8 Reasons Why Washington Was Just Named 7th Best State for Women
Women and Washington State
Washington state was just recognized as being one of the top 10 states that are best for women in 2023.
Washington State Named 7th Best State for Women
The publication WalletHub just named Washington State as the 7th most women-friendly to live in.
They looked at two main categories for their study, "Women’s Economic & Social Well-Being” and “Women’s Health Care & Safety."
The study looked at data like the median income, job security, and unemployment rates for women as well as access, quality, and the cost of healthcare.
They then ranked the categories using "25 relevant metrics" on a 100-point weighted scale to get the final list.
What Did the Study Find?
Vermont was crowned at the top of the list with a "Women's Economic and Social Well-being" ranking of 2nd and a "Health" ranking of 3rd and a total score of 75.68.
The 3 best states for women's wages were the District of Columbia (1), Minnesota (2), and Virginia (3) with Hawaii, Idaho, and California coming in as the worst 3 states.
There was a 5-way tie for the lowest unemployment rates for women by state between South Dakota, North Dakota, Vermont, Minnesota, and Iowa with Kentucky, the District of Columbia, and Nevada listed as the worst.
Women and Life Expectancy at Birth
Washington State did well in every category but only showed up in the top-5 for life expectancy at birth.
Washington State was listed as 5th best in this category with Hawaii (1), California, Massachusetts, and New Hampshire making the rest of the top-5.
Washington State just missed the top 5 in two other categories, "Share of Women in Poverty" and the "Share of Women Who Voted in the 2020 Presidential Election."
Washington State Full Rankings for Women
Washington did very well in all categories listed, giving the state an overall score of 68.13 and 7th on the list.
Vermont at 1st received a rating of 75.68 for comparison. Washington ranked 8th overall for "Women's Economic and Social Well-being" and 12th overall for "Health".
Washington ranked in the top 20 in every category except the high school graduation rate for women, coming in at 30th in the nation.
Washington State Ranked Top-20 in These Categories for Women
In most of the categories in the study, Washington State ranked in the top 20.
The state ranked 17th for Median Earnings for Female Workers (Adjusted for Cost of Living), 14th for Share of Women-Owned Businesses, 19th for Female Uninsured Rate, and 19th for Quality of Women’s Hospitals.
The 8 reasons that make Washington a great place for women are the categories the state ranked well in the study. As a father of a teenage daughter, I am thankful I live in a state she can be safe, successful, and thrive as any parent wants for their child.
You can read the full study and ranking by WalletHub by clicking here, or by watching the YouTube video they produced below.