By Kamaron McNair—
CNBC
Across the United States, workers earn a median annual salary of about $48,080, according to the latest data available from the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS).
But in the three states where workers earn the least, the average annual salary is below $40,000 a year. And notably, all but two of the 10 lowest-wage states are in the South.
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Mississippi
has the lowest-income population in the country, with a median annual salary of just $37,500, according to the BLS.
This is due, in part, to the fact that Mississippi has one of the least educated populations in the country: Only 1 in 4 adults in the state have a bachelor's degree or higher, according to Federal Reserve data.
More education often comes with higher income, which helps explain why
Massachusetts
—the most college-educated state, where nearly 47% of its population has a college degree or higher—is also the best-paying, according to data from the agency.
A well-trained workforce can help attract businesses to the area and boost economic activity. That's partly why Mississippi is among some of the worst states to do business, according to CNBC.
These are the 10 states with the lowest annual salaries:
Mississippi
$37,500
Arkansas
$39,060
West Virginia
$39,770
Louisiana
$41,320
Alabama
$41,350
Oklahoma
$41,480
South Carolina
$42,220
New Mexico
$43,620
South Dakota
$43,680
Kentucky
$43,730
Although local incomes are low compared to the rest of the country, the cost of living is relatively cheap in most of these states, according to the cost of living index compiled by the Missouri Economic Research and Information Center.
The index shows that Oklahoma is the state with the lowest cost of living, and Mississippi is second in that category.
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Although most of the lowest-wage states are among the cheapest to live in, New Mexico and South Carolina are outliers in that metric.
According to the index, New Mexico is the 20th lowest cost of living state and South Carolina falls right in the middle of all states.