Georgia Among The Worst States To Raise A Family In 2022: Report

GEORGIA — Georgia ranks among the worst states in the nation to raise a family, according to a new report published Monday.

The personal finance website, WalletHub, put the Peach State near the bottom at No. 41 — up one number from last year —on its list titled 2022's Best & Worst States to Raise a Family.

The company looked at the 50 states across 51 key indicators of family-friendliness. The data set ranges from the median annual family income to housing affordability to the unemployment rate.

With a score of 39.83, here's how Georgia performed in each category compared to other states:

• Family fun: 25th
• Health and safety: 46th
• Education and child care: 39th
• Affordability: 42nd
• Socio-economics: 35th

WalletHub also looked at other key metrics, such as crime and the divorce rate, to determine a state's overall ranking. Here's how Georgia finished:

• Child-care costs (adjusted for median family income): 16th
• Infant mortality rate: 46th
• Median annual family income (adjusted for cost of living): 21st
• Violent crimes per capita: 29th
• Percent of families in poverty: 41st
• Housing affordability: 26th
• Separation and divorce rate: 36th
• Percentage of residents 12 and older who are fully vaccinated: 44th

Georgia is joined by these other states in the "worst state to raise a family" category: Nevada (No. 42), Alabama (No. 43), Arkansas (No. 44), West Virginia (No. 45), Oklahoma (No. 46), South Carolina (No. 47), Louisiana (No. 48), New Mexico (No. 49) and Mississippi (No 50).

According to WalletHub, the top 10 best states to raise a family are: Massachusetts (No. 1), New York (No. 2), Vermont (No. 3), Minnesota (No. 4), Nebraska (No. 5), New Hampshire (No. 6), Connecticut (No. 7), Washington (No. 8), North Dakota (No. 9) and New Jersey (No. 10)