The Happiness Benchmark for Each State

Despite the saying, money can buy happiness—but only up to a certain point. For each state, the annual salary you need to make before more money won't make you any happier is contingent, understandably, on the cost of living. The Huffington Post developed this map to show the happiness-plateau salary for each state based on new analysis by Doug Short, vice president of research at investment group Advisor Perspectives. Short's analysis combines the findings of a 2010 Princeton study by Daniel Kahneman and Angus Deaton, which set the national "happiness-benchmark" at $75,000 per year, with data about the cost of living in each state.

Check out the chart below for a state-by-state breakdown of exact salaries:

As a caveat, "happiness" here is taken to mean "the pleasure you derive from day-to-day experiences." Your "life evaluation," however, is likely to continue to rise along with your income.

The Afternoon Map is a semi-regular feature in which we post maps and infographics. In the afternoon. Semi-regularly. Thanks to Jan Diehm and Kevin Short of Huffington Post for this one.