Is this town really the worst place to live in Arizona? Find out why a study says so

March 11, 2025

0 2 minutes read

Arizona is home to several of the best cities to live in, top places to retire and bucket list travel destinations.

But is there a worst place to live? And what Arizona city would make that list?

A new rankings report from 24/7 Wall St. claims to have found the worst place in each state to live, and New Kingman-Butler was identified as the worst city to live in Arizona.

If you thought this meant Kingman, you’d be wrong, too. The two places are different. Kingman is a historic town in northeast Arizona that travelers typically pass through on their way to Las Vegas, and New Kingman-Butler is an unincorporated town located about 20 minutes north of Kingman.

Travel: This Arizona city is a bucket list travel destination next to towns in Fiji and Egypt

Where is New Kingman-Butler?

New Kingman-Butler is often considered part of the greater Kingman area, but it’s governed by Mohave County. Children in the town usually attend schools within the Kingman Unified School District, though.

The name “New Kingman” comes from (you guessed it) the town’s proximity to Kingman. It was the name of the original real estate development, but the first part of its name is seldom used by residents today.

“Butler” is named after Leroy Butler, the original land developer. The town is usually referred to as just “Butler,” except when it’s mentioned in a historical context.

Over the years, there have been several attempts to annex Butler into the city of Kingman. Annexation has repeatedly failed, partially because Butler does not have a developed sanitary sewer system. All residents and buildings have individual septic tanks and it would be costly to develop and connect a sewer system to Butler.

Why was Butler ranked the worst city to live in?

Wall St. 24/7 determined Butler was the worst state to live in from data on five different categories: poverty rate, median home value, median household income, drug-induced mortality rate and total population.

Here’s how Butler compares to Arizona as a whole:

Butler

Median home value: $79,000
Median household income: $42,604 (as of 2023, according to the U.S. Census Bureau)
Drug-induced mortality: 27.8 deaths per 100,000
Total population: 12,907 (as of 2020, according to the U.S. Census Bureau)

Arizona

Poverty rate: 12.4% (as of 2023, according to the U.S. Census Bureau)
Median home value: $265,600
Median household income: $76,872 (as of 2023, according to the U.S. Census Bureau)
Drug-induced mortality: 34.4 per 100,000
Total population: 7,151,502 (as of 2020, according to the U.S. Census Bureau)