Map Shows Best—and Worst—States to Have a Baby 2025
Newsweek AI is in beta. Translations may contain inaccuracies—please refer to the original content.
A newly released study by personal finance website WalletHub has revealed which states are the best and worst to have a baby—with Massachusetts, North Dakota, and Minnesota leading the nation.
How It Was Calculated
WalletHub ranked the best and worst states to have a baby by evaluating all 50 states and the District of Columbia across four categories—cost, health care, baby-friendliness, and family-friendliness—using 31 weighted metrics scored on a 100-point scale. Each state's overall score reflected a weighted average of those factors.
The dataset used by WalletHub in its calculations ranged from hospital conventional-delivery charges to annual average infant-care costs to pediatricians per capita.
What To Know
Massachusetts claimed the top spot in WalletHub's overall rankings, buoyed by its first-place health care score and top-tier performance in baby- and family-friendliness.
The Bay State boasts the third-lowest infant mortality rate, the eighth-lowest maternal mortality rate, and among the best neonatal hospitals in the nation for premature births or babies with health problems, the report said. It also leads the country in paid leave policy and access to Medicaid-covered parenting programs.
North Dakota ranked second, driven largely by its affordability. It offers the lowest cost for conventional deliveries without complications—just $7,500 compared to as much as $27,000 in more expensive states, according to WalletHub.
The Peace Garden State was also found to have the third-lowest hourly rate for babysitters, and ranked among the top ten in childcare access and mom support groups.
Minnesota came in third, offering the second-lowest health insurance premiums and ranking highly for medical staff availability. With one of the lowest maternal mortality rates and a high number of pediatric professionals per capita, WalletHub said it provides ample healthcare options for new parents. Additionally, the North Star State was found to have the fourth-highest share of nationally accredited childcare centers.
Rounding out the top 10 best states to have a baby include: New Hampshire, Maine, Rhode Island, Vermont, Washington, Iowa, the District of Columbia.
At the other end of the spectrum, West Virginia, Oklahoma, Florida, Arkansas, New Mexico, Georgia, South Carolina, Nevada, Alabama, and Mississippi were ranked as the bottom 10.
What People Are Saying
WalletHub analyst Chip Lupo said in the report: "The best states for having a baby minimize costs while providing top-notch care for both newborns and their mothers. They also continue to be good environments for parents even long after the birth, with high-quality pediatric care, affordable and accessible child care, and a strong economic environment that makes providing for a child easier."
What Happens Next?
WalletHub releases its "Best & Worst States to Have a Baby" report annually.
Newsweek previously mapped the states with the best—and worst—school systems based on a separate, recent report from WalletHub.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Indianapolis Star
2 hours ago
- Indianapolis Star
Tidal Wave Auto Spa Announces 17th Annual Charity Day on Friday, September 19th
Indiana pays less than 25 cents for every dollar of Medicaid while rich states pay up to 41 cents. America's debt crisis will end that deal.
Yahoo
4 hours ago
- Yahoo
Kaul joins multistate suit claiming Trump has sought to deter care of transgender youths
Wisconsin Attorney General Josh Kaul joined a multistate lawsuit Aug. 1 suing the Trump administration for "relentlessly, cruelly and unlawfully" targeting transgender people. The lawsuit, filed in the U.S. District Court for the District of Massachusetts, comes six months after Kaul vowed to pursue legal actions should the federal government attempt to impede funding for gender-affirming health care. Recent federal actions have sought to deter health care providers from treating transgender patients under the age of 19, despite states like Wisconsin having laws in place that allow for medically appropriate procedures. President Donald Trump's Jan. 28 order oversteps its authority, the lawsuit states, by intimidating providers through threats of civil and criminal prosecution. The lawsuit emphasizes the order not only "has no basis in law" but is unconstitutional. Ultimately, the lawsuit is requesting the court to block the administration's actions and cease enforcing the order. 'The Trump administration shouldn't be interfering with the provision of health care,' Kaul said in a press release last week. 'The administration should be respecting individual liberty and equal rights, not shamefully targeting transgender people.' Trump's directive, signed early in his second term, aims to strip funds from medical institutions that provide gender-affirming care, and would require federal health programs like Medicaid and TRICARE (for military families) to exclude coverage of gender-affirming surgeries and hormone treatments for young people by 2026. Gender-affirming medical care supports people whose gender identity is out of sync with the sex they were assigned at birth. Health care may include the use of hormones to delay puberty in adolescents, behavioral health counseling to support and promote the gender identity with which a person aligns, and hormone replacement therapy. In very rare cases for young people, it may involve surgery. Access to gender-affirming services has been associated with lower suicide risks for transgender people. Research has also shown that people encountering anti-transgender bias and a denial of services had more than double the prevalence of suicide attempts than those who didn't have such experiences, according to the Williams Institute. The attorneys general warn the administration's tactics have had a chilling effect on states' ability to provide gender-affirming services. Despite protective laws being on the books, health care providers have already scaled back the services they offer to transgender youth. Other gender clinics have shuttered services completely in an attempt to avoid civil or criminal investigations and actions. Joining Kaul in filing this lawsuit are the attorneys general of California, Connecticut, Delaware, Hawai'i, Illinois, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Nevada, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, Rhode Island, and the District of Columbia, as well as the Governor of Pennsylvania. Natalie Eilbert covers mental health issues for the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. She welcomes story tips and feedback. You can reach her at neilbert@ or view her X (Twitter) profile at @natalie_eilbert. This article originally appeared on Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: Wisconsin AG Kaul joins suit claiming Trump deters transgender care Solve the daily Crossword
Yahoo
7 hours ago
- Yahoo
‘You turn 65, you join the club.' U.S. Rep. Richard Neal celebrates anniversary of Medicare and Medicaid Act
WILBRAHAM – U.S. Rep. Richard E. Neal, D-Springfield, celebrated the coming 60th anniversary of the Medicare and Medicaid Act, contrasting the legislative achievement of President Lyndon B. Johnson with the Big Beautiful Bill Act that Neal expects will be reversed over time. This month's legislation will impose $1.2 trillion in cuts, mostly to Medicaid and food stamps, the Associated Press has said. It will impose work requirements on able-bodied people seeking medical care, including some parents and older Americans, making sign-up eligibility more stringent and changing federal reimbursements to states. Neal spoke Monday at Life Care Center of Wilbraham, showing a video of Johnson signing the legislation on July 30, 1965, at the Harry S. Truman Library in Independence, Missouri. The video is available on the website of the LBJ Presidential Library at With 123 beds, about 60% of the center's residents are on Medicaid, said Dennis P. Lopata, senior executive director. Another 10% are covered by Medicare and the rest are private pay. Neal said the recent bill also puts financial pressure on Medicare, the insurance program for the seniors that's an earned benefit. 'You turn 65, you join the club,' Neal said. 'We don't ask about any qualifications.' The nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office found that as a result of the Trump legislation, 11.8 million more Americans would become uninsured by 2034. 'The actual cuts to Medicaid don't take place until after the next election,' said Neal, the ranking Democrat on the House Ways & Means Committee. 'Pretty contrived.' Health care providers and insurers are already under pressure, Neal said. But there is a chance the cuts won't happen. 'My guess is that a lot of them will be – in time – changed. Because they are so unpopular,' said. Electing a Democratic majority in the House would be the way to do it, Neal said. 'Well, if we win next year, which seems likely, I intend to offer legislation to reverse all of those cuts right away across the board. A trillion dollars in cuts to Medicaid over the next 10 years. They can't be sustained.' President Johnson, riding a wave of popularity after the 1964 election, signed the bill in Missouri to honor Truman's work on health care, Neal said. Truman had been a New Deal-era Democratic senator from Missouri before briefing becoming FDR's vice president in 1945, then president. A current Missouri senator, Josh Hawley, has proposed legislation aimed at reversing Medicaid cuts in the Big Beautiful Bill, after voting for that legislation. 'I think a 'no' vote would have been the better vote,' Neal said. Neal also spoke Monday about Social Security. 'We have always repaired Social Security and Medicare, and we always will,' Neal said. 'We intend to propose expanded Social Security benefits, and we will also propose how to pay for it.' Stories by Jim Kinney How much trash does a courthouse produce? Inquiring bidders want to know in Springfield Friendly's parent company sold to NJ franchisee This Springfield eatery, silenced by fire, has a new owner Read the original article on MassLive.
