Connecticut is Nation's #2 State for Working Moms, Analysis Shows

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With the celebration of Mother’s Day just concluded - at a time when 74% of women with children under age 18 were in the labor force during 2024 - the personal-finance website WalletHub has released its report on 2025’s Best & Worst States for Working Moms.  Connecticut’s overall ranking in the analysis placed the state at #2 nationwide, just behind Massachusetts.

WalletHub compared the attractiveness of each of the 50 states and the District of Columbia for a working mother based on 17 key metrics. The data set ranges from the median salary for women to the female unemployment rate to day-care quality.

In addition to its second place ranking overall, Connecticut and it had some of the lowest unemployment rates for women last year, at just 2.7%, according to WalletHub.  In addition, Connecticut has a small gender pay gap, with women earning over 88% of what men make, the seventh-highest rate in the country highlighting the state's commitment to pay equity and economic opportunities for women, WalletHub highlighted.

The analysts also noted that Connecticut “ranks among the top states when it comes to day care quality and the share of child care centers that are nationally accredited” and the state “has very good parental-leave policies and is among the best places in the country for working from home.”

 Among the key stats:

  • 1st – Lowest Female Unemployment Rate

  • 6th – Day-Care Quality

  • 8th – Parental-Leave Policy Score

  • 9th – Avg. Length of Woman’s Work Week (in Hours)

  • 9th – Gender Pay Gap (Women’s Earnings as % of Men’s)

  • 15th – % of Single-Mom Families in Poverty

  • 18th – Pediatricians per Capita

  • 25th – Ratio of Female Executives to Male Executives

  • 25th – Median Women’s Salary (Adjusted for Cost of Living)

“Working moms have to carefully balance career opportunities with factors that provide a good environment for their children when deciding where to live. The best states provide equitable pay for women and the potential for career advancement, along with robust parental leave policies and high-quality child care, health care, and schools,” said WalletHub Analyst Chip Lupo. “This gives working moms both the financial ability and the peace of mind to not have to choose between a career and family.”

Rounding out the top 10 were Rhode Island, District of Columbia, Maine, Minnesota, Vermont, Wisconsin, New Jersey and New York.  At the bottom of the rankings were Nevada, Alabama and Louisiana.  

WalletHub noted that data sources used to create this ranking - collected as of March 31, 2025 – included the U.S. Census Bureau, Bureau of Labor Statistics, Child Care Aware® of America, Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, Council for Community and Economic Research, Institute for Women's Policy Research, and National Partnership for Women & Families.