Happy New Year! With families looking for a fresh start once the COVID-19 pandemic dies down and moving becomes practical, the personal-finance website WalletHub today released its report on 2021’s Best & Worst States to Raise a Family, as well as accompanying videos.
To determine the best states in which to put down family roots, WalletHub compared the 50 states across 52 key indicators of family-friendliness. The data set ranges from the median annual family income to housing affordability to the unemployment rate.
| Best States for Families | Worst States for Families |
| 1. Massachusetts | 41. Nevada |
| 2. Minnesota | 42. Arizona |
| 3. North Dakota | 43. South Carolina |
| 4. New York | 44. Alabama |
| 5. Vermont | 45. Arkansas |
| 6. New Hampshire | 46. Oklahoma |
| 7. New Jersey | 47. Louisiana |
| 8. Washington | 48. West Virginia |
| 9. Connecticut | 49. Mississippi |
| 10. Utah | 50. New Mexico |
Best vs. Worst
- Minnesota has the highest median annual family income (adjusted for cost of living), $85,473, which is 1.5 times higher than in New York, where it is lowest at $57,450.
- Utah has the lowest separation & divorce rate, 15.74 percent, which is 1.7 times lower than in Nevada, where it is highest at 26.07 percent.
- New Hampshire has the lowest share of families living in poverty, 4.60 percent, which is 3.4 times lower than in Mississippi, where it is highest at 15.50 percent.
- South Dakota has the lowest average annual cost of early childcare (as a share of median family income), 7.22 percent, which is 1.8 times lower than in Nebraska, where it is highest at 13.19 percent.
- Maine has the fewest violent crimes (per 1,000 residents), 1.15, which is 7.5 times fewer than in Alaska, the state with the most at 8.67.
To view the full report and your state’s rank, please visit:
https://wallethub.com/edu/best-states-to-raise-a-family/31065
Please let me know if you have any questions or if you would like to schedule a phone, Skype or in-studio interview with one of our experts. Feel free to embed this YouTube video summarizing the study on your website. You can also use or edit these raw files as you see fit. Full data sets for specific states are also available upon request.
Best,
Diana Polk
WalletHub Communications Manager
(202) 684-6386
More from WalletHub
- Best & Worst Places to Raise a Family
- Best & Worst States to Have a Baby
- Best Places to Get Married
- Best & Worst States for Working Moms
- Best & Worst States for Working Dads
- States with the Best & Worst School Systems
- Best & Worst States for Children’s Health Care