Despite decades of advocacy for equal pay, progress to close the gender pay gap has been slow.
A decade ago, full-time, year-round working women earned about 80% of men’s earnings. Today, women earn about 82% of what their male counterparts earn. Year-over-year, the nationwide pay gap for full-time workers decreased by only $96 annually.
The gap is even wider among full-time workers with a bachelor’s degree (70%), according to the U.S. Census Bureau.
In order to gain a better understanding of where gender pay gaps are the largest, we took a closer look at earnings in cities across the country, as well as all 50 states.
Our annual gender pay gap report examined earnings for full-time, year-round workers within the most populated 170 cities in the United States. We also compared year-over-year earnings to determine where pay parity has widened.
Key findings
- Three cities in the Dallas-Fort Worth area rank within the top 10 cities with the largest gender pay gaps including Plano, Texas (No. 6), McKinney, Texas (No. 5), and Frisco, Texas (No. 1).
- Last year, the Silicon Valley city of Sunnyvale, California, was home to the largest gender pay gap in the country. This year, the city witnessed the largest pay gap decrease in the nation ($20,942). However, Sunnyvale still ranks 12th nationwide for pay parity, with an earnings difference of $19,642 between men and women.
- Similar to our 2023 analysis, California cities still dominate the top 10 list of cities with the largest pay gaps, including Irvine (No. 3), Fremont (No. 7), Huntington Beach (No. 8), and San Francisco (No. 9).
- Cities with the largest year-over-year pay gap increases: Frisco, Texas ($12,357), Yonkers, New York ($10,957), Aurora, Colorado ($10,770), Lancaster, California ($9,759), and Hollywood, Florida ($9,563).
- In terms of states with the largest pay gaps, New Hampshire ranks No. 1, with an earnings difference of $18,044 between men and women.
Which cities have the largest gender pay gaps?
Nationwide, the pay gap between men and women is about $11,069. Full-time, year-round working men earn an average of $62,344 while their female counterparts earn $51,275.
However, in Frisco, Texas, the pay gap for full-time workers is $52,216, nearly five times the nationwide average.
Frisco also saw a dramatic year-over-year pay gap widening of $12,357, according to the Census Bureau. Management occupations in Frisco have the largest gender pay gap at a staggering $107,344. Not only do these management positions have the widest pay gap in Frisco, but they also saw the largest year-over-year pay gap increase. From 2021 to 2022, the gender pay gap for management occupations in Frisco increased by $56,185. Nationwide, management positions are one of the top 10 occupations with the widest gender pay gaps, with women earning about 76.7% of men’s earnings.
Top five cities with largest gender pay gaps
#1. Frisco, Texas
- Median Earnings: $94,316
- Median Earnings: Men - $119,310
- Median Earnings: Women - $67,094
- Gender Pay Gap: $52,216
- Women’s earnings as a percentage of men’s earnings: 56.2%
#2. Cary, North Carolina
- Median Earnings: $90,712
- Median Earnings: Men - $106,810
- Median Earnings: Women - $66,088
- Gender Pay Gap: $40,722
- Women’s earnings as a percentage of men’s earnings: 61.9%
#3. Irvine, California
- Median Earnings: $105,175
- Median Earnings: Men - $121,349
- Median Earnings: Women - $89,093
- Gender Pay Gap: $32,256
- Women’s earnings as a percentage of men’s earnings: 73.4%
#4. Seattle, Washington
- Median Earnings: $99,829
- Median Earnings: Men - $112,812
- Median Earnings: Women - $85,202
- Gender Pay Gap: $27,610
- Women’s earnings as a percentage of men’s earnings: 75.5%
#5. McKinney, Texas
- Median Earnings: $75,858
- Median Earnings: Men - $86,647
- Median Earnings: Women - $62,079
- Gender Pay Gap: $24,568
- Women’s earnings as a percentage of men’s earnings: 71.6%
Where has the gender pay gap widened?
Frisco, Texas, stands out as the city experiencing the most significant widening in the gender pay gap across the country.
According to the most recent data from the Census Bureau, the pay gap in Frisco increased by $12,357 from 2021 to 2022. In 2021, Frisco had the second-highest pay gap in the nation ($39,859), but that gap has now expanded to $52,216.
Elsewhere, cities like Yonkers, New York and Aurora, Colorado have seen five-figure increases in the gender pay gap compared to 2021. In Yonkers, the pay gap increased by $10,957 while Aurora saw a $10,770 year-over-year increase.
In Aurora, the top three occupations with the largest year-over-year pay gap increases include community and social service occupations ($35,593), transportation ($33,654), and health technologists and technicians ($25,507).
Meanwhile, in Yonkers, community and social service occupations ($62,402), arts, design, entertainment, sports, and media occupations ($48,738) as well as healthcare support occupations ($38,390) saw the largest year-over-year pay gap increases.
While these cities have taken a step backward in terms of closing the pay gap, other cities have made progress such as Sunnyvale, California, which cut its gender pay gap in half between 2021 and 2022. Overall, Sunnyvale saw a $20,942 year-over-year decrease. Scottsdale, Arizona also experienced a significant year-over-year decrease of $20,403.
There are only four cities on our list where full-time working women earn more than men, including Buffalo, New York, Garland, Texas, Brownsville, Texas and Springfield, Massachusetts.
In terms of cities with the narrowest pay gaps, Los Angeles has a pay gap of only $205 annually, which means women in Los Angeles earn roughly 99.6% of men’s earnings.
Which states have the largest gender pay gaps?
Among all 50 states, New Hampshire, Utah, North Dakota, Virginia and Louisiana have the top five largest gender pay gaps. In New Hampshire, the median earnings for men is $73,072, while the median earnings for women is $55,028, which is a difference of $18,044.
Utah ranks second with an earnings gap of $17,528, followed by North Dakota ($14,082); Virginia ($14,053) and Louisiana ($14,048).
As far as states with the smallest gender pay gaps, Vermont ranks No. 1 with a difference of $6,450, followed by Nevada ($7,130); California ($7,496); Arizona ($7,502) and New Mexico ($7,733).
Methodology
To determine our ranking, we analyzed median earnings for full-time, year-round workers in the most populated 170 census-defined places via the U.S. Census Bureau’s American Community Survey. We also conducted a year-over-year analysis of pay parity within those cities from 2021 to 2022, which is the most recent data available. The same datasets were also analyzed in order to determine the earnings gap in all 50 states.
Sources: U.S. Census Bureau’s American Community Survey, Pew Research Center
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