Young Women Earn the Same or More Than Male Peers in These US Cities
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Nevertheless, only about 16% of all working women age 30 or younger live in the areas where they are at or above wage parity with men, the report shows.
On average, women in the U.S. earn less than men but in 22 of 250 metropolitan areas, women under age 30 earn the same as or more than their male peers, according to a Pew Research Center analysis of Census Bureau data. Women under 30 who work full time, year-round earn about 93 cents on the dollar compared with men in the same age range in these cities.
Here are the top metro areas where young women earn the most relative to young men:
| City | Gender Earning Gap |
| Wenatchee, Washington | 120% |
| Morgantown, West Virginia | 114% |
| Barnstable Town, Massachusetts | 112% |
| Gainesville, Florida | 110% |
| Naples-Immokalee Marco Island, Florida | 108% |
| San Diego-Carlsbad, California | 105% |
| Yuba City, California | 105% |
| New York City-Newark-Jersey City, New Jersey-Pennsylvania | 102% |
| Washington, D.C.-Arlington-Alexandria, Virginia, Maryland, West Virginia | 102% |
| San Angelo, Texas | 102% |
Nevertheless, only about 16% of all young women working full time year-round live in the 22 metros where they are at or above wage parity with men, the report shows.
Metros Where Young Women Earn Less
Metropolitan areas in the Midwest tend to have wider gender wage gaps among young workers, the report shows. In fact, young women working full time, year-round in Midwestern metros earn about 90% of their male counterparts compared to young women in other regions (94%).
Here are the top metro areas where young women earn the least relative to young men:
| City | Gender Earning Gap |
| Tuscaloosa, Alabama | 77% |
| Saginaw, Michigan | 77% |
| Baton Rouge, Louisiana | 75% |
| Niles-Benton Harbor, Michigan | 74% |
| Houma-Thibodaux, Louisiana | 71% |
| Decatur, Illinois | 70% |
| Mansfield, Ohio | 69% |
| Odessa, Texas | 68% |
| Beaumont-Port Arthur, Texas | 68% |
| Elkhart-Goshen, Indiana | 67% |
The report examines how the gender wage gap among young workers varies across metro areas. It is based on the American Community Survey, the largest household survey in the U.S., with a sample of more than 3 million addresses.
For more information from the report click here.
Andre Claudio is an assistant editor at Route Fifty.
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