Tag: What are the best state fairs in the United States

2024 “Top 30 State Fairs” List  

New: 2024 “Top 30 State Fairs” List  

Do you love state fairs like we do? Check out our new 2024 “Top 30 State Fairs” list. This second annual compilation is based exclusively on two factors: per day attendance numbers (total 2023 attendance divided by total days open) and their baking competitions (history of past Blue Ribbon Group special contests). Our other criteria? They have to take place the second half of the year, the Blue Ribbon Group official state fair season.
Attendances ranged from 27K to 153K for per day averages (based on top 30 list). That is A LOT of people through the gates each day. All take place in the second half of the year, with the majority happening in August and September.  The State Fair of Texas has the highest total  attendance – 2.5 million – but since it’s spread out over twice as many days as Minnesota and others, it lands in the 4th “best state fair” spot.
Top 30 State Fairs List - Best State Fairs

Big E Fair Added for 1st Time: Lands in Top 10

New to our “Top 30 State Fairs” list is the Big E, the biggest fair in Massachusetts.  I lands in the # 8 spot. The Big E is considered America’s only multi-state fair and is the largest in the whole NE region. As a result, we count the Big E as a state fair. It represents all of New England with entertainment, unique foods, competitions, and more. Per research, the Big E’s Massachusetts State Exhibition Hall literally pays homage to all six New England states: Massachusetts, Connecticut, Rhode Island, Maine, New Hampshire, and Vermont. We have had many cookie contests at the Big E in years past. Welcome to our best state fair list Big E!
The other biggest changes with our list:
  • Attendance leapt at many of the fairs, especially at Kentucky (up 14 percent) and at Wisconsin, Ohio, and New York, among others
  • Total attendance for all 30 top fairs jumped from 22.2 million fairgoers to 23.5 million
  • We narrowed the top 30 list to only have official state – or multi-state – fairs.
  • At the same time, we added 20 runner-up best fairs, an Honorable Mention list.

2024 Honorable Mention U.S. Fairs:

For the first time, we also compiled an “honorable mention list” of sorts, to include the largest county and regional fairs we have worked with over the years. This gives our list greater/deeper representation of the entire country.  Six land on the West Coast. Six land in the Northeast. The rest span the entire continental U.S.

Daily average attendance numbers range from 94K to 10K per day, which is how they are ranked here.
Since 2006, Blue Ribbon Group has managed special recipe contests at large state, county and regional fairs. Find a collection of winning recipes at BlueRibbonGroup.net and featured on BlueRibbonFoodies on Instagram and Facebook.

2023 “Top 30 State Fairs” List

2023 “Top 30 State Fairs” List  

As long-time state fair baking/cooking contest managers, the Blue Ribbon Group is excited to share, for the first time publicly, our 2023 “Top 30 State Fairs” list. With this list we offer our answer to the often-asked question: What are the best state fairs in the United States?

This new compilation is based exclusively on two factors: per day attendance numbers (total 2022 attendance divided by total days open) and their baking competitions (history of past Blue Ribbon Group special contests).  All 30 fairs have higher per day attendance than any other U.S. state fairs happening July to October each year.

2023 "Top 30 State Fairs" List

Top 10

Topping this 2023 “Top 30 State Fairs” list is the Minnesota State Fair, followed by the Tulsa State Fair, State Fair of Texas, Iowa State Fair, and Wisconsin State Fair. Here are the top 10, listed in order, followed by the complete list noting each fairs’ dates and attendance numbers. 

  1. Minnesota State Fair
  2. Tulsa State Fair
  3. State Fair of Texas
  4. Iowa State Fair
  5. Wisconsin State Fair
  6. North Carolina State Fair
  7. Oklahoma State Fair
  8. Ohio State Fair
  9. New York State Fair
  10. Illinois State Fair

Best State Fairs w/ Blue Ribbon Baking Contests

Awesome Attendance Numbers

  • Attendance numbers in 2022, ranged from 26,224 to 153,519 for per day averages, and 287,367 to 2,500,000 for overall total attendances.
  • All take place between July and November, with the majority happening in August, September and October. 
  • All are official state fairs with two caveats. The Tennessee State Fair and Wilson County Fair essentially merged in 2021, with the Wilson County Fairgrounds location becoming it’s home. The Salem Fair is the largest in Virginia with a 350,000 attendance in 2022.  

Since 2006, Blue Ribbon Group has managed special recipe contests at large state, county and regional fairs. Find a collection of winning recipes at BlueRibbonGroup.net and featured on BlueRibbonFoodies on Instagram and Facebook.