Veteran planners know that what gets written down gets done, and the same goes for financial success. Companies and individuals who create a budget do a better job of managing their money.

Research indicates, however, that three out of every five adults do not effectively budget their money, and 13% have little idea of where their money goes. Armed with these assumptions, personal finance social network WalletHub recently conducted an in-depth analysis of 150 U.S. metropolitan statistical areas to see which had the best and worst budgeters.

Using 16 key metrics, ranging from credit scores to the number of unbanked households, WalletHub came up with the following lists:

Metro areas with the best budgeters included:

  1. Sioux Empire (Sioux Falls, S.D., metro area)
  2. Fargo/Moorhead, N.D.
  3. Rochester, Minn.
  4. Greater Twin Cities (Minneapolis/St. Paul metro area)
  5. Boston
  6. Cedar Rapids, Iowa
  7. Des Moines
  8. San Francisco
  9. Lincoln, Neb.
  10. Siouxland (Sioux City, Iowa, and surroundings)

Metro Areas with the Worst Budgeters

  1. Greater Jackson, Miss.
  2. Albany, Ga.
  3. Las Vegas Valley
  4. Gulfport/Biloxi, Miss.
  5. Columbus, Ga.
  6. Macon, Ga.
  7. Augusta, Ga.
  8. Alexandria, La.
  9. Shreveport, La.
  10. Savannah, Ga.

In terms of specifics, WalletHub measured and reported on a number of budgetary aspects.

The metro area with the highest credit score was Rochester, Minn. In the remaining top five, the Greater Twin Cities; Greater Green Bay, Wis.; and the Sioux Empire, S.D., tied for second place. Tying for fifth place were Madison, Wis.; Cedar Rapids, Iowa; and Fargo-Moorhead, N.D.

The lowest credit scores of 150 metro areas included: 150. Albany, Ga.; 149. Los Angeles' Inland Empire; 148. Brownsville, Texas; 147. Laredo, Texas; and 146. Greater Jackson, Miss.

Metro areas with the lowest non-mortgage debt as a percent of median income were: 1. Washington, D.C.; 2. San Francisco; 3. Honolulu; 4. Boston; and 5. Rochester, Minn.

Metro areas out of 150 with the highest non-mortgage debt as a percent of median income were: 150. Albany, Ga.; 149. Brownsville, Texas; 148. Monroe, La.; 147. Fort Smith, Ark.; and 146. Waco, Texas.

Other areas measured in the study included lowest and highest foreclosure rate, lowest and highest credit usage, and 12 other categories.

WalletHub suggested that in order to be better budgeters, consumers rank expenses, create an emergency fund, separate debt from daily expenses, pay off debt with the highest interest rate first, understand spending triggers and work to eliminate temptation to buy pricey unnecessary items.

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