Chronicle staff

(NATIONAL) -- Innovation is a principal driver of U.S. economic growth. In 2018, the U.S. will spend an estimated $553 billion on research and development — more than any other country in the world and over 25% of the world’s total — helping America rank No. 4 on the Global Innovation Index.

According to the results of the ranking, knowledge and technology outputs are America’s particular strengths.

But certain states deserve more credit than others for America’s dominance in the tech era. These states continue to grow innovation through investments in education, research and business creation, especially in highly specialized industries.

To define which states are the nation’s biggest contributors, the busy bees over at WalletHub compared the 50 states and the District of Columbia across 22 key indicators of innovation-friendliness.

Their data set ranges from share of STEM professionals to R&D spending per capita to tech-company density.

Turns out that our state of Washington ranks in the Top 5 (#3) in the country in leading the nation in innovation.

Here's a look at our strengths in innovation from that study:

Innovation in Washington (1 = Most Innovative, 25 = Avg.):

• 2^nd – Share of STEM Professionals

• 3^rd – Projected STEM-Job Demand by 2020

• 20^th – Eighth-Grade Math & Science Performance

• 3^rd – Share of Science & Engineering Graduates Aged 25+

• 12^th – Share of Technology Companies

• 7^th – R&D Spending per Capita

• 6^th – Venture-Capital Funding per Capita

For the full report, checkout:  https://wallethub.com/edu/most-innovative-states/31890/