State of Our State

How Does Tennessee Stack Up?

ThinkTennessee’s State of Our State dashboard, now in its 6th year, provides a snapshot of how our state ranks nationally across 135 of the indicators that matter most to Tennesseans.

The Tennessee economy is rapidly expanding. But to date, our economic success has not yet translated into greater economic opportunity and security for all Tennesseans.

Indeed, while our latest dashboard finds improvements in our national rank on statewide economic indicators from GDP growth (in just three years we’ve risen from #24 in the country to #1–a rate of 8.6% in 2021!) to poverty to unemployment, metrics at the individual level, including median household income, debt levels, and cost-burdened households among others have declined or worsened.

Importantly, state-level economic successes did not happen by accident. Rather, the improvement in these metrics is a direct result of concerted statewide policy efforts and prioritization – illuminating a path forward to achieve similar progress on many of the affordability, infrastructure, and health challenges continuing to plague our state’s working families.

As Tennessee moves deeper into this period of economic expansion, the 2023 dashboard points to several areas where the scope of policymaking should prioritize expanding access to opportunities for all Tennesseans.

Interested in ideas about how to move our state forward? Our research shares success stories from other states and includes pragmatic solutions about how Tennessee can continue to make progress.

Note: For the sake of consistency, rankings have been standardized so low numbers always reflect positive outcomes. In other words, being ranked first is always better than being ranked 50th. Additional detail on research methodology can be found below the rankings.

Cost-Burdened Extremely Low-Income Renters

Affordable Rental Shortage

Typical Wages for Workers with Highschool Education

Food-Insecure Seniors

Black Adults Avoiding Care Due to Cost

Seniors Living in Poverty

Low Birthweight

Adults Avoiding Care Due to Cost

Children in Households with High Housing Cost Burden

Children in Poverty

Youth (18-24) Voter Registration

Adults Who Smoke

Broadband Subscriptions

Juvenile Detention Rate

Youth Unemployment

Hispanic/Latino Voter Registration

Medical Debt in Collections

Carbon Dioxide Emissions

Nursing Home Quality

Black Voter Turnout

Leed Certified Buildings

Opioid Prescriptions

Black Fourth-Grade Reading Proficiency

Typical Wages for Workers with Bachelors Education or Higher

Drinking Water Quality

Student-Teacher Ratio

Commuters Taking Transit to Work

GDP Growth

Adults on Probation & Parole

Seniors Avoiding Care Due to Cost

Voter Registration (Presidential Election)

Population Growth

Drug Deaths

Typical Wages for Hispanic Workers

Low-Income Uninsured Rate

Rural Broadband Access

Green Jobs

Provisional Ballots Cast

Student Loan Holders in Default

Childhood Obesity

Cost-Burdened Homeowners

Children in Food-Insecure Households

Public Library Funding

Voter Registration (Midterm Election)

Median Household Income

Post-High School Educational Attainment

Wage Gap

Student Loan Holders in Default in Communities of Color

Black Uninsured Rate

Poverty

Representation of People of Color in Elected Office

Typical Wages for Black Workers

Bankruptcy Rate

Seniors (65+) Voter Turnout

Infant Mortality

Felon Disenfranchisement

Income Inequality

Patents

Homelessness

Cost of Living

Black Post-High School Educational Attainment

Broadband Access (25 MBPS)

Black Voter Registration

Voter Turnout (Midterm Election)

Adults with Heart Disease

Fourth-Grade Reading Proficiency

Electricity Prices

Children’s Medicaid/Chip Participation Rate

Violent Crime

Unemployment

Youth (18-24) Voter Turnout

Working Age Employment Rate

Children Receiving Public Assistance

Property Crime

Deficient Bridges

Underemployment

Voter Registration – Women

Air Pollution

High School Graduation

Hispanic/Latino Incarceration Rate

Voter Turnout (Presidential Election)

Black Incarceration Rate

Medical Debt in Collections for Communities of Color

Hispanic/Latino Adults Avoiding Care Due to Cost

Public School Teacher Salary

Cost of Childcare (Infants)

Financial Well-Being

New Businesses

Women Living in Poverty

Auto Loan Delinquency Rate

Adult Obesity

Voter Turnout – Women

Seniors (65+) Voter Registration

Recidivism

Households without Computers or Smartphones

Foreclosures

Able-Bodied Seniors

Hispanic/Latino Fourth-Grade Reading Proficiency

Average Commute

Voter Registrations Rejected

Women Holding Elected Office

Incarceration Rate

Hispanic/Latino Post-High School Educational Attainment

Typical Wages for Working Women

Young Children Not in School

Energy Expenditures Per Capita

Student Loan Debt

Adults with Diabetes

Women’s Incarceration Rate

Uninsured Children

Solar Energy Systems

Mental Health Providers

Road Quality

Seniors in Good Health

Extremely Low-Income Renters

Hispanic/Latino Uninsured Rate

Labor Force Participation Gender Gap

Food Insecurity

Women Avoiding Care Due to Cost

Low-Wage Jobs

Auto Loan Delinquency Rate in Communities of Color

Rental Protections

Power Grid Reliability

Women Judges

Volunteerism

Hispanic/Latino Voter Turnout

Gigabyte Internet Availability

Adults Without a High School Diploma

Low-Income Working Families with Kids

Home Ownership

Women’s Uninsured Rate

Uninsured Rate

Unbanked Households

Highway Traffic Fatalities

Notes on Methodology:

Metrics were compiled using publicly available data and are current as of Jan. 10th, 2023. Where possible, we favored U.S. government data over other sources for consistency and reliability.

Some debt- and voting-related indicators will be updated throughout the year as newer information becomes available.