Where you raise a child matters in ways that go far beyond school rankings or zip codes. It shapes the financial pressure on a household, the safety of a neighborhood, the quality of healthcare a child can access, and whether a family can realistically afford to stay long-term. For a growing number of parents, that calculation is increasingly coming up short in certain cities and states across the country.
High living costs are a major factor driving young families out of many large U.S. cities. Many families are choosing suburban or rural locales where they perceive a better quality of life for raising children. The eight places below consistently appear at the wrong end of family-friendliness rankings, and the reasons behind each entry are grounded in real, measurable data.
1. San Francisco, California
1. San Francisco, California (Image Credits: Pixabay)
In terms of percentage loss, San Francisco has seen the steepest population drop among major U.S. cities, with more than 70,000 people having left since 2020 and at least 15,000 more expected to exit. Homebuyers face prices averaging $1.3 million, while renters pay around $3,200 monthly for a one-bedroom, and even high-earning tech workers are feeling the pinch, with families that once thrived here now being pushed out to nearby counties or completely out of state.
A comfortable lifestyle in San Francisco requires over $170,000 annually, and for many, that math simply doesn't work. Office buildings sit empty with vacancy rates topping 30 percent, and property crimes, especially in neighborhoods like the Tenderloin, only add to the disillusionment. The city remains culturally rich, but raising a family here has become a genuine financial undertaking that fewer households can sustain.
2. Memphis, Tennessee
2. Memphis, Tennessee (Image Credits: Pexels)
Memphis ranked as the worst city on a recent study of U.S. cities for raising a family, due to especially low grades for public schools, median income, family-friendly activities, health, safety and support for working parents. These aren't minor shortcomings stacking up on paper. For parents on the ground, the combination of underfunded schools and elevated crime rates creates a daily reality that is difficult to navigate.
As rising inflation drives families to seek more affordable cities, WalletHub's annual report ranked the best and worst places to raise a family by evaluating over 180 U.S. cities using 45 key indicators of family friendliness, including factors like housing affordability, quality of local schools, and employment rates. Memphis scored poorly across nearly all of those categories. Families who stay often find themselves making significant trade-offs simply to access a decent public school or a safe neighborhood.
3. Nevada (State-Wide)
3. Nevada (State-Wide) (Ken Lund, Flickr, <a href="https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.0/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">CC BY-SA 2.0</a>)
Nevada ranks last among U.S. states with a score of 49.57, indicating considerable challenges for families. Nevada's high crime rates and a lower emphasis on public health infrastructure make it less ideal for raising children. The problem isn't isolated to Las Vegas. It runs through the state's approach to public investment in children's services, schools, and healthcare infrastructure.
Nevada ranks last in the country with low scores across all categories, and its health and safety situation is particularly concerning, with a 7.6% rate of uninsured children and a high violent crime rate of 454 incidents per 100,000 people, contributing to a less-than-ideal environment for families seeking security and well-being. Nevada also carries one of the highest separation and divorce rates in the country, which compounds instability for children in many households.
4. Louisiana
4. Louisiana (Image Credits: Pixabay)
Louisiana's final score places it 49th among all U.S. states, making it the second-worst state to raise a family. Louisiana came in last in the nation in terms of socioeconomics, with an unemployment rate more than double Vermont's and an average credit score of 690. The economic environment creates a difficult baseline for family planning, particularly for households without generational wealth or strong job security.
Louisiana had the third-lowest reading scores and access to healthy food, the fourth-lowest high school graduation rate, and one of the worst childcare cost burdens, with roughly a third of household income required for childcare expenses. Louisiana scored worst on child safety according to one analysis. The state has struggled for years to climb out of the bottom tier of family-friendliness rankings, and the data from 2025 and 2026 offers little evidence of meaningful improvement.
5. New Mexico
5. New Mexico (Image Credits: Pexels)
New Mexico received the lowest overall score in one widely cited state-by-state analysis, making it the worst state to raise a family. New Mexico residents have the most limited access to healthy foods, with around 13% of the population living in a food desert, the lowest high school graduation rate in the country, and a significant childcare cost burden with roughly a third of household income required for childcare.
WalletHub's analysis found that New Mexico ranked last for affordable housing and near the bottom for median family income. These conditions combine to form a particularly challenging environment for children across income levels. Food insecurity, school quality gaps, and limited access to pediatric healthcare all show up in the state's metrics simultaneously, making it hard for families to compensate in one area when another falls short.
6. Arkansas
6. Arkansas (Image Credits: Unsplash)
Arkansas trails at the bottom of health and safety rankings, largely due to a higher infant mortality rate of 8.59 deaths per 1,000 live births and a 5.9% rate of children lacking health insurance. That infant mortality figure is roughly three times what it is in top-ranked states like Vermont and New Hampshire. For parents thinking about starting a family, that kind of disparity is not abstract.
Arkansas's education and childcare score indicates significant areas for improvement in educational quality and accessibility, and the state has lower educational attainment levels and struggles with funding for public schools. Arkansas has the highest rate of reported sexual abuse among children of any state, according to one safety-focused analysis. Affordability is Arkansas's strongest suit, but low housing costs alone are rarely enough to offset persistent gaps in health and educational outcomes.
7. Chicago, Illinois
7. Chicago, Illinois (Image Credits: Unsplash)
Chicago's skyline still shines, but the city has lost more than 128,000 residents over the past decade as people chase cheaper homes and safer neighborhoods beyond city limits, with high taxes and concerns about crime driving many to the suburbs or warmer states. From mid-2020 through mid-2022, the population of young children fell by roughly 10% in large urban counties that make up metro Chicago.
The population of Chicago continues to dwindle, with more than 30,000 residents likely to have left by the end of 2025. School quality varies dramatically by neighborhood, and families without the means to live in higher-income districts or pay for private school often find their options narrowing fast. With declining revenues, cities like Chicago may struggle to maintain infrastructure, education, and emergency services, creating a feedback loop that is difficult to reverse.
8. Hawaii
8. Hawaii (Image Credits: Unsplash)
Hawaii ranks last in affordability with a median home price of $784,900 and a rent-to-income ratio of 35.42%, making it exceptionally challenging for families with an average monthly wage of just over $5,000. Hawaii was also found to be the most expensive state in which to raise a small child, with an estimated annual cost of over $40,000, according to a LendingTree report.
Hawaii ranks among the worst states for affordability, and the numbers reflect a simple reality: the cost of space, schooling, groceries, and childcare consistently outpaces what most local wages can support. In Hawaii's capital Honolulu, families face some of the highest childcare costs in the country. The islands offer an undeniable quality of life in terms of climate and natural beauty, but the financial strain of raising children there has quietly pushed many families toward the mainland, often for good.
None of these places are without merit, and plenty of families raise wonderful kids in all of them. What the data makes clear, though, is that the structural challenges, whether financial, educational, or related to health and safety, are real and measurable. When cities and states lose significant numbers of young families, the consequences are far-reaching, with declining numbers of students leading to school consolidations or closures. The families making these quiet decisions are responding to conditions that surveys, rankings, and migration data have all begun to confirm in consistent terms.