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The 10 best states in the US for women and the 10 worst

Gabbi Shaw   

The 10 best states in the US for women — and the 10 worst
A Women in Tech exhibition.Sam Barnes/Sportfile/Getty Images
  • For Women's History Month, WalletHub identified the best and worst states for women in 2022.
  • Factors included median earnings, depression rate, the number of women-owned businesses, and more.

Starting off with the top 10 states for women, No. 10 is Rhode Island.

Starting off with the top 10 states for women, No. 10 is Rhode Island.
Providence, Rhode Island.      Sean Pavone/Getty Images

According to the WalletHub study, Rhode Island was ninth in the category of Women's Health Care & Safety. This category includes the rate of uninsured women — Rhode Island had the fifth lowest rate of uninsured women.

In ninth place is Washington state.

In ninth place is Washington state.
Thousands march through the streets of Seattle.      GENNA MARTIN/San Francisco Chronicle via Getty Images

Washington, on the other hand, was No. 7 for Women's Economic & Social Well-Being, which includes categories like median earnings for female workers, the unemployment rate for women, and friendliness toward working moms.

The eighth best state for women is the Hawkeye State, Iowa.

The eighth best state for women is the Hawkeye State, Iowa.
Des Moines, Iowa.      George Cole / EyeEm/Getty Images

Even though Iowa still ranked high, it had one of the lowest percentages of female-owned businesses, coming in at No. 49. Despite this, Iowa was still able to come in at No. 4 in Women's Economic & Social Well-Being.

Maryland took the seventh spot.

Maryland took the seventh spot.
The Maryland Terrapins celebrate their victory.      Greg Fiume/NCAA Photos via Getty Images

Maryland had the fifth highest percentage of women who voted in the 2020 election, and it had the second lowest rate of women in poverty, according to WalletHub.

Rounding out the back half of the top 10 is Vermont at No. 6.

Rounding out the back half of the top 10 is Vermont at No. 6.
People walk along Church street in Burlington, Vermont.      Ed Jones/AFP/Getty Images

Vermont has the third lowest rate of uninsured women, only behind Washington, DC, and Massachusetts.

Beginning the top five states for women is a place that's not even technically a state — it's Washington, DC.

Beginning the top five states for women is a place that
Demonstrators gather for the 4th annual Womens March in Washington, DC.      ANDREW CABALLERO-REYNOLDS/AFP/Getty Images

DC has the highest median earnings for female workers in the country (adjusted for cost of living), which is $36,309. That's a whole 1.5 times higher than California's, which is $24,585.

Our capital also had the highest share of women who voted in the last presidential election: 86% of DC's ladies turned up to the polls in 2020.

Hawaii clinched the No. 4 spot.

Hawaii clinched the No. 4 spot.
A Hula performance in Honolulu, Hawaii.      DEA / M. BORCHI/Getty Images

Hawaii has the highest rate of women-owned businesses — almost a quarter of all businesses in the Aloha State are owned by women. That's twice as many as South Dakota, which is in the No. 51 spot.

New York is the third best state for women, according to WalletHub.

New York is the third best state for women, according to WalletHub.
A woman jogs along the Brooklyn Heights promenade on March 24, 2020, in New York City.      ANGELA WEISS/AFP via Getty Images

New York women have the third longest life expectancy at birth in the country, and they have the fifth highest median earnings.

Conversely, New York is also third for the highest unemployment rate for women in the country, only lower than California and Nevada.

Falling just short of the top spot is Minnesota, which came in second.

Falling just short of the top spot is Minnesota, which came in second.
A jogger crossing Minneapolis' famous Stone Arch Bridge.      jimkruger/Getty Images

Minnesota actually came in first for Women's Economic & Social Well-Being, but it was knocked out of the top spot overall because of its sixth placement in Women's Health Care & Safety ... even though Minnesotan women have the fifth highest life expectancy at birth and the fourth lowest female homicide rate, and the state is tied for fourth for lowest percentage of women in poverty.

Overall, according to WalletHub, the best place to be a woman in the US is Massachusetts.

Overall, according to WalletHub, the best place to be a woman in the US is Massachusetts.
A doctor at Brigham and Women's Hospital in Boston.      Jessica Rinaldi/The Boston Globe via Getty Images

Massachusetts has the lowest rate of uninsured women — only 2.1% of women in Massachusetts are uninsured. Contrast that to the state with the highest rate of uninsured women, Texas, which is seven times higher at 16.5%.

Now, moving to the worst states. The 10th worst place to be a woman is Alaska, according to WalletHub.

Now, moving to the worst states. The 10th worst place to be a woman is Alaska, according to WalletHub.
An Alaskan Inuit woman on Sarichef Island, Alaska.      Gilles Mingasson/Getty Images

Alaska is tied with New Mexico for the highest female homicide rate, which is nine times higher than the lowest state, Hawaii. Alaska is also No. 49 in female insurance rates.

The next state is Georgia.

The next state is Georgia.
A woman holds a clothes hanger with a sign that says "stop the bans" during a protest in Atlanta.      Elijah Nouvelage/Getty Images

Georgia has one of the lowest rates for high school graduations for females, and it also has a high percentage of uninsured women.

Texas is, according to WalletHub, the eighth worst state to be a woman.

Texas is, according to WalletHub, the eighth worst state to be a woman.
A woman jogging in Houston, Texas.      Terry Vine/Getty Images

As stated before, Texas comes in last for the rate of insured women or, alternately, in first for the rate of uninsured women.

Idaho earned the No. 7 placement.

Idaho earned the No. 7 placement.
The Idaho Statehouse at the women's march in downtown Boise.      Darin Oswald/Idaho Statesman/Tribune News Service via Getty Images

Idaho was ranked 50th for median earnings for female workers, only ahead of California. Idaho was also 49th in the percentage of women-owned businesses.

In sixth place is Mississippi.

In sixth place is Mississippi.
A humanitarian initiative dubbed Operation Rebound in Hattiesburg, Mississippi.      Marianne Todd/NBAE via Getty Images

Mississippi has the highest share of women living in poverty — 22.30% — which is almost three times as high as the lowest state, New Hampshire.

Louisiana is the fifth worst state for women, according to the study.

Louisiana is the fifth worst state for women, according to the study.
Men and women walk down a levee holding onto each other as they commemorate the fourth anniversary of Hurricane Katrina.      Sean Gardner/Getty Images

Louisiana is just above Mississippi in terms of female poverty, coming in at No. 50.

South Carolina was ranked the fourth worst state to be a woman.

South Carolina was ranked the fourth worst state to be a woman.
Women working at Roper St. Francis Healthcare in North Charleston, South Carolina, in 2020.      Mic Smith/AP

South Carolina was almost equally ranked in both the Women's Economic & Social Well-Being and the Women's Health Care & Safety rankings, coming in at Nos. 49 and 46, respectively.

Arkansas was ranked the third worst.

Arkansas was ranked the third worst.
Little Rock, the capital of Arkansas.      Paul Harris/Getty Images

Arkansas placed last in the Women's Health Care & Safety category, and it also had the second lowest percentage of women vote in the 2020 election.

Only one state was determined to be a worse state for women than Alabama ...

Only one state was determined to be a worse state for women than Alabama ...
Morning in downtown Birmingham, Alabama.      Dan Reynolds Photography/Getty Images

Alabama was placed at the bottom of the list for Women's Economic & Social Well-Being, perhaps due to the low rate of female high school graduates, the low turnout in the 2020 election, or the low life expectancy for women at birth.

... which was Oklahoma, the worst state to be a woman in the US, according to WalletHub.

... which was Oklahoma, the worst state to be a woman in the US, according to WalletHub.
Oklahoma City.      Gerson Repreza/Shutterstock

Oklahoma was ranked 50th in both the Women's Economic & Social Well-Being category and the Women's Health Care & Safety category, with WalletHub painting a bleak picture of life in Oklahoma for women.

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