The Best U.S Cities for Women in Finance

To find out which are the best cities to work in finance for women, Moneyzine scored American metropolitan areas on the average yearly earnings of women in finance after paying for housing, the gender pay gap, the 3-year growth of finance jobs and the number of women in finance jobs.

We then weighted each metric and created a final score to determine the best city for women in finance.

• The best location in America for women in finance is Columbus, Georgia with the most favourable gender pay gap towards women of 26.1% and a high number of women in financial roles, 65.5%.

• Bridgeport, Connecticut and the surrounding Stamford/Norwalk area have the highest earnings of women in finance of all American cities after housing costs at $76,154.

• Chico, California has the highest gender representation in finance with 72.8% of women in finance roles.

• Over the past three years, Binghamton, New York has the biggest increase in financial jobs at 97.8%.

The study revealed the following areas to be the best locations for women working in finance across the US:

When choosing a city for a career in finance, New York or Chicago might come to the top of the list. However, there are many other cities around the U.S. that offer great opportunities for women in finance based on their job growth, average earnings, gender pay gap and the number of women in finance roles.

The city of Columbus, located on Georgia’s Western Border ranks in our study as the best city in America for women to have a finance career. The city boasts the best gender pay gap that favours women in all of the country, with women on average earning 26.1% more than men. Not only this but the city has a high number of women in financial roles at 65.5%.

Killeen and Temple in Texas comes in as a close second with women paid 11.6% more than men and 59.4% of women in the area working in finance. The metro area is a great place for families and popular for those who are relocating due to the military with Fort Cavazos, one of the largest U.S. military installations in the world just a stone's throw away.

Fort Collins, Colorado came in last place as the worst American city for women in finance. While the city is ranked as one of the best places to live by U.S. News and World Report overall, when factoring in metrics important to women working in finance it doesn’t stand up. The city scored low on almost all metrics with women earning 46.9% less than men and low earnings of $25,882 after housing costs.

Like it or not, salary and the cost of housing often affects a worker's quality of life. A high salary in a city with a high cost of living might feel the same as a low salary in a city with a low cost of living. That’s why we’ve looked at the average earnings for a woman in finance in each location by taking their average salary and removing the costs for housing in that area.

Of all the metropolitan areas in the U.S., Bridgeport, Connecticut has the highest earnings for women in finance roles after deducting the average cost of housing in the city. Women in the area can see themselves earning $76,154 on average after housing. Santa Clara, California comes a close second with women earning $68,557.

However, in Provo and Orem, Utah women aren’t as lucky. Here, women in financial roles earn just $20,886 after housing expenses. That’s over three times less than in Bridgeport. Fort Collins, Colorado also has low earnings for women at $25,882.

The finance world is notorious for being a male-dominated landscape, and it’s exciting to see that there are many areas across the US where women are not only levelling the playing field, but actually outperforming in terms of the percentage employed as well as earnings.

However, this study also reveals that there is much work to be done across the country to achieve equality in this sector. We hope by shedding light on the cities where women are thriving - and those where more work is needed - this data helps inform both businesses and any individuals working in this field to create a more inclusive space for all.

Jonathan Merry, personal finance expert at Moneyzine.com

It’s common knowledge that women generally earn less than men in similar industries and roles. According to Pew Research Center, the gender pay gap still persists with women making just 82% of what men earned in 2022.

A recent study by Glassdoor revealed that the issue might be more present in the finance industry. A whopping 63% of women in finance jobs believe their pay doesn’t add up, compared with only 53% of male professionals. According to a report by ADP Research Institute, the finance sector has the second largest gender wage gap with male workers making $40 hourly to women’s $27.

While the gender pay gap is still rife around America, there are 9 out of 170 locations where it actually skews in favour of women. One of these areas is Columbus in California where on average, women earn 26.1% more than men.

Only six other American locations skew as strongly in the other direction in favour of men. The worst area where the gender pay gap is the most prevalent is Huntington, Ashland and surrounding areas which straddle Kentucky, Ohio, and West Virginia where women earn 53.8% less than men.

In general, women are represented well in the finance and banking industry, with a report by McKinsey finding that women make up 52% of the financial workforce. Representation is incredibly important in the workplace. While women bring their own set of skills and are more empathetic and inclusive leaders, working with other women helps them feel more included and is a sign of a healthy work environment.However, studies show that women are underrepresented when it comes to more senior roles. Men and women start on a level playing field when starting in the industry, but as they progress through their careers men typically rise faster. The International Monetary Fund found that less than 2% of CEOs in financial institutions are women and less than 20% are executive board members.

According to our research, the college town of Chico in California has the highest number of women represented in finance roles in all of the United States. A mighty 72.8% of women professionals take up finance roles in this city. The charming city has more than just women in finance to boast about, with a hugely livable community environment attracting people and businesses from all over the state.Interestingly, there are only 16 metropolitan areas in which men outnumber women in terms of how many work in finance and banking. Provo and Orem in Utah has the lowest representation of women in finance roles of all other U.S. areas at just 36.8% and Houma and Thibodaux, Louisiana has just 39.2%.

When moving to a new city and settling down, those looking to grow in their careers want to make sure the area they’re moving to has a positive outlook for their industry. An area with a booming job market indicates better prospects which inevitably makes finding a job in finance that much easier.

We’ve explored the locations with the biggest 3-year growth for financial jobs and discovered that Binghamton in New York has the most growth. In the past three years finance jobs have grown here more than any other metropolitan area by 97.8%. Jobs are also booming in Erie, Pennsylvania where there has been a 77.2% growth in finance jobs in the last three years.

The outlook isn’t as rosy in the South. Huntington, Ashland and surrounding areas have seen a 30.2% decrease in finance jobs in the past three years. The story is similar for Shreveport and Bossier City in Louisiana which has seen a decline of 29.8%

Including women in key roles throughout an industry has positive effects beyond the individual. Research shows that involving both men and women in decision-making, no matter the industry, helps broaden perspectives and enhances innovation and creativity.

It’s noted that women also excel in certain aspects of the job that men may not be as naturally comfortable with, including giving feedback more often, managing close personal relationships more effectively and being more inclined to the prevention and resolution of conflict.

Beyond this, research has shown that having more women in C-suite roles offers a multitude of positive outcomes for a company including making them more profitable.

Making the finance industry more inclusive for women, especially in more senior positions will only benefit the economy as a whole. By identifying the best cities for women to succeed in their financial careers, we can help determine where women are experiencing more barriers to joining or progressing in the industry.

To find out more about how you can achieve a successful career in finance, explore our career development guides.