New report exposes cities with the worst pay gaps

DALLAS (KDAF) — Despite decades of progress, new research reveals that in some American cities, your paycheck may still depend more on your gender than your performance.

A recent study by smallpdf, a PDF management platform, analyzed data from the U.S. Census Bureau to uncover which metropolitan areas have the largest gender pay disparities. After evaluating more than 260 U.S. Metropolitan Statistical Areas (MSAs), the results paint a stark picture, especially for women working in Texas.

Midland, Texas ranks #4 on the list of worst gender pay gaps nationwide. Many women in Midland earn just 64.55% of what men earn per hour on average. That’s $27.57 per hour for women compared to $42.71 for men.

Meanwhile, Beaumont and Port Arthur, Texas also rank high, landing at #9. There, the average female earns just 66.56% of the hourly wage earned by men.

While the study highlights inequalities across the nation, the findings in Texas point to a wider issue—one where industry, access, and representation may be playing a major role in wage inequality.

View the top 30 list of cities where the gender pay gap is widest below.

The top 30 Metropolitan Statistical Areas with the largest gender pay gaps

Rank	Area	State	Average female hourly earnings ($)	Average male hourly earnings ($)	Female earnings as a percentage of male earnings
1	Slidell, Mandeville and Covington	Louisiana	25.66	40.74	62.98%
2	Lebanon	Pennsylvania	24.7	38.79	63.68%
3	Provo, Orem and Lehi	Utah	24.07	37.52	64.15%
4	Midland	Texas	27.57	42.71	64.55%
5	Bozeman	Montana	25.47	38.96	65.37%
6	Bismarck	North Dakota	25.72	39.26	65.51%
7	Anniston and Oxford	Alabama	20.28	30.64	66.19%
8	Bridgeport, Stamford and Danbury	Connecticut	41.21	62.16	66.30%
9	Beaumont and Port Arthur	Texas	22.81	34.27	66.56%
10	Barnstable Town	Massachusetts	35.32	52.12	67.77%
11	Elkhart and Goshen	Indiana	22.09	32.58	67.80%
12	Corvallis	Oregon	25.38	37.27	68.10%
13	Punta Gorda	Florida	27.16	39.78	68.28%
14	Tyler	Texas	23.52	34.12	68.93%
15	Michigan City and La Porte	Indiana	23.67	34.29	69.03%
16	Evansville	Indiana	24.82	35.71	69.50%
17	Naples and Marco Island	Florida	29.68	42.36	70.07%
18	Lincoln	Nebraska	25.16	35.87	70.14%
19	Bloomington	Indiana	24.34	34.4	70.76%
20	St. George	Utah	23.33	32.74	71.26%
21	Pueblo	Colorado	22.7	31.85	71.27
22	Gainesville	Georgia	26.34	36.88	71.42
23	Lynchburg	Virginia	23.9	33.41	71.54
24	Ogden	Utah	25.92	36.1	71.80
25	Saginaw	Michigan	22.69	31.37	72.33
26	Wausau	Wisconsin	25.38	35.08	72.35
27	Johnson City	Tennessee	21.56	29.73	72.52
28	Knoxville	Tennessee	26.18	36.02	72.68
29	Hattiesburg	Mississippi	21.19	29.15	72.69
30	Chattanooga	Tennessee	26.72	36.71	72.79