Iowa is one of the best states in the nation to have a baby, according to a new report from personal finance website WalletHub. The 2025 rankings placed Iowa ninth overall among all 50 states and the District of Columbia, based on key factors such as cost, healthcare access, infant/mother mortality rates, and family-friendliness. Current data show that the average conventional birth in the U.S. costs more than $2,600 for insured mothers and nearly $15,000 for those without insurance. Iowa landed at 11th for conventional delivery charges and 12th for cesarean procedures, both below average. The state also ranked 11th for average annual early childcare costs and third for the number of childcare centers per capita. Iowa finished in 18th for its infant mortality rate compared to other states and came in at 27th for parental-leave policies, which was one of the state’s few tracked metrics that fell in the bottom half of the rankings. Based on WalletHub’s methodology, Massachusetts is the best state in the nation to have a baby, followed by North Dakota and then Minnesota. Nevada, Alabama, and Mississippi were rated as the three worst. A link to the full WalletHub Report is included below.
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