Rhode Island leads the top superstitious states in Duel.com study
Rhode Island emerged as the most superstitious state in the Duel.com study, posting a total of 9,012 superstition searches per 100,000 residents. Residents searched for luck, omens, and fortune-telling more than twice as often as those in low-ranking states. Horoscope queries formed the largest component of this activity.
Specific rates in Rhode Island included 7,214 horoscope searches per 100,000 people. Friday the 13th searches reached 721.4 per 100,000. Four-leaf clover searches totaled 247.6 per 100,000, and fingers crossed searches came to 75.4 per 100,000.
New York secured the second position with 8,301 total searches per 100,000 residents. Psychic searches hit 630 per 100,000, the highest rate nationwide. Horoscope searches numbered 6,119 per 100,000. Massachusetts followed in third place at 8,186 total searches per 100,000, logging 6,290 horoscope searches per 100,000.
Duel.com compiled the rankings by tracking Google searches for 13 keywords on good-luck rituals, bad-luck omens, and fortune-telling. The analysis spanned September 2025 to August 2026. Volumes were normalized against state populations to produce comparable per-100,000 figures.
The top 10 states by total superstition searches per 100,000 people appear in this order with their figures: Rhode Island at 9012, New York at 8301, Massachusetts at 8186, New Hampshire at 7783, Virginia at 7740, Maine at 7735, Nevada at 7700, Illinois at 7633, Connecticut at 7616 and Pennsylvania at 7516. The table also lists Friday the 13th, lucky number, four leaf clover and fingers crossed searches per 100,000 for each state.
Duel.com's spokesperson explained that superstitions survive since they give people a small sense of control when the outcome is out of their hands. Knocking on wood or carrying a lucky charm costs nothing and can calm the nerves before a big moment, making it a perfectly harmless comfort. The trouble starts when a ritual replaces a real plan, so luck should never be what a person leans on for choices involving money or safety. Enjoy the ritual, keep a clear head, and let facts, not omens, make the final call.
New Hampshire placed fourth with 7,783 total searches per 100,000. Its horoscope searches reached 6,189 per 100,000 and Friday the 13th searches 635.9 per 100,000. Psychic readings interested one in 280 residents. Virginia ranked fifth at 7,740 total searches per 100,000, featuring 770.3 Friday the 13th searches per 100,000 and horoscope interest from one in 17 people.
The report notes that 21 percent of Americans believe a broken mirror brings bad luck before presenting the state rankings derived from the search data.
