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2022’s Best and Worst States for Women’s Equity


With Women’s Equality Day around the corner and the U.S. ranking as only the 27th best country for gender equality, the personal-finance website WalletHub today released its report on 2022’s Best & Worst States for Women’s Equality.

In order to determine where women receive the most equal treatment in American society, WalletHub compared the 50 states across 17 key metrics. The data set ranges from the gap between female and male executives to the disparity in unemployment rates for women and men.

Best States for Women’s EqualityWorst States for Women’s Equality
1. New Mexico41. Alabama
2. Nevada42. Texas
3. California43. Kansas
4. New York44. Colorado
5. Vermont45. Tennessee
6. West Virginia46. South Carolina
7. Hawaii47. Oklahoma
8. Maine48. Idaho
9. Massachusetts49. Georgia
10. Michigan50. Utah

Best vs. Worst

  • In every state, women earn less than men. Connecticut has the lowest gap, with women earning 3.00 percent less, whereas Utah has the highest, 27.30 percent. 
     
  • In nearly every state, women represent the highest share of minimum-wage workers. Alaska, Hawaii and North Dakota have an equal ratio of women to men. Delaware and Georgia have the highest minimum-wage workers gap at 70.00 percent.
     
  • Louisiana has the highest unemployment-rate gap favoring women, with 1.80 percent more unemployed men. Arizona and Tennessee have the highest gap favoring men, with 0.80 percent more unemployed women. The unemployment rate is equal for men and women in Delaware, Nevada, Ohio and Vermont.
     
  • In nearly every state legislature, male lawmakers outnumber their female counterparts. Nevada has the highest gap favoring women, with 42.31 percent more women. West Virginia has the highest gap favoring men, with 84.48 percent more men.

Courtesy of WalletHub.

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