10 Best states to have a baby (and the 10 worst)

When you first learn you’re pregnant, the first thought running through your head is probably not “uh-oh, we should move!” But a new look at the best (and the worst) states to have a baby in might just send you running for a phone to call a moving company.

The folks at WalletHub, a financial website, looked at maternity care in all 50 states (plus Washington, D.C.) — including cesarean and vaginal delivery costs, number of midwives and OB-GYNs, infant death rates and pediatrician access — plus infant care costs (such as diapers and formula) to deduce where babies get the best start in life and where they get the worst.

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It seems the mid-Atlantic states as well as the South are some of the worst spots to welcome your bundle of joy, while you’ve got it good if you live in the likes of Vermont, which has the highest number of pediatricians in the country (per capita), highest number of child care centers (per capita) and the second highest number of midwives and OB-GYNs (again, per capita). And while it doesn’t make the tippy top of the list, Iowa can shout out loud about being the state with the lowest infant death rate in the country, while Mississippi has the highest.

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So where do you want to give birth? Here are the nation’s top 10 best states, based on the WalletHub rankings:

1. Vermont

2. North Dakota

3. Oregon

4. Hawaii

5. Minnesota

6. Kentucky

7. Maine

8. Wyoming

9. Iowa

10. Alaska

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As for the worst? In descending order (meaning 1 is the worst), here you go:

10. Arkansas

9. Alabama

8. Georgia

7. Louisiana

6. New York

5. Nevada

4. South Carolina

3. West Virginia

2. Pennsylvania

1. Mississippi

Where does your state fall in the rankings?