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.

Representation of People of Color in Elected Office

Student Loan Debt

Median Household Income

Home Ownership

Black Adults Avoiding Care Due to Cost

Youth Unemployment

Seniors (65+) Voter Registration

Financial Well-Being

Working Age Employment Rate

Hispanic/Latino Adults Avoiding Care Due to Cost

Typical Wages for Working Women

Food Insecurity

Uninsured Children

Patents

Commuters Taking Transit to Work

Rental Protections

Extremely Low-Income Renters

Voter Turnout (Midterm Election)

Hispanic/Latino Voter Turnout

Post-High School Educational Attainment

Student Loan Holders in Default

Electricity Prices

Typical Wages for Workers with Bachelors Education or Higher

Affordable Rental Shortage

Road Quality

Youth (18-24) Voter Registration

Average Commute

Drinking Water Quality

GDP Growth

Young Children Not in School

Underemployment

Adults Without a High School Diploma

Fourth-Grade Reading Proficiency

Children in Households with High Housing Cost Burden

Unbanked Households

Green Jobs

Children’s Medicaid/Chip Participation Rate

Women Holding Elected Office

Leed Certified Buildings

Typical Wages for Workers with Highschool Education

Labor Force Participation Gender Gap

Rural Broadband Access

Violent Crime

Food-Insecure Seniors

Unemployment

Children Receiving Public Assistance

Women Avoiding Care Due to Cost

Seniors Living in Poverty

Low-Income Working Families with Kids

Adults with Diabetes

Women’s Incarceration Rate

Black Incarceration Rate

Voter Turnout – Women

Uninsured Rate

Seniors in Good Health

Women Living in Poverty

Poverty

Black Voter Turnout

Medical Debt in Collections for Communities of Color

Auto Loan Delinquency Rate in Communities of Color

Broadband Access (25 MBPS)

Cost of Living

Public Library Funding

Foreclosures

Cost-Burdened Homeowners

Voter Turnout (Presidential Election)

Bankruptcy Rate

Opioid Prescriptions

Adults with Heart Disease

Black Voter Registration

High School Graduation

Homelessness

Childhood Obesity

Medical Debt in Collections

Voter Registrations Rejected

Low Birthweight

Drug Deaths

Volunteerism

Hispanic/Latino Uninsured Rate

Recidivism

Hispanic/Latino Voter Registration

Juvenile Detention Rate

Property Crime

Auto Loan Delinquency Rate

Households without Computers or Smartphones

Adults on Probation & Parole

Children in Poverty

Hispanic/Latino Fourth-Grade Reading Proficiency

Felon Disenfranchisement

Incarceration Rate

Adults Avoiding Care Due to Cost

Broadband Subscriptions

Wage Gap

Population Growth

Able-Bodied Seniors

Voter Registration (Midterm Election)

Solar Energy Systems

Voter Registration (Presidential Election)

Nursing Home Quality

Carbon Dioxide Emissions

Cost-Burdened Extremely Low-Income Renters

Adult Obesity

Black Uninsured Rate

Typical Wages for Black Workers

Hispanic/Latino Incarceration Rate

New Businesses

Black Fourth-Grade Reading Proficiency

Women Judges

Low-Wage Jobs

Hispanic/Latino Post-High School Educational Attainment

Children in Food-Insecure Households

Public School Teacher Salary

Voter Registration – Women

Student Loan Holders in Default in Communities of Color

Energy Expenditures Per Capita

Student-Teacher Ratio

Provisional Ballots Cast

Seniors Avoiding Care Due to Cost

Cost of Childcare (Infants)

Power Grid Reliability

Gigabyte Internet Availability

Low-Income Uninsured Rate

Infant Mortality

Adults Who Smoke

Typical Wages for Hispanic Workers

Highway Traffic Fatalities

Youth (18-24) Voter Turnout

Air Pollution

Seniors (65+) Voter Turnout

Women’s Uninsured Rate

Mental Health Providers

Income Inequality

Black Post-High School Educational Attainment

Deficient Bridges

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.