Best & Worst States for Women
With March being Women’s History Month and women holding only around a quarter of the seats in Congress despite making up 51% of the population, the personal-finance website WalletHub today released its report on 2023’s Best & Worst States for Women, as well as expert commentary.
To identify the most women-friendly states, WalletHub compared the 50 states and the District of Columbia across 25 key metrics. The data set ranges from median earnings for female workers to women’s preventive health care to the female homicide rate.
Best States for Women
| Rank | States |
| 1 | Vermont |
| 2 | New York |
| 3 | Massachusetts |
| 4 | Minnesota |
| 5 | Connecticut |
| 6 | District of Columbia |
| 7 | Washington |
| 8 | Rhode Island |
| 9 | Hawaii |
| 10 | New Jersey |
Worst States for Women
| Rank | State |
| 42 | Idaho |
| 43 | West Virginia |
| 44 | Texas |
| 45 | South Carolina |
| 46 | Georgia |
| 47 | Alabama |
| 48 | Arkansas |
| 49 | Louisiana |
| 50 | Mississippi |
| 51 | Oklahoma |
Best vs. Worst
- The District of Columbia has the highest median earnings for female workers (adjusted for cost of living), $42,254, which is 1.7 times higher than in Hawaii, the lowest at $25,498.
- The District of Columbia has the highest share of women who voted in the 2020 presidential election, 86.00 percent, which is 1.5 times higher than in West Virginia, the lowest at 56.00 percent.
- New Hampshire has the lowest share of women living in poverty, 8.30 percent, which is 2.6 times lower than Mississippi, the highest at 21.40 percent.
- Alaska has the highest share of women-owned businesses, 24.71 percent, which is 1.6 times higher than in West Virginia, the lowest at 15.18 percent.
- Massachusetts has the lowest female uninsured rate, 2.20 percent, which is 7.6 times lower than in Texas, the highest at 16.80 percent.
