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.

Black Fourth-Grade Reading Proficiency

Nursing Home Quality

Low-Income Working Families with Kids

Cost-Burdened Homeowners

Air Pollution

Drug Deaths

Public School Teacher Salary

Electricity Prices

Low Birthweight

Drinking Water Quality

Women Judges

Carbon Dioxide Emissions

Poverty

Black Voter Registration

Population Growth

Cost of Childcare (Infants)

Incarceration Rate

Broadband Access (25 MBPS)

Foreclosures

Hispanic/Latino Post-High School Educational Attainment

Hispanic/Latino Incarceration Rate

Highway Traffic Fatalities

Black Voter Turnout

Labor Force Participation Gender Gap

Hispanic/Latino Fourth-Grade Reading Proficiency

Felon Disenfranchisement

Women Living in Poverty

New Businesses

Juvenile Detention Rate

Households without Computers or Smartphones

Adults with Diabetes

Hispanic/Latino Voter Turnout

Typical Wages for Black Workers

Student Loan Holders in Default

Hispanic/Latino Uninsured Rate

Rural Broadband Access

Gigabyte Internet Availability

Adults Without a High School Diploma

Voter Turnout (Midterm Election)

Adults Who Smoke

Black Post-High School Educational Attainment

Seniors Avoiding Care Due to Cost

Bankruptcy Rate

Children in Households with High Housing Cost Burden

Unbanked Households

Typical Wages for Working Women

Typical Wages for Workers with Highschool Education

Youth (18-24) Voter Turnout

Adults on Probation & Parole

Children in Food-Insecure Households

Women’s Incarceration Rate

Financial Well-Being

Home Ownership

Violent Crime

Adults with Heart Disease

Black Adults Avoiding Care Due to Cost

Auto Loan Delinquency Rate in Communities of Color

High School Graduation

Rental Protections

Energy Expenditures Per Capita

Typical Wages for Workers with Bachelors Education or Higher

Uninsured Children

Adult Obesity

Voter Registration (Midterm Election)

Women Holding Elected Office

Road Quality

Public Library Funding

Volunteerism

Uninsured Rate

Auto Loan Delinquency Rate

Power Grid Reliability

Average Commute

Fourth-Grade Reading Proficiency

Children’s Medicaid/Chip Participation Rate

Post-High School Educational Attainment

Homelessness

Hispanic/Latino Adults Avoiding Care Due to Cost

Youth (18-24) Voter Registration

Student-Teacher Ratio

Food-Insecure Seniors

Deficient Bridges

Typical Wages for Hispanic Workers

Low-Wage Jobs

Voter Turnout (Presidential Election)

Seniors (65+) Voter Registration

Solar Energy Systems

Children in Poverty

Student Loan Holders in Default in Communities of Color

Able-Bodied Seniors

Women’s Uninsured Rate

Cost of Living

GDP Growth

Youth Unemployment

Food Insecurity

Low-Income Uninsured Rate

Voter Registration – Women

Seniors (65+) Voter Turnout

Voter Registration (Presidential Election)

Mental Health Providers

Women Avoiding Care Due to Cost

Income Inequality

Hispanic/Latino Voter Registration

Black Uninsured Rate

Underemployment

Childhood Obesity

Cost-Burdened Extremely Low-Income Renters

Seniors in Good Health

Seniors Living in Poverty

Working Age Employment Rate

Opioid Prescriptions

Medical Debt in Collections for Communities of Color

Voter Registrations Rejected

Young Children Not in School

Student Loan Debt

Property Crime

Black Incarceration Rate

Affordable Rental Shortage

Recidivism

Adults Avoiding Care Due to Cost

Broadband Subscriptions

Leed Certified Buildings

Commuters Taking Transit to Work

Median Household Income

Green Jobs

Provisional Ballots Cast

Representation of People of Color in Elected Office

Unemployment

Infant Mortality

Voter Turnout – Women

Patents

Extremely Low-Income Renters

Children Receiving Public Assistance

Medical Debt in Collections

Wage Gap

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.