Utah Ranks Last for Women’s Equality — But There’s More to the Story

Utah once again finds itself at the bottom of a national ranking for women’s equality, but the numbers deserve more context than a simple “best” or “worst” label can provide.

WalletHub’s 2026 study ranked Utah 50th overall for women’s equality, with a score of 32.18 out of 100. Utah ranked 47th for workplace environment, 50th for education and health equality, and 29th for political empowerment. The study compared states across 17 measures, including income, executive positions, educational attainment, unemployment rates and representation in government.

Utah Is Different, And That's Good

One of the biggest factors pulling Utah down was the difference in average earnings between men and women. But that statistic can be influenced by more than whether a man and woman receive the same paycheck for doing the same job. Utah has long had a larger share of women who step away from full-time employment while raising children, work part-time, or choose careers that offer more flexibility for family life. Those choices can significantly affect statewide income averages.

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For Abbey L., a working single mom and dental professional, the issue is more complicated than the ranking suggests.

“This really isn't about inequality. It's a fact that men & women, mothers & fathers, have different roles, for the most part. I LOVED being a stay-at-home mom when that was my life. Now I'm a dental professional & make just as much as my male counterparts.”

Her perspective highlights something broad statistical rankings can struggle to measure: personal choice. For some Utah women, success may mean climbing the corporate ladder or building a professional career. For others, it may include stepping away from the workforce for several years to raise children. Many women will do both at different stages of their lives.

Utah's Upside

That doesn’t mean Utah should simply ignore areas where improvement is possible. The state can continue encouraging women to pursue education, leadership positions, entrepreneurship and high-paying careers. Employers can also benefit from offering flexible schedules, parental leave and opportunities that make it easier for both mothers and fathers to balance careers and family responsibilities.

Good Examples of Success

Utah also has plenty of examples of women succeeding professionally. Women lead businesses, work in medicine, education, technology, law and skilled professions, and increasingly hold influential roles in government and community organizations.

Checking on the Neighbors

Arizona looks considerably better than Utah in WalletHub’s 2026 comparison. Arizona ranks 22nd overall, with a score of 57.82, compared with Utah’s 50th-place score of 32.18. Arizona ranks 15th for workplace environment, 34th for education and health, and 22nd for political empowerment. That doesn’t necessarily mean women in Arizona have universally better experiences; it means the measurable gaps between men and women are smaller across the categories WalletHub uses.

Idaho, meanwhile, is much closer to Utah. It ranks 47th overall with a score of 41.30. Idaho ranks last in the nation for workplace environment, 30th for education and health, and 48th for political empowerment. Like Utah, Idaho also shows large gaps in areas such as income, work hours, and advanced educational attainment. That comparison is important because both states have strong family-oriented cultures, and statewide statistics may partly reflect differences in how men and women divide work and family responsibilities. WalletHub measures the size of those gaps; it does not determine why individual families make the choices they do.

Deeply Rooted in Utah Culture

WalletHub’s ranking provides useful data, but it shouldn’t automatically be interpreted as evidence that women in Utah lack opportunity. In many cases, the numbers may also reflect something deeply rooted in Utah culture: families making deliberate choices about how they divide work, careers and parenting.

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Those choices won’t always produce equal statistics. But equality of opportunity and equality of outcomes are not necessarily the same thing. A national ranking can identify trends and spark useful conversations. What it cannot do is capture the individual circumstances, priorities and choices behind every Utah woman’s story.