Midwest Leads Nation in Online Swearing, Study Finds — Texas Ranks 4th

TEXAS (TXAN 24) — A new nationwide study suggests Americans aren’t holding back online, and the Midwest may be the most vocal of all.

Researchers analyzed subreddit posts across all 50 states to determine where profanity appears most often. The result? Iowa takes the crown as America’s most foul-mouthed state, scoring 9.39 out of 10 on a “rudeness” scale. The Hawkeye State averaged more than 12 profanities per 100 comments.

Close behind were South Dakota and Ohio, reinforcing what the data suggests is a Midwest trend in expressive online language.

Texas ranked fourth overall. While the Lone Star State logged more than 225,000 profanity-laced comments, one of the highest raw totals in the country, its ranking appears tied partly to sheer volume of users rather than frequency alone.

Across the country, one word dominated Reddit threads: “shit,” followed by “fuck” and “fucking.” Together, those three accounted for nearly 65% of all detected profanity.

On the opposite end of the spectrum, Arizona was ranked the cleanest state online, with the lowest rate of swear words per post and the highest positive sentiment scores. Washington, Delaware, Hawaii, and Rhode Island rounded out the top five most polite states.

The takeaway? Whether it’s politics, sports, or rush hour frustrations, Americans are venting online, just more colorfully in some states than others.