The Bureau of Economic Analysis recently issued GDP numbers for 2012, along with revised data for previous years, so I thought it would be interesting to make a Midwest GDP and income comparison.

First, let’s look at how Ohio is doing in relation to the other Midwest states.

2012 Gross Domestic Product By State in Millions, Highest to Lowest
1. Illinois: $695,238
2. Ohio: $509,393
3. Michigan: $400,504
4. Indiana: $298,625
5. Minnesota: $294,729
6. Wisconsin: $261,548
7. Missouri: $258,832
8. Iowa: $152,436
9. Kansas: $138,953
10. Nebraska: $99,557
11. North Dakota: $46,016
12. South Dakota: $42,464

Total Midwest GDP in 2012 in Millions: $3,198,295

So Ohio has the 2nd largest economy in the Midwest, only behind Illinois and its Chicago powerhouse. Ohio has also reclaimed its spot as the 7th largest state economy after catching up to and surpassing New Jersey, which passed Ohio in 2006.

Ohio’s more than half-trillion economy is also growing faster than almost every state in the Midwest, as shown below.

Total GDP Change 2000-2012 in Millions, Highest to Lowest
1. Illinois: +$220,718
2. Ohio: +$128,498
3. Minnesota: +$105,911
4. Indiana: +$100,387
5. Wisconsin: +$84,193
6. Missouri: +$77,865
7. Michigan: +$63,045
8. Iowa: +$59,124
9. Kansas: +$53,231
10. Nebraska: +$42,224
11. North Dakota: +$27,750
12. South Dakota: +$18,426

Difference in Millions Between Ohio’s GDP and that of Other States 2000 and 2012
Ohio vs. Illinois
2000: -$93,865
2010: -$185,845
Ohio vs. Indiana
2000: $182,657
2010: $210,768
Ohio vs. Iowa
2000: $287,583
2010: $356,957
Ohio vs. Kansas
2000: $295,173
2010: $370,440
Ohio vs. Michigan
2000: $43,436
2010: $108,889
Ohio vs. Minnesota
2000: $192,077
2010: $214,664
Ohio vs. Missouri
2000: $199,928
2010: $250,561
Ohio vs. Nebraska
2000: $323,562
2010: $409,836
Ohio vs. North Dakota
2000: $362,629
2010: $463,377
Ohio vs. South Dakota
2000: $356,857
2010: $466,929
Ohio vs. Wisconsin
2000: $203,540
2010: $247,845

So Ohio has increased its GDP lead over every Midwest state except for Illinois.

Per-Capita GDP, however, is not Ohio’s strong point.

2012 Per-Capita GDP in Dollars, Highest to Lowest
1. North Dakota: $55,250
2. Minnesota: $47,028
3. Illinois: $46,161
4. Nebraska: $44,943
5. South Dakota: $43,181
6. Iowa: $42,222
7. Kansas: $41,070
8. Wisconsin: $39,308
9. Indiana: $39,065
10. Ohio: $37,690
11. Missouri: $36,815
12. Michigan: $35,298

Per-Capita GDP, does not tell us income, however.

2012 Per-Capita Income By State, Highest to Lowest
1. North Dakota: $51,893
2. Minnesota: $46,227
3. Illinois: $44,815
4. South Dakota: $43,659
5. Nebraska: $43,143
6. Iowa: $42,126
7. Kansas: $41,835
8. Wisconsin: $40,537
9. Ohio: $39,289
10. Missouri: $39,049
11. Michigan: $37,497
12. Indiana: $36,902

Ohio does slightly better here. The question would be, why is Ohio’s so low in comparison? It may have a bit to do with the overall cost of living, at least according to this cost of living index.m

Cost of Living Rank by State (out of 50), 2nd Quarter 2013
Nebraska: 2
Indiana: 5
Iowa: 9
Kansas: 11
Ohio: 13
Missouri: 16
Michigan: 19
Illinois: 20
Wisconsin: 23
North Dakota: 30
South Dakota: 31
Minnesota: 34

Ohio is less expensive to live in than 7 of the other Midwest states and is cheaper than 37 states in total. This almost certainly plays a role in wages. All in all, perhaps the state is far better off economically than the perception may indicate, at least by these metrics.