The analysis used existing data from government sources — including the U.S. Census Bureau, Bureau of Labor Statistics, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Child Care Aware of America, and others — to score and rank all 50 states and Washington D.C. Scores were collected or key health indicators, including life expectancy, child care costs, unemployment rate for dads with kids under age 18, length of word day, fathers’ physical and financial health.
Washington’s strongest showing was in employment: the state ranks first in the country for the lowest unemployment rate among fathers with children under 18. When it comes to physical health and the percentage of impoverished kids living in two-parents households, the state also ranked high.
Washington indicator rankings
- 1st – Unemployment rate for dads with kids under age 18
- 5th – % of physically active men
- 11th — Overall ranking
- 13th – Male life Expectancy
- 14th – % of under age 18 living in poverty with dad present at home
- 16th – Male uninsured rate
- 15th – Average. length of work day (in hours) for men
The rankings land as research continues to show that working fathers feel the squeeze of time. A 2025 Father’s Day survey from FinanceBuzz found that 67% of working dads say they struggle to balance work and parenting — and the guilt runs in both directions. Nearly half (46%) feel guilty for taking time off to be with their families, while 41% have felt guilty for leaving work to care for a sick child. Broader 2025 data on working parents puts the overall parental guilt figure at 73%, with mothers reporting it at higher rates than fathers (50% vs. 38%) — a reminder that the pressure is widespread, even if it lands differently by gender.
One finding in the report cuts against common assumptions: while roughly one in five stay-at-home parents are now fathers, caregiving is not the main reason most of them are home. According to Pew Research Center, the largest single driver is illness or disability, at 34 percent, followed by job searching and school. Only 23 percent or dads said they made a deliberate choice to be the primary caregiver.
“The single biggest hurdle facing working dads today is the intense mental stress of navigating a modern culture that demands deep emotional presence at home while maintaining traditional expectations of full-time corporate performance,” said Andrew Burnstine, Ph.D., associate professor at Lynn University, in a release. “A pervasive time deficit fuels a sense of parenting guilt.” See WalletHub’s full set of indicators and ranking.
