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Gender Pay Gap Across the United States

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Written and fact-checked by
The Editors of Encyclopaedia Britannica
Encyclopaedia Britannica's editors oversee subject areas in which they have extensive knowledge, whether from years of experience gained by working on that content or via study for an advanced degree. They write new content and verify and edit content received from contributors.
The Editors of Encyclopaedia Britannica,
Kenny Chmielewski
Kenny is an associate cartographer at Britannica and has worked there since 2008. When not making maps and infographics for Britannica, he enjoys photographing the beautiful city of Chicago.
Kenny Chmielewski
The wage gap over 40 years between men and women in every state. graph and table infographic, Women's History, women's rights (2 of 3)
Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc./Kenny Chmielewski

The infographic contains a bar graph showing what a woman in each U.S. state, Washington, D.C., and the country as a whole loses in average pay over a 40-year career, based on the 2020 wage gap—the difference between the average wages or salaries of men and those of women. The graph is ordered from least to greatest losses.

Lifetime losses due to wage gap

  • A woman in Florida typically loses $220,600.
  • A woman in California typically loses $228,160.
  • A woman in New York typically loses $269,400.
  • A woman in Vermont typically loses $277,920.
  • A woman in Arizona typically loses $280,240.
  • A woman in New Mexico typically loses $286,680.
  • A woman in North Carolina typically loses $300,200.
  • A woman in Nevada typically loses $302,360.
  • A woman in Delaware typically loses $304,200.
  • A woman in Georgia typically loses $326,240.
  • A woman in Washington, D.C., typically loses $327,920.
  • A woman in Tennessee typically loses $328,800.
  • A woman in Maine typically loses $354,320.
  • A woman in Maryland typically loses $355,280.
  • A woman in Rhode Island typically loses $361,480.
  • A woman in Arkansas typically loses $364,480.
  • A woman in Texas typically loses $367,120.
  • A woman in Oregon typically loses $375,720.
  • A woman in Montana typically loses $386,080.
  • A woman in Kentucky typically loses $392,080.
  • A woman in Mississippi typically loses $393,840.
  • A woman in Hawaii typically loses $397,200.
  • A woman in Minnesota typically loses $400,560.
  • A woman in Missouri typically loses $403,880.
  • A woman in Colorado typically loses $405,440.
  • A woman in the United States as a whole typically loses $406,760.
  • A woman in Pennsylvania typically loses $407,280.
  • A woman in South Carolina typically loses $413,400.
  • A woman in Wisconsin typically loses $416,640.
  • A woman in Alaska typically loses $418,840.
  • A woman in North Dakota typically loses $423,960.
  • A woman in Oklahoma typically loses $425,040.
  • A woman in Iowa typically loses $425,480.
  • A woman in South Dakota typically loses $429,840.
  • A woman in Connecticut typically loses $434,240.
  • A woman in Ohio typically loses $449,040.
  • A woman in Massachusetts typically loses $451,720.
  • A woman in Michigan typically loses $451,840.
  • A woman in Kansas typically loses $453,440.
  • A woman in Nebraska typically loses $462,680.
  • A woman in Idaho typically loses $463,040.
  • A woman in Wyoming typically loses $469,920.
  • A woman in New Hampshire typically loses $476,880.
  • A woman in Virginia typically loses $479,920.
  • A woman in West Virginia typically loses $493,880.
  • A woman in Illinois typically loses $497,440.
  • A woman in Alabama typically loses $511,400.
  • A woman in New Jersey typically loses $518,360.
  • A woman in Washington typically loses $528,480.
  • A woman in Indiana typically loses $544,600.
  • A woman in Utah typically loses $599,880.
  • A woman in Louisiana typically loses $629,480.

Pay gap between women of different ethnicities and white men

This part of the infographic contains a bar graph showing the average income that women of different ethnicities lose over a 40-year career in comparison with the average income of white (non-Hispanic) men in the U.S.

  • An Asian American woman typically loses $360,400.
  • A white (non-Hispanic) woman typically loses $555,000.
  • A Black woman typically loses $946,120.
  • A Native American woman typically loses $977,720.
  • A Hispanic American woman typically loses $1,135,440.

Source: National Women's Law Center