WASHINGTON DC-Happy New Year! With inflation cooling but still making raising children more costly than usual, the personal-finance website WalletHub today released its report on 2024’s Best & Worst States to Raise a Family.
To determine the best states in which to put down family roots, WalletHub compared the 50 states across 50 key indicators of family-friendliness. The data set ranges from the median annual family income to housing affordability to the unemployment rate.
Raising a Family in Alabama (1=Best; 25=Avg.):
- Overall rank – 47th
- 41st – % of Families with Young Children
- 26th – Child-Care Costs (Adjusted for Median Family Income)
- 48th – Infant-Mortality Rate
- 32nd – Median Annual Family Income (Adjusted for Cost of Living)
- 33rd – Violent Crimes per Capita
- 44th – % of Families in Poverty
- 15th – Housing Affordability
- 42nd – Separation & Divorce Rate
Best States for Families
| Overall Rank | State | Total Score | Family Fun Rank | Health & Safety Rank | Education & Child Care Rank | Affordability Rank | Socio-economics Rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Massachusetts | 66.97 | 9 | 5 | 1 | 3 | 21 |
| 2 | North Dakota | 62.15 | 32 | 7 | 2 | 18 | 1 |
| 3 | Minnesota | 62.00 | 15 | 10 | 18 | 1 | 10 |
| 4 | Nebraska | 58.96 | 20 | 12 | 5 | 24 | 5 |
| 5 | New York | 58.46 | 3 | 20 | 20 | 7 | 48 |
| 6 | Maine | 58.36 | 45 | 3 | 4 | 22 | 6 |
| 7 | New Hampshire | 57.92 | 39 | 2 | 8 | 23 | 9 |
| 8 | South Dakota | 57.83 | 29 | 9 | 9 | 33 | 2 |
| 9 | Rhode Island | 57.53 | 27 | 6 | 19 | 5 | 19 |
| 10 | Vermont | 57.23 | 46 | 1 | 14 | 27 | 3 |
| 11 | Iowa | 57.21 | 31 | 13 | 7 | 10 | 13 |
| 12 | Connecticut | 57.09 | 30 | 11 | 6 | 2 | 36 |
| 13 | Wisconsin | 56.41 | 22 | 24 | 10 | 16 | 11 |
| 14 | Illinois | 56.05 | 4 | 35 | 22 | 13 | 44 |
| 15 | Utah | 55.98 | 19 | 15 | 11 | 32 | 7 |
| 16 | Washington | 55.70 | 8 | 30 | 29 | 4 | 28 |
| 17 | New Jersey | 55.67 | 26 | 19 | 3 | 6 | 39 |
| 18 | Colorado | 54.41 | 7 | 40 | 36 | 8 | 22 |
| 19 | Virginia | 54.32 | 28 | 18 | 15 | 14 | 15 |
| 20 | Maryland | 54.10 | 25 | 29 | 12 | 9 | 18 |
| 21 | Pennsylvania | 53.62 | 12 | 23 | 26 | 21 | 23 |
| 22 | Montana | 52.78 | 33 | 14 | 13 | 43 | 4 |
| 23 | Wyoming | 51.69 | 35 | 8 | 17 | 39 | 14 |
| 24 | Missouri | 51.46 | 21 | 27 | 25 | 25 | 16 |
| 25 | Hawaii | 51.08 | 14 | 4 | 33 | 45 | 26 |
| 26 | Oregon | 50.74 | 10 | 26 | 38 | 12 | 42 |
| 27 | California | 50.62 | 1 | 44 | 40 | 20 | 47 |
| 28 | Texas | 50.54 | 2 | 48 | 28 | 35 | 41 |
| 29 | Kansas | 50.54 | 40 | 31 | 27 | 19 | 8 |
| 30 | Ohio | 49.99 | 16 | 17 | 35 | 15 | 43 |
| 31 | Florida | 49.46 | 6 | 41 | 24 | 50 | 29 |
| 32 | Delaware | 48.64 | 43 | 25 | 23 | 17 | 27 |
| 33 | Michigan | 47.87 | 42 | 21 | 39 | 11 | 20 |
| 34 | Tennessee | 47.78 | 18 | 34 | 30 | 34 | 25 |
| 35 | Indiana | 47.13 | 34 | 32 | 21 | 26 | 31 |
| 36 | Kentucky | 46.83 | 44 | 22 | 16 | 29 | 40 |
| 37 | North Carolina | 46.38 | 23 | 37 | 32 | 31 | 24 |
| 38 | Idaho | 46.14 | 36 | 16 | 42 | 46 | 12 |
| 39 | Alaska | 43.97 | 17 | 33 | 45 | 38 | 30 |
| 40 | Georgia | 42.27 | 24 | 43 | 37 | 40 | 37 |
| 41 | Arizona | 41.19 | 11 | 36 | 48 | 47 | 35 |
| 42 | South Carolina | 41.03 | 41 | 39 | 47 | 41 | 17 |
| 43 | Oklahoma | 39.90 | 38 | 47 | 43 | 28 | 34 |
| 44 | Nevada | 39.83 | 5 | 45 | 49 | 49 | 50 |
| 45 | Louisiana | 39.51 | 13 | 46 | 46 | 37 | 49 |
| 46 | Arkansas | 39.40 | 48 | 42 | 31 | 36 | 33 |
| 47 | Alabama | 38.86 | 47 | 38 | 41 | 30 | 38 |
| 48 | West Virginia | 36.18 | 50 | 28 | 44 | 42 | 32 |
| 49 | Mississippi | 32.87 | 49 | 50 | 34 | 44 | 45 |
| 50 | New Mexico | 30.47 | 37 | 49 | 50 | 48 | 46 |
Note: With the exception of “Total Score,” all of the columns in the table above depict the relative rank of that state, where a rank of 1 represents the best conditions for that metric category.
Media Release/Diana Polk
WalletHub Communications Manager
