Utah is often defined by WalletHub’s “Best & Worst States for Women’s Equality,” a ranking in which the state has placed dead last—50th of 50—for eleven consecutive years. Although some continue to dismiss or downplay those results, years of our own research have repeatedly confirmed the same underlying patterns. At the same time, Utah performs somewhat better on WalletHub’s broader “Best & Worst State for Women” index, which removes the equality component and places the state higher in the national landscape.
In that broader ranking, Utah placed 35th among the 50 states plus the District of Columbia in 2024 and 34th in 2025. Unfortunately, the state dropped to 41st in the 2026 report—an unwelcome decline, even if it keeps us out of the bottom ten. The national spread is wide: top‑tier states such as Massachusetts, the District of Columbia, Maine, Minnesota, Maryland, Vermont, Connecticut, Hawaii, New York, and Oregon all score above 65 points. At the other end, states including Louisiana, Oklahoma, Arkansas, Texas, Alabama, and Wyoming fall below 36 points. Utah’s current score of 43.50 marks a significant drop from 52.35 in 2025 and 50.40 in 2024.
For this ranking, WalletHub organizes its analysis into two major categories—Women’s Economic & Social Well‑Being and Women’s Health Care & Safety—drawing on 25 weighted indicators to capture a broad picture of women’s experiences across the states. Their data sources span the U.S. Census Bureau, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, National Center for Education Statistics, Violence Policy Center, and several other national datasets. Although the published report provides only topline numbers, I was able to obtain more detailed state‑level data directly from WalletHub. Here is what the deeper look reveals.
Women’s Economic & Social Well-Being
Utah currently ranks 44th in the Women’s Economic & Social Well‑Being category—down from 36th in 2024 and 38th in 2025. The indicator‑level results below (where 1 = best and 51 = worst) show a mixed picture: pockets of real strength alongside persistent structural weaknesses.
- Median Earnings for Female Workers: 48
- Unemployment Rate for Women: 37
- Job Security for Women: 24
- Share of Women Living in Poverty: 2
- Unaffordability of Doctor’s Visit: 38
- Share of Women-Owned Businesses: 48
- “Economic Clout” of Women-Owned Firms Rank: 6
- High School Graduation Rate for Women: 19
- Friendliness Toward Working Moms: 27
- Friendliness Toward Women’s Equality: 50
- Share of Women Who Voted in the 2020 Presidential Election: 29
Women’s Health Care & Safety
Utah ranks 29th in the Women’s Health Care & Safety category, down slightly from 28th in 2025 and 25th in 2024. This score reflects a broad set of health and safety indicators, each weighted differently in the overall index (with 1 = best and 51 = worst). The results again show Utah’s familiar pattern: comparatively strong physical‑health outcomes alongside deeply troubling mental‑health and safety indicators.
- Abortion Policies & Access: 33
- Quality of Women’s Hospitals: 14
- Share of Women Ages 18-44 Who Reported Having One or More People They Think of as Their Personal Doctor or Health Care Provider: 36
- Female Uninsured Rate: 31
- Share of Women with Good or Better Health: 11
- Women’s Preventive Health Care: 46
- Share of Physically Active Women: 4
- Share of Women Who Are Obese: 13
- Baby-Friendliness: 14
- Depression Rate for Women: 34
- Suicide Rate for Women: 45
- Women’s Life Expectancy at Birth: 11
- Female Homicide Rate: 9
- Prevalence of Rape Victimization Among Women: 45
I appreciate that Utah continues to perform well in several areas, including low unemployment rates for women, a comparatively small share of women living in poverty, low female homicide rates, strong economic clout among women‑owned firms, high levels of physical activity, and positive baby‑friendliness indicators. These strengths matter, and they show that progress is possible when systems align to support women and families.
At the same time, several indicators remain deeply concerning. Utah’s prevalence of rape victimization, gender pay gap, and friendliness toward women’s equality continue to rank among the worst in the nation. We also lag significantly in women’s preventive health care, and our depression and suicide rates for women remain alarmingly high. Even in areas where we are not at the bottom, such as voting participation and high school graduation rates for young women, we should be performing far better. These persistent gaps underscore how much work remains to ensure that all Utah women and girls can thrive.
These rankings offer only one lens, but they help illuminate where Utah is making progress and where we continue to fall short. It can be tempting to dismiss reports that do not capture every nuance of our state, yet the data provides valuable direction for strengthening the systems that shape women’s daily lives. When we improve women’s health care and safety, and when we expand their economic and social opportunities, we strengthen families, workplaces, and communities across Utah. Helping women thrive ultimately helps Utah thrive—and that includes boys and men as well.
Prof./Dr. Susan R. Madsen is the Extension Professor of Leadership at Utah State University. She is also a Visiting Fellow of the Faculty of Economics and Business at the University of Zagreb (Croatia) and a former Fellow of The Leadership Trust Foundation in Ross-on-Wye, England.
