The Best Cities for Black Women to Flourish Financially

Name: The Best Cities for Black Women to Flourish Financially
Item: The Best Cities for Black Women to Flourish Financially
Author: Erin C. Perkins

By Erin C. Perkins

Edited by Megan Hull

Updated: October 22, 2024

Advertising & Editorial Disclosure

Where can Black women feel supported and flourish financially? When posed that question, Dr. Lori Martin, a professor of African and African American studies and sociology at Louisiana State University, had this to say: "A livable place for Black women is safe, and for women with children, it is home to schools where all students have access to an excellent education. It would also be diverse, with a visible and thriving Black community, including Black businesses.”

While the socioeconomic realities of our current time touch all corners of the country, there are pockets of the U.S. where the wealth gap narrows and Black women have more opportunities. MoneyGeek analyzed data on income, the cost of crime, homeownership and poverty levels from 164 cities across the United States to rank the best — and worst — cities for Black women to live and financially flourish in.

KEY FINDINGS

Suburban cities of large metropolitan areas ranked highest. Southfield — outside of Detroit — and Pearland — a suburb of Houston — ranked highest in the analysis.
The South is home to 13 of the top 25 cities for Black women, led by Pearland, Texas; Port St. Lucie, Florida; and Garland, Texas.
Minneapolis, Minnesota, ranks at the bottom due to significant income and health insurance disparities for Black women compared to white men.
Miami has the second-lowest overall ranking and second-largest income gap of the cities analyzed, with Black women earning only over a third of what white men make.

The Best and Worst Cities for Black Women

MoneyGeek ranked 164 cities with populations greater than 65,000 from the best to the worst for Black women. The ranking includes analysis of income, poverty rate, homeownership, educational attainment and health insurance gaps between Black women and the entire population nationally and locally. The size of the local Black population and the cost of crime in the area were included in the ranking to reflect the presence of the Black community and safety, respectively. Southfield — a suburb of Detroit — and Pearland — a Houston suburb — ranked as the top two cities in the analysis. Notably, Southern cities make up the majority of cities in the top 25, with 13 located in this region.

25 Best Cities for Black Women

	City	Final Score
1.	Southfield, MI	100.0
2.	Pearland, TX	99.0
3.	Carson, CA	96.1
4.	Port St. Lucie, FL	91.9
5.	Norwalk, CT	89.3
6.	Garland, TX	87.1
7.	Mansfield, TX	84.3
8.	Missouri City, TX	81.9
9.	Bridgeport, CT	80.1
10.	Fairfield, CA	74.9
11.	Elk Grove, CA	73.5
12.	Farmington Hills, MI	73.3
13.	Rock Hill, SC	73.2
14.	Killeen, TX	70.7
15.	Frederick, MD	70.4
16.	Lewisville, TX	67.5
17.	Virginia Beach, VA	65.6
18.	Durham, NC	65.3
19.	Moreno Valley, CA	63.9
20.	Lakewood, CA	63.6
21.	Elizabeth, NJ	62.9
22.	Fayetteville, NC	62.1
23.	Warren, MI	62.1
24.	Alexandria, VA	61.7
25.	Renton, WA	61.1

In contrast, Minneapolis, Minnesota, ranked as the worst city for Black women. In Minneapolis, Black women face high poverty rates in absolute and relative terms and have low rates of health insurance coverage compared to the cities analyzed. Meanwhile, Miami ranks as the second least favorable city, with a significant local income gap — there, white men earn almost triple the income of Black women.

15 Worst Cities for Black Women

	City	Final Score
1.	Minneapolis, MN	0.0
2.	Miami, FL	0.8
3.	St. Paul, MN	2.0
4.	Lincoln, NE	2.6
5.	Omaha, NE	3.9
6.	Dothan, AL	4.5
7.	Madison, WI	5.8
8.	Albany, NY	9.4
9.	Wichita, KS	10.8
10.	Seattle, WA	10.9
11.	Topeka, KS	11.0
12.	Pittsburgh, PA	11.8
13.	Denver, CO	12.3
14.	Lubbock, TX	14.9
15.	Reading, PA	15.7

Income disparity is a key measure of how well Black women are doing today. For each city in the analysis, we calculated the local Equal Pay Day — the day in the following year when Black women would make an equivalent amount as white men — using the median income of Black women working full time and the median income of white men working full time in each locality. In Carson, California, the median pay of Black women is higher than the median pay of white men. However, in Evanston, Illinois, Black women make just over a third of white men's earnings, meaning they would need to work until September 24, 2024, to earn the equivalent of a white man’s 2022 pay.

5 Cities with the Highest Income Disparity Between Black Women and White Men

	City	Percentage of Black Women's Income Relative to White Men's Income	Local Black Women's Equal Pay Day
1.	Evanston, IL	37%	9/24/2024
2.	Miami, FL	38%	8/27/2024
3.	Dallas, TX	40%	6/21/2024
4.	Brooklyn Park, MN	41%	6/13/2024
5.	Charleston, SC	42%	5/14/2024

The Economic Realities Black Women Face

Economic challenges faced by Black women include restricted career advancement opportunities, insufficient health insurance and inadequate retirement savings. Survey data from Goldman Sachs indicates that 42% of Black women perceive limited career growth opportunities compared to 35% of U.S. adults, and merely 43% are able to obtain health insurance through their employer, in contrast to 53% nationwide. Additionally, 71% of Black women feel they are living paycheck to paycheck, compared to 63% of the general population.

The intersection of racial and gender bias contributes to these challenges, resulting in low-wage jobs and a considerable wealth gap. Our analysis validates this, demonstrating that Black women who work full-time, year-round, earn 64 cents for every dollar white men earn working full-time, year-round.

Less access to economic opportunities puts Black women at a disadvantage in building wealth. The FDIC’s National Survey of Unbanked and Underbanked Households found that 11.3% of Black households were unbanked compared to just 2.1% of white households. Unbanked households are credit invisible — that is, they don’t have a credit history and, therefore, can’t build credit. Having no credit history makes it difficult to utilize credit cards to manage cash needs and mortgages to buy homes.

Expert Panel: Improving Livability for Black Women

Access to jobs, higher pay and health care are some of the unique challenges Black women face when it comes to livability experiences, explains Kalinda Ukanwa, Ph.D., an assistant professor of marketing at the Marshall School of Business. MoneyGeek interviewed Dr. Ukanwa and other experts to elaborate on the unique challenges that Black women face and the solutions to help them. The views expressed are the opinions and insights of the individual contributors.

Advocating for Economic Opportunities for Black Women

The struggle for economic equity remains a persistent challenge for Black women in America, who have historically faced systemic wage disparities and employment obstacles. However, there are tools and resources that can provide Black women with economic opportunities and empowerment. Dr. Ukanwa shares additional solutions, such as:

1
Invest in education
Research has already shown that degrees increase lifetime earnings, close some societal gaps and increase job security. But if degrees are not your path, it also means continuing to build that knowledge and expertise in something you can be the best at. Figure out your expertise and what you bring to the table.
2
After building your expertise in a field, build your reputation and personal brand
With an excellent reputation and personal brand, people will start to seek you out rather than the other way around. This increases the worth of your expertise.
3
Find out what your expertise is worth
Educate yourself on how to negotiate. Negotiate to be paid what you are worth.
4
Get into the habit of ownership
Build your own equity, which decreases the dependence on someone else for your income. For example, this could be your own business, stocks or real estate.

Methodology

To rank the best cities for Black women, MoneyGeek analyzed data from the American Community Survey, MoneyGeek’s Safest Cities and Safest Small Cities and Towns studies, and the Bureau of Economic Analysis. MoneyGeek started with over 500 places in America with populations of 65,000 or more. Places without granular data about Black women or lacking other data points for the analysis were removed to get to the final set of 164 cities.

The ranking of the best cities for Black women was based on eight factors: safety, Black population, educational attainment, poverty rates, income, employment, health insurance and homeownership. Each factor was weighted equally and scaled to a score between 0 and 1. The factors were calculated as follows:

Safety (full weight): This metric equally comprises two metrics.

Crime cost per capita (50%): This metric is based on the per capita cost of crime calculated in MoneyGeek’s Safest Cities series.
Racially-motivated hate crimes per 1 million people (50%): This metric indicates the number of racially-motivated hate crimes for 2022 per 1,000,000 population, with data sourced from the FBI's Crime Data Explorer.

Percent of local population that is Black (full weight): This percentage represents the proportion of Black individuals within a city's total population, as reported by the United States Census Bureau's five-year American Community Survey (ACS) from 2021, the most recent data available.

Educational attainment (full weight): This metric equally comprises two metrics.

High school diploma gap (50%): The difference in percentage points of the rate of female Black high school diploma achievement compared to the national rate of male white high school diploma achievement.
Higher education diploma gap (50%): The difference in percentage points of the rate of female Black bachelor's degree or greater educational attainment compared to the national rate of male white bachelor's degree or greater educational attainment.

Poverty rate (full weight): The percentage point difference between the city’s rate of Black women earning at or above the poverty level and the rate of all women living above the poverty level nationally. This finding comes from the 2021 Census ACS five-year data, the latest available source covering over 200 cities.

Income (full weight): This factor equally comprises two metrics.

Local Income Gap (50%): The ratio of Black female median income as a percentage of the local median income of white males.
National Income Gap (50%): The ratio of Black female median income adjusted for purchasing power as a percentage of the national median income of white males.

Employment (full weight): The difference in percentage points between the Black female employment rate and the white male employment rate in the locality.

Health insurance (full weight): This metric reveals the percentage point difference between Black women (ages 19-64) and white men (ages 19-64) with health insurance. This information comes from the Census ACS five-year data from 2021, the most recent data source available.

Black female homeownership (full weight): This factor comprises three metrics.

Local Black homeownership (25%): Proportion of Black-owned homes compared to all local owner-occupied housing.
National Black homeownership (25%): Proportion of Black-owned homes compared to all national owner-occupied housing.
Mortgage cost percentage relative to income (50%): Black homeowners' monthly costs as a percentage of Black women's median monthly income.

Full Dataset

The data points presented are defined as follows:

Rank: Rank in the overall analysis, with a lower rank indicating a higher overall score.
Final Score: This is the weighted score incorporating the factors defined in the study Methodology.
For the rest of the metrics, refer to the methodology above.

Rank	City	Final Score	Cost of Crime per Capita	Racially-Motivated Hate Crimes per 1 Million People	% of Local Population that is Black	High School Diploma Gap	Higher Education Diploma Gap	Poverty Rate Gap	National Income Gap	Local Income Gap	Employment Gap	Health Insurance Coverage Gap	Local Black Homeownership Rate	National Black Homeownership Rate
1	Southfield, MI	100.0	$1,276	13.3	66.7%	6.1%	3.3%	-2.5%	82.2%	101.4%	0.7%	-4.8%	67.1%	0.0152%
2	Pearland, TX	99.0	$328	0.0	19.5%	-6.4%	3.3%	-8.1%	116.9%	93.9%	0.3%	-3.2%	17.7%	0.0070%
3	Carson, CA	96.1	$1,758	10.9	22.4%	19.5%	-14.0%	-4.8%	99.3%	173.1%	-3.5%	-11.7%	26.4%	0.0063%
4	Port St. Lucie, FL	91.9	$536	4.4	18.2%	-4.1%	-7.8%	-2.3%	72.1%	84.1%	-2.0%	-4.3%	16.8%	0.0139%
5	Norwalk, CT	89.3	$410	0.0	12.6%	-0.4%	19.4%	0.1%	154.9%	105.4%	-4.6%	-8.2%	19.0%	0.0043%
6	Garland, TX	87.1	$772	4.1	15.0%	1.7%	-2.1%	1.3%	78.1%	94.3%	1.8%	-16.8%	12.4%	0.0070%
7	Mansfield, TX	84.3	$229	13.2	22.6%	11.8%	-14.5%	-10.4%	95.7%	87.8%	0.0%	-2.1%	14.0%	0.0030%
8	Missouri City, TX	81.9	$799	0.0	40.6%	-9.9%	11.0%	-6.0%	73.4%	60.0%	-0.8%	3.3%	44.9%	0.0126%
9	Bridgeport, CT	80.1	$1,819	6.7	34.7%	3.6%	-5.3%	7.7%	63.4%	73.5%	-3.8%	-12.1%	15.5%	0.0048%
10	Fairfield, CA	74.9	$1,964	41.8	15.9%	1.6%	1.0%	-4.5%	121.6%	102.2%	1.1%	-4.5%	11.0%	0.0033%
11	Elk Grove, CA	73.5	$427	11.1	11.0%	3.2%	-0.6%	0.5%	113.3%	83.7%	1.7%	-2.8%	11.6%	0.0055%
12	Farmington Hills, MI	73.3	$325	48.3	17.9%	-5.8%	6.1%	-8.2%	90.4%	66.1%	1.3%	-2.5%	12.4%	0.0033%
13	Rock Hill, SC	73.2	$2,196	0.0	38.7%	-15.4%	12.7%	6.1%	50.6%	57.0%	2.0%	-6.8%	32.5%	0.0071%
14	Killeen, TX	70.7	$2,391	0.0	38.9%	13.0%	4.4%	7.2%	47.6%	73.4%	1.7%	-8.2%	34.2%	0.0122%
15	Frederick, MD	70.4	$966	12.3	17.3%	-0.9%	2.1%	2.9%	106.8%	76.4%	2.9%	-2.9%	15.4%	0.0034%
16	Lewisville, TX	67.5	$1,393	17.6	13.9%	-5.8%	4.0%	0.2%	74.4%	76.9%	2.3%	-7.6%	7.3%	0.0021%
17	Virginia Beach, VA	65.6	$773	2.2	19.0%	-2.0%	5.0%	1.8%	64.7%	62.7%	1.8%	-1.2%	13.6%	0.0184%
18	Durham, NC	65.3	$2,890	10.5	37.2%	-15.3%	17.8%	1.7%	79.5%	60.4%	3.7%	0.7%	29.5%	0.0225%
19	Moreno Valley, CA	63.9	$1,170	4.7	17.9%	7.0%	-3.6%	3.0%	78.3%	88.1%	6.6%	-7.1%	13.3%	0.0056%
20	Lakewood, CA	63.6	$781	63.4	8.6%	-20.2%	3.3%	-5.2%	90.6%	85.9%	-2.3%	-0.4%	5.9%	0.0012%
21	Elizabeth, NJ	62.9	$979	14.9	18.7%	3.3%	7.2%	2.6%	72.5%	82.8%	2.5%	-14.7%	11.4%	0.0016%
22	Fayetteville, NC	62.1	$3,635	38.3	42.5%	-2.1%	0.7%	12.1%	53.9%	79.0%	2.7%	-4.6%	40.4%	0.0200%
23	Warren, MI	62.1	$1,340	87.5	20.8%	1.8%	4.0%	1.4%	58.2%	76.6%	1.4%	-3.8%	8.6%	0.0039%
24	Alexandria, VA	61.7	$818	6.6	21.6%	-11.1%	7.4%	3.5%	119.4%	69.3%	1.5%	9.9%	8.7%	0.0031%
25	Renton, WA	61.1	$1,646	19.3	8.0%	-12.4%	22.2%	1.4%	100.5%	84.2%	2.2%	-6.8%	5.0%	0.0014%
26	Tyler, TX	59.2	$2,247	27.7	25.0%	-18.0%	19.9%	6.3%	51.7%	66.3%	0.9%	-7.2%	16.9%	0.0045%
27	Arlington, TX	58.8	$1,593	20.4	22.9%	-0.2%	1.0%	1.7%	74.2%	79.8%	5.9%	-1.9%	14.8%	0.0132%
28	Lowell, MA	58.8	$1,307	8.8	9.0%	0.8%	21.1%	0.7%	87.2%	89.4%	-1.8%	-1.7%	6.7%	0.0014%
29	Concord, NC	58.3	$876	18.2	21.9%	7.2%	0.9%	-1.6%	57.3%	51.8%	2.6%	-6.6%	12.0%	0.0034%
30	Longview, TX	57.0	$2,787	12.2	22.2%	-17.8%	18.5%	14.5%	52.5%	55.6%	-1.4%	-11.2%	19.0%	0.0038%
31	St. Petersburg, FL	57.0	$1,837	15.5	21.0%	-17.2%	9.9%	6.3%	62.2%	64.8%	3.9%	-3.2%	9.9%	0.0083%
32	Paterson, NJ	56.7	$3,614	19.2	24.7%	-16.0%	6.6%	9.5%	57.4%	79.8%	4.1%	-19.7%	22.1%	0.0036%
33	North Las Vegas, NV	56.4	$1,848	24.6	22.1%	12.7%	3.4%	1.9%	64.3%	74.3%	5.9%	-7.6%	17.0%	0.0118%
34	Yonkers, NY	56.4	$556	4.8	18.7%	1.7%	0.8%	5.7%	75.0%	68.5%	0.6%	1.8%	12.7%	0.0057%
35	Trenton, NJ	56.1	$4,611	33.2	49.1%	-5.5%	7.9%	14.5%	55.7%	69.7%	3.0%	-17.2%	46.1%	0.0077%
36	Milwaukee, WI	55.8	$7,029	1.8	39.4%	-10.1%	18.4%	19.3%	59.5%	69.9%	2.9%	-4.4%	23.4%	0.0266%
37	Chesapeake, VA	55.1	$1,930	3.9	29.6%	2.4%	5.6%	-1.2%	63.7%	58.3%	2.7%	4.1%	22.6%	0.0186%
38	Buffalo, NY	55.0	$4,132	32.6	33.3%	-2.2%	9.0%	15.6%	68.3%	84.2%	3.0%	-2.8%	29.7%	0.0188%
39	Sandy Springs, GA	54.5	$765	0.0	19.4%	-3.7%	14.4%	-3.3%	78.5%	43.1%	0.2%	1.7%	9.3%	0.0031%
40	Hawthorne, CA	54.2	$2,069	23.7	26.8%	-5.8%	20.6%	-2.1%	53.9%	55.4%	0.4%	-6.3%	15.1%	0.0014%
41	Flint, MI	54.1	$4,001	212.3	56.7%	-1.6%	-11.9%	22.6%	54.7%	87.9%	4.2%	-6.6%	45.3%	0.0101%
42	Newport News, VA	52.8	$3,035	5.4	41.0%	-4.8%	8.1%	7.4%	53.2%	53.6%	1.2%	0.1%	27.2%	0.0121%
43	El Paso, TX	52.4	$983	2.9	3.4%	8.4%	-3.3%	1.4%	65.9%	86.6%	8.8%	-10.5%	2.6%	0.0045%
44	Mesa, AZ	51.9	$1,404	21.4	4.4%	5.4%	-1.6%	4.4%	82.3%	87.3%	3.0%	-3.7%	1.6%	0.0023%
45	Springfield, MA	51.4	$2,450	12.9	20.8%	-1.7%	3.2%	15.1%	63.5%	89.2%	3.9%	-3.5%	16.9%	0.0056%
46	Irving, TX	50.9	$1,275	0.0	13.6%	7.0%	0.7%	1.4%	54.5%	62.4%	4.0%	-7.4%	5.7%	0.0024%
47	Vallejo, CA	50.6	$3,755	16.1	17.9%	-2.7%	-11.2%	7.9%	113.3%	94.8%	5.0%	-1.1%	15.8%	0.0050%
48	Detroit, MI	50.3	$9,281	33.5	77.9%	-8.7%	14.5%	19.1%	56.7%	63.9%	4.1%	-4.9%	74.7%	0.1068%
49	Hayward, CA	50.2	$1,395	19.2	9.5%	19.0%	-3.6%	1.3%	75.1%	59.9%	0.7%	-4.3%	7.5%	0.0024%
50	Murfreesboro, TN	49.3	$1,641	12.4	18.5%	-5.5%	17.1%	2.0%	54.3%	60.1%	2.0%	-3.9%	8.7%	0.0034%
51	McKinney, TX	49.1	$437	33.6	11.9%	-1.3%	21.9%	-2.7%	87.1%	73.5%	2.6%	-1.7%	5.5%	0.0030%
52	Richmond, CA	48.6	$3,135	43.5	18.4%	-9.6%	6.5%	5.3%	75.8%	77.8%	7.2%	-10.0%	19.5%	0.0051%
53	Baltimore, MD	48.1	$8,160	42.1	61.6%	-18.5%	18.6%	9.9%	66.7%	59.1%	4.4%	-0.8%	52.7%	0.0755%
54	Suffolk, VA	47.9	$2,287	10.2	41.2%	1.7%	12.8%	2.4%	64.4%	60.0%	4.8%	1.1%	36.7%	0.0126%
55	Portsmouth, VA	47.4	$7,253	20.4	52.2%	4.6%	6.3%	12.0%	53.9%	61.8%	2.0%	-2.3%	41.4%	0.0116%
56	New York, NY	46.7	$1,722	23.8	23.4%	-8.5%	14.3%	7.8%	76.9%	52.4%	2.9%	-1.0%	17.7%	0.2302%
57	Cleveland, OH	45.9	$7,397	85.2	47.4%	-7.1%	9.5%	24.1%	56.0%	66.8%	3.8%	-4.7%	39.6%	0.0319%
58	Rialto, CA	45.8	$1,257	38.2	13.1%	5.1%	2.1%	2.4%	57.3%	55.3%	2.6%	-12.7%	10.1%	0.0021%
59	Hoover, AL	45.6	$510	0.0	19.2%	-5.4%	32.9%	-3.6%	90.9%	62.2%	8.4%	1.1%	6.2%	0.0020%
60	Lansing, MI	45.0	$3,719	8.9	24.2%	7.3%	0.3%	13.7%	74.4%	100.9%	8.5%	-1.7%	15.8%	0.0056%
61	Kenosha, WI	44.2	$1,575	50.6	10.6%	-19.9%	7.3%	13.2%	64.4%	70.1%	-0.5%	-0.6%	4.0%	0.0012%
62	Fort Worth, TX	44.1	$2,237	3.2	18.8%	-11.2%	12.0%	7.6%	71.0%	68.1%	5.0%	2.4%	13.8%	0.0337%
63	Riverside, CA	44.0	$1,580	25.0	5.9%	14.3%	-1.9%	2.1%	72.6%	80.8%	1.2%	-1.2%	4.8%	0.0030%
64	Rochester, NY	43.7	$4,963	19.0	38.4%	-12.9%	20.1%	20.1%	59.0%	73.9%	4.4%	-3.0%	30.6%	0.0137%
65	Toledo, OH	43.4	$4,652	3.7	28.1%	4.4%	1.2%	22.9%	60.3%	79.1%	6.7%	-4.1%	19.3%	0.0155%
66	Greensboro, NC	43.0	$2,962	26.8	43.1%	-9.0%	12.4%	13.5%	55.8%	52.6%	4.5%	-1.6%	33.5%	0.0243%
67	High Point, NC	42.7	$2,509	0.0	34.5%	-7.7%	22.1%	8.0%	53.4%	66.5%	4.2%	3.5%	19.1%	0.0061%
68	Boston, MA	42.6	$1,787	145.6	23.5%	-15.6%	23.1%	7.2%	75.2%	52.2%	1.9%	0.3%	17.0%	0.0199%
69	Plano, TX	42.4	$420	6.9	8.6%	-6.2%	17.6%	-2.8%	69.6%	49.1%	1.4%	-0.1%	5.4%	0.0039%
70	Antioch, CA	42.4	$1,955	17.5	20.1%	-6.5%	6.6%	4.1%	60.8%	60.4%	4.2%	-2.1%	10.6%	0.0030%
71	Beaumont, TX	42.2	$3,751	18.0	46.0%	-9.7%	17.8%	13.3%	46.4%	43.9%	-0.8%	-0.8%	39.9%	0.0123%
72	Gastonia, NC	42.0	$2,529	0.0	29.6%	-4.5%	16.5%	6.2%	47.5%	59.8%	1.0%	5.2%	15.9%	0.0038%
73	Erie, PA	41.9	$1,676	10.7	15.9%	11.5%	-0.3%	27.7%	61.2%	96.4%	3.2%	-2.2%	13.2%	0.0035%
74	Bakersfield, CA	41.6	$2,160	4.9	7.0%	8.5%	-5.8%	13.7%	58.5%	57.5%	0.6%	-6.9%	4.9%	0.0044%
75	Raleigh, NC	41.6	$1,987	38.2	28.6%	-8.1%	23.5%	3.4%	70.5%	56.0%	4.2%	1.9%	17.0%	0.0198%
76	Dayton, OH	41.0	$5,146	7.3	38.5%	8.5%	5.1%	19.2%	56.9%	68.4%	4.9%	-2.5%	26.8%	0.0103%
77	Albuquerque, NM	41.0	$4,916	0.0	3.2%	-1.1%	-11.7%	6.8%	56.3%	53.8%	0.1%	-2.1%	2.5%	0.0046%
78	Long Beach, CA	40.9	$1,921	22.3	12.1%	-7.3%	11.2%	10.2%	90.6%	83.2%	6.1%	-4.3%	8.0%	0.0068%
79	Winston-Salem, NC	40.6	$3,365	15.9	33.5%	-4.0%	11.8%	13.3%	50.9%	52.4%	3.7%	-2.0%	28.3%	0.0184%
80	Knoxville, TN	40.4	$3,521	5.1	16.4%	-11.4%	9.5%	17.3%	53.2%	67.5%	0.6%	0.4%	14.7%	0.0066%
81	Memphis, TN	40.2	$9,056	17.6	64.6%	-15.1%	15.3%	16.1%	56.4%	63.3%	8.2%	-2.5%	52.2%	0.0722%
82	New Haven, CT	40.0	$2,260	7.3	33.9%	-28.3%	22.8%	16.0%	60.1%	52.1%	3.9%	-2.4%	18.8%	0.0036%
83	Philadelphia, PA	39.9	$5,570	71.3	40.8%	-9.6%	15.3%	14.3%	64.3%	58.4%	4.3%	-1.2%	35.9%	0.1497%
84	Decatur, IL	39.5	$4,066	0.0	23.1%	-7.2%	8.2%	23.6%	74.5%	98.9%	8.9%	-1.8%	11.3%	0.0028%
85	Worcester, MA	39.2	$1,595	14.5	12.7%	0.6%	11.6%	4.8%	64.4%	60.7%	2.4%	-1.5%	8.3%	0.0030%
86	Stockton, CA	39.1	$3,504	37.1	11.3%	-3.9%	-1.3%	10.7%	81.3%	84.8%	6.5%	-3.9%	9.2%	0.0061%
87	Corpus Christi, TX	39.1	$2,942	3.1	3.9%	6.8%	2.9%	18.3%	89.2%	98.4%	4.2%	-5.5%	3.1%	0.0026%
88	Albany, GA	39.0	$3,375	0.0	74.6%	-6.5%	14.4%	20.4%	45.4%	60.4%	8.9%	-4.5%	67.0%	0.0089%
89	Lawton, OK	38.5	$4,420	10.9	19.2%	-6.1%	8.2%	9.7%	39.2%	62.2%	4.5%	-8.9%	10.2%	0.0019%
90	Fontana, CA	38.3	$676	4.7	8.6%	-0.9%	4.0%	8.0%	67.6%	51.5%	4.5%	-6.3%	8.0%	0.0037%
91	Jersey City, NJ	38.2	$932	10.9	22.5%	-2.9%	15.0%	10.1%	79.0%	51.9%	4.3%	-0.2%	17.5%	0.0080%
92	Birmingham, AL	38.1	$11,392	10.3	68.7%	-18.9%	27.8%	17.6%	52.3%	58.3%	4.6%	-1.2%	70.2%	0.0317%
93	Columbus, OH	37.7	$2,683	33.1	29.2%	-5.8%	12.8%	14.6%	61.0%	65.5%	4.4%	-0.1%	16.9%	0.0340%
94	Hammond, IN	37.4	$3,475	78.6	22.0%	4.6%	3.5%	19.5%	69.2%	101.3%	4.3%	-3.7%	10.5%	0.0022%
95	Phoenix, AZ	37.0	$2,949	47.0	7.3%	-6.5%	12.7%	6.7%	62.9%	64.3%	4.4%	-6.9%	4.3%	0.0179%
96	Houston, TX	36.8	$4,098	22.0	22.6%	-9.9%	14.8%	12.7%	65.6%	52.9%	6.3%	-5.9%	16.9%	0.0770%
97	Lancaster, CA	36.3	$2,283	23.9	20.5%	-5.4%	3.4%	8.6%	83.6%	63.4%	8.0%	0.2%	14.8%	0.0056%
98	Richmond, VA	36.1	$3,788	4.4	45.2%	-19.2%	25.9%	14.5%	60.7%	54.6%	6.6%	-0.6%	32.2%	0.0175%
99	Brooklyn Park, MN	35.4	$1,110	48.4	30.3%	7.2%	7.1%	2.2%	46.5%	40.8%	-0.6%	4.4%	15.5%	0.0041%
100	Chula Vista, CA	35.4	$890	14.4	5.3%	-2.0%	-5.9%	0.6%	75.4%	67.3%	7.5%	-2.1%	3.9%	0.0023%
101	Dallas, TX	35.1	$2,834	13.2	24.0%	-20.3%	25.1%	13.5%	54.1%	40.5%	4.5%	-5.3%	16.2%	0.0428%
102	Schenectady, NY	35.1	$2,677	44.7	18.7%	-10.7%	1.7%	20.0%	65.1%	52.4%	0.5%	-0.1%	11.5%	0.0019%
103	Norfolk, VA	35.0	$4,562	4.3	40.7%	-1.8%	8.0%	13.0%	50.4%	59.9%	3.4%	1.2%	24.1%	0.0128%
104	Greenville, NC	34.6	$2,585	22.4	39.2%	-15.3%	13.4%	15.8%	56.4%	70.8%	5.0%	3.5%	36.1%	0.0059%
105	Joliet, IL	33.7	$1,055	46.5	17.1%	-7.1%	3.9%	8.4%	61.8%	59.9%	5.7%	-1.1%	13.3%	0.0059%
106	Denton, TX	33.5	$1,233	25.9	11.5%	-4.6%	5.7%	7.1%	46.7%	48.6%	0.6%	-4.0%	5.3%	0.0018%
107	Austin, TX	33.4	$1,909	22.8	7.7%	-5.6%	12.8%	9.0%	81.4%	63.2%	1.4%	2.2%	5.5%	0.0132%
108	San Antonio, TX	33.0	$3,619	16.4	6.5%	0.5%	3.9%	9.6%	48.9%	62.8%	2.6%	-7.6%	3.9%	0.0132%
109	Overland Park, KS	32.6	$818	10.2	5.1%	-9.3%	21.2%	-0.6%	65.0%	57.7%	0.5%	12.9%	1.6%	0.0010%
110	Los Angeles, CA	32.3	$2,539	93.5	8.6%	-8.1%	14.0%	10.9%	76.0%	60.7%	4.1%	-5.8%	6.6%	0.0402%
111	Washington, DC	32.2	$4,641	77.4	44.7%	-21.0%	17.2%	10.9%	100.5%	54.9%	10.5%	1.6%	32.8%	0.0520%
112	Jacksonville, NC	31.6	$1,442	13.8	18.8%	3.9%	-2.2%	16.0%	45.2%	113.5%	2.5%	4.6%	12.2%	0.0013%
113	Evanston, IL	31.3	$704	13.1	16.1%	-29.1%	27.5%	3.5%	55.8%	36.6%	0.2%	9.8%	8.7%	0.0019%
114	Sacramento, CA	31.1	$2,638	91.1	13.4%	-13.4%	13.4%	6.8%	71.0%	61.4%	6.3%	-3.0%	7.9%	0.0098%
115	South Bend, IN	30.8	$4,427	9.7	25.2%	4.5%	10.7%	23.4%	59.8%	77.9%	3.1%	1.7%	14.0%	0.0039%
116	San Jose, CA	30.7	$1,472	86.7	3.0%	-2.2%	10.7%	-1.7%	108.1%	57.2%	3.7%	-1.4%	1.4%	0.0030%
117	Evansville, IN	30.5	$3,969	8.6	13.6%	-13.4%	7.8%	23.2%	48.7%	66.0%	3.3%	-2.5%	6.4%	0.0023%
118	Oklahoma City, OK	30.3	$2,328	8.7	13.8%	-2.6%	15.3%	16.9%	60.1%	66.6%	3.7%	-1.1%	8.5%	0.0162%
119	Colorado Springs, CO	30.1	$2,388	16.4	5.9%	0.6%	12.6%	3.9%	53.8%	54.7%	2.2%	-4.5%	3.3%	0.0048%
120	Kansas City, MO	30.0	$6,398	55.0	26.5%	-10.0%	15.5%	13.0%	65.3%	69.1%	4.4%	5.9%	18.0%	0.0260%
121	Chattanooga, TN	29.6	$3,647	5.5	30.6%	-11.9%	24.8%	12.1%	46.9%	48.5%	6.7%	-2.7%	23.2%	0.0122%
122	Portland, OR	29.3	$3,319	54.0	5.6%	-2.8%	2.9%	12.3%	93.5%	83.0%	3.5%	-0.2%	2.6%	0.0044%
123	San Diego, CA	28.4	$1,206	16.0	6.0%	-8.0%	12.2%	8.7%	68.9%	56.3%	4.4%	-2.3%	3.5%	0.0103%
124	Orlando, FL	28.3	$2,721	9.7	23.5%	-14.3%	22.7%	7.4%	55.1%	50.9%	4.9%	1.7%	15.7%	0.0102%
125	Victorville, CA	27.7	$2,956	14.6	16.0%	6.6%	-7.5%	17.9%	70.7%	67.4%	11.6%	-5.2%	12.1%	0.0031%
126	Akron, OH	26.9	$3,985	58.3	30.1%	5.8%	11.4%	19.7%	57.7%	84.6%	7.7%	-2.1%	21.2%	0.0110%
127	Aurora, CO	26.8	$3,572	38.3	16.6%	-5.0%	14.8%	2.7%	52.4%	49.8%	1.9%	-0.5%	11.9%	0.0127%
128	Charleston, SC	26.6	$1,330	0.0	19.6%	-7.1%	30.0%	11.7%	50.2%	42.2%	1.8%	3.5%	13.0%	0.0059%
129	Round Rock, TX	26.3	$602	15.7	10.9%	-6.3%	-1.5%	4.4%	74.0%	60.4%	7.6%	5.6%	4.9%	0.0015%
130	San Bernardino, CA	25.5	$5,691	9.0	12.5%	-11.2%	3.1%	14.0%	45.5%	53.0%	5.0%	-13.2%	9.8%	0.0037%
131	Glendale, AZ	25.5	$2,013	20.0	7.2%	2.3%	12.8%	13.7%	58.9%	71.4%	2.9%	-1.4%	4.5%	0.0028%
132	Atlanta, GA	25.1	$5,502	4.0	48.2%	-16.2%	23.6%	15.5%	71.2%	45.2%	6.6%	12.9%	35.8%	0.0458%
133	Tacoma, WA	25.0	$5,140	45.7	10.8%	-9.3%	12.3%	6.7%	72.2%	71.9%	3.8%	0.6%	4.8%	0.0030%
134	Palmdale, CA	25.0	$2,207	37.0	12.9%	8.0%	0.3%	19.0%	97.3%	73.9%	5.8%	-1.0%	9.0%	0.0034%
135	Clearwater, FL	24.7	$1,187	17.2	12.3%	-0.6%	14.9%	15.4%	61.8%	69.0%	10.9%	-7.4%	5.0%	0.0017%
136	Amarillo, TX	24.6	$2,811	0.0	7.1%	1.3%	15.7%	25.8%	54.5%	56.2%	0.6%	-5.4%	3.2%	0.0019%
137	Tampa, FL	24.6	$2,149	5.1	22.4%	-18.3%	23.9%	16.0%	56.7%	48.2%	5.6%	-0.8%	13.9%	0.0134%
138	Fort Wayne, IN	23.8	$1,447	48.5	15.2%	-4.0%	8.2%	16.4%	59.7%	69.7%	7.6%	-1.3%	7.1%	0.0058%
139	Mobile, AL	23.4	$3,647	16.7	52.5%	-10.8%	21.8%	17.2%	43.6%	47.4%	5.6%	-0.2%	37.9%	0.0187%
140	Cincinnati, OH	22.5	$4,324	9.7	40.3%	-21.3%	25.5%	23.2%	51.8%	54.6%	5.3%	0.4%	21.1%	0.0145%
141	Baton Rouge, LA	22.0	$5,388	4.5	53.3%	-15.0%	19.0%	16.0%	48.4%	53.7%	6.1%	4.5%	39.3%	0.0187%
142	Oakland, CA	20.5	$5,710	21.0	22.0%	-13.4%	26.6%	7.6%	78.7%	43.1%	5.6%	1.1%	16.8%	0.0155%
143	Wilmington, NC	20.2	$2,200	8.4	17.2%	-20.0%	16.1%	25.1%	54.2%	65.7%	2.9%	2.4%	7.1%	0.0021%
144	Lynn, MA	19.8	$1,856	59.4	14.6%	7.4%	-2.3%	1.0%	53.2%	58.0%	3.0%	4.4%	8.9%	0.0019%
145	Chicago, IL	19.7	$3,553	25.3	29.2%	-11.4%	25.0%	14.9%	67.6%	51.1%	10.4%	-0.6%	21.6%	0.1350%
146	Tulsa, OK	19.5	$3,405	0.0	14.8%	-5.1%	9.1%	17.6%	57.7%	65.9%	6.5%	1.9%	9.5%	0.0101%
147	Fresno, CA	18.6	$2,780	25.6	6.8%	-2.1%	12.8%	18.4%	70.3%	70.4%	12.7%	-9.0%	5.4%	0.0059%
148	St. Louis, MO	17.5	$11,055	21.0	44.8%	-13.8%	19.4%	17.1%	56.4%	56.2%	8.1%	6.4%	30.9%	0.0253%
149	Kent, WA	17.1	$1,905	97.7	12.2%	10.5%	9.2%	6.2%	65.9%	64.3%	4.9%	-0.4%	7.5%	0.0023%
150	Reading, PA	15.7	$3,125	20.5	12.6%	25.0%	1.6%	12.7%	57.9%	79.0%	7.0%	2.2%	11.7%	0.0018%
151	Lubbock, TX	14.9	$3,057	3.8	8.1%	-15.0%	15.2%	14.2%	42.2%	47.0%	-0.3%	2.3%	3.3%	0.0022%
152	Denver, CO	12.3	$3,678	49.6	9.0%	-8.5%	20.8%	12.7%	66.2%	53.8%	6.2%	-3.2%	6.4%	0.0125%
153	Pittsburgh, PA	11.8	$4,418	39.6	22.9%	-7.1%	17.6%	20.0%	58.4%	58.4%	6.6%	1.0%	12.2%	0.0097%
154	Topeka, KS	11.0	$2,910	23.9	10.6%	6.6%	-0.4%	17.1%	73.0%	96.1%	12.9%	6.4%	8.1%	0.0031%
155	Seattle, WA	10.9	$2,394	98.7	6.8%	-14.1%	18.7%	13.4%	82.7%	46.1%	2.0%	2.5%	2.5%	0.0047%
156	Wichita, KS	10.8	$2,586	12.7	10.3%	-3.7%	8.8%	14.9%	51.4%	61.7%	4.9%	2.6%	5.8%	0.0066%
157	Albany, NY	9.4	$2,868	285.4	27.7%	-9.2%	17.6%	16.4%	54.9%	54.7%	7.4%	-0.7%	13.8%	0.0023%
158	Madison, WI	5.8	$879	14.8	6.8%	-5.6%	23.7%	12.1%	50.9%	50.2%	4.4%	-0.5%	2.8%	0.0020%
159	Dothan, AL	4.5	$4,250	14.0	34.5%	-2.1%	13.1%	21.6%	40.7%	50.5%	5.5%	6.9%	19.3%	0.0038%
160	Omaha, NE	3.9	$1,829	29.0	12.0%	-10.4%	18.9%	14.9%	54.0%	57.6%	5.8%	4.3%	5.1%	0.0070%
161	Lincoln, NE	2.6	$1,288	27.2	4.1%	13.6%	8.9%	11.7%	52.2%	64.5%	4.0%	6.1%	2.2%	0.0018%
162	St. Paul, MN	2.0	$2,978	25.2	16.0%	-9.4%	22.6%	16.4%	55.4%	54.0%	5.3%	1.4%	5.0%	0.0040%
163	Miami, FL	0.8	$2,319	6.9	15.2%	-26.3%	18.2%	19.5%	47.3%	37.7%	6.9%	0.9%	6.6%	0.0047%
164	Minneapolis, MN	0.0	$4,202	19.0	18.4%	-12.0%	24.4%	21.9%	59.4%	52.9%	5.8%	2.9%	7.4%	0.0081%

About Erin C. Perkins

Erin C. Perkins is a finance writer at MoneyGeek, with 15 years of experience in the media industry. She has covered topics about money, including banking, insurance and budgeting for several publications over the years.

Perkins has a master's degree in magazine journalism from Kent State University and a bachelor's degree in mass communications from Winston-Salem State University.

Read Full Bio »

sources

U.S. Census. "2022 American Community Survey (ACS)." Accessed January 25, 2024.
Goldman Sachs. "New Survey Data: Black Women in America Continue to Disproportionately Face Economic Hardship." Accessed January 16, 2024.
Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation. "FDIC National Survey of Unbanked and Underbanked Households." Accessed January 16, 2024.

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