Expecting a baby is both exciting ... and expensive. The average conventional delivery in the US costs more than $10,000 (though your insurance determines how much of that will come out of your pocket), and then, of course, there are all the things you'll need once the baby has been born—not to mention the cost of child care. The price of having a baby varies widely from state to state, and so do many other factors involved in having a child. To determine 2018's best and worst states in which to have a baby, WalletHub looked at factors including costs; health care (including access, quality, and factors like infant mortality rate and number of preterm births); and how baby- and family-friendly the environment is (including parental leave policies and "mom groups" per capita). The five best and five worst follow, along with their total overall scores:
Best:
- Vermont, 69.61
- Massachusetts, 67.76
- Minnesota, 67.06
- New Hampshire, 65.65
- North Dakota, 63.21
Worst: - Mississippi, 23.16
- Alabama, 25.28
- South Carolina, 27.53
- Louisiana, 30.57
- Oklahoma, 31.93
Click for the
full rankings, including scores in individual areas. (More
lists stories.)
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