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.

Student Loan Holders in Default in Communities of Color

Recidivism

Adults Who Smoke

Women Avoiding Care Due to Cost

Income Inequality

Cost-Burdened Extremely Low-Income Renters

Adults Without a High School Diploma

Women Holding Elected Office

Energy Expenditures Per Capita

Households without Computers or Smartphones

Able-Bodied Seniors

Drinking Water Quality

Solar Energy Systems

Women Judges

Hispanic/Latino Post-High School Educational Attainment

Black Uninsured Rate

Population Growth

Medical Debt in Collections for Communities of Color

Low-Income Uninsured Rate

Hispanic/Latino Incarceration Rate

Children Receiving Public Assistance

Adults Avoiding Care Due to Cost

Property Crime

Post-High School Educational Attainment

Public School Teacher Salary

Commuters Taking Transit to Work

Electricity Prices

Student Loan Debt

Voter Turnout – Women

Hispanic/Latino Fourth-Grade Reading Proficiency

Hispanic/Latino Uninsured Rate

High School Graduation

Voter Registration – Women

Black Incarceration Rate

Home Ownership

Seniors (65+) Voter Registration

Voter Registration (Midterm Election)

Food Insecurity

Broadband Access (25 MBPS)

Poverty

Working Age Employment Rate

Uninsured Rate

Foreclosures

Wage Gap

Incarceration Rate

Typical Wages for Workers with Bachelors Education or Higher

Bankruptcy Rate

Black Post-High School Educational Attainment

Unemployment

Carbon Dioxide Emissions

Voter Registrations Rejected

Childhood Obesity

Youth Unemployment

Adults with Heart Disease

Labor Force Participation Gender Gap

Typical Wages for Black Workers

Auto Loan Delinquency Rate

Adults on Probation & Parole

Young Children Not in School

Underemployment

Cost of Living

Drug Deaths

Seniors (65+) Voter Turnout

Black Voter Turnout

Mental Health Providers

Violent Crime

Felon Disenfranchisement

Low-Wage Jobs

Infant Mortality

New Businesses

Average Commute

Uninsured Children

Green Jobs

Fourth-Grade Reading Proficiency

Cost of Childcare (Infants)

Seniors Avoiding Care Due to Cost

Gigabyte Internet Availability

Black Voter Registration

Public Library Funding

Leed Certified Buildings

Women’s Uninsured Rate

Typical Wages for Workers with Highschool Education

Rural Broadband Access

Median Household Income

Black Fourth-Grade Reading Proficiency

Juvenile Detention Rate

Seniors in Good Health

Low Birthweight

Cost-Burdened Homeowners

Nursing Home Quality

Children in Food-Insecure Households

Adults with Diabetes

Student Loan Holders in Default

Hispanic/Latino Voter Registration

Homelessness

Medical Debt in Collections

Typical Wages for Hispanic Workers

GDP Growth

Adult Obesity

Deficient Bridges

Children’s Medicaid/Chip Participation Rate

Highway Traffic Fatalities

Women Living in Poverty

Affordable Rental Shortage

Women’s Incarceration Rate

Student-Teacher Ratio

Road Quality

Seniors Living in Poverty

Voter Registration (Presidential Election)

Extremely Low-Income Renters

Representation of People of Color in Elected Office

Hispanic/Latino Voter Turnout

Low-Income Working Families with Kids

Broadband Subscriptions

Power Grid Reliability

Opioid Prescriptions

Youth (18-24) Voter Registration

Rental Protections

Children in Poverty

Provisional Ballots Cast

Air Pollution

Voter Turnout (Presidential Election)

Typical Wages for Working Women

Financial Well-Being

Black Adults Avoiding Care Due to Cost

Patents

Youth (18-24) Voter Turnout

Volunteerism

Food-Insecure Seniors

Children in Households with High Housing Cost Burden

Auto Loan Delinquency Rate in Communities of Color

Unbanked Households

Hispanic/Latino Adults Avoiding Care Due to Cost

Voter Turnout (Midterm Election)

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.