealing with symptoms. People here are also looking up anything related to headaches more than anywhere else, with 5K queries each month, more than double any other state in the ranking.

Louisiana takes ninth place with a headache score of 75. Migraines impact nearly 18K residents per capita, and people are turning to the internet 1.7K times a month to look up everything from symptoms to remedies. 

Indiana takes tenth place and finishes off the list of the states where people are experiencing headaches the most, scoring 72. More people here suffer from migraines than in Mississippi, with around 1M residents affected and 600K more cases. Interest in headaches is high, with 1.6K people looking for info each month.

Kota Kubo, CEO and co-founder at Ubie Health, commented, “Headaches are often dismissed as something minor, but for many people, they’re a daily battle that chips away at focus, mood, and quality of life. What we’re really seeing is not just a health issue, but an invisible weight people carry into work, relationships, and everyday moments.”