GOLDEN VALLEY, Minn. — Minnesotans are proud of our state and rightfully so, according to a new study that ranks the state as the second-best place to raise a family in the U.S.
The research by personal finance website WalletHub names Massachusetts as the only state more family friendly than Minnesota. Rankings are based on 52 metrics ranging from housing affordability and child care costs to crime rates and separation-divorce rates.
Here is how Minnesota stacks up in a handful of categories:
- 13th – Infant-Mortality Rate
- 1st – Median Annual Family Income (Adjusted for Cost of Living)
- 12th – Violent Crimes per Capita
- 2nd – % of Families in Poverty
- 17th – Housing Affordability
- 13th – Unemployment Rate
- 5th – Separation & Divorce Rate
Rounding out the top-5 states to raise a family behind Massachusetts and Minnesota are North Dakota, New York and Vermont. The bottom five states are Oklahoma, Louisiana, West Virginia, Mississippi, with New Mexico coming in dead last.
Of states in the Midwest Nebraska was ranked number 11, followed by Iowa at 12, South Dakota at 13 and Wisconsin at 14.
For more on the list of best states to raise a family and the methodology that went into the rankings, check out the WalletHub website.
