Where are the best places in the U.S. for women to work in technology? A new survey uncovers the locales that are most suitable for women within a world disproportionately weighted towards men.
There has been some impovement in recent years, although more remains to be done to establish parity. Women now make up approximately 35 percent of the workforce in tech jobs. This is a significant leap from only 9 percent back in the early 2000s. However, within these headline figures there are significant variances by location.
The U.S. map representing the metro areas that offer the best chances for women working in tech tilts slightly heavier towards the Midwest and Southeast. These regions have five metros each in our top 5 across the three population brackets, while the West has three metros in the top 5, and the Northeast two.
San Jose, CA, Durham, NC, and Lexington Park, MD, took the number one spot for women in tech among large, mid-sized and small metro areas, respectively, based on highly-placed rankings across a board of metrics.
For the analysis, more than 200 metros in this analysis were divided into three population brackets — large, mid-sized and small:
Best performers among large metro areas:
- Share of female tech workers from total tech workers: Oklahoma City, OK & Memphis, TN (34%)
- % Change of female tech workers (2019-2023): Fresno, CA (119%)
- Female Tech Earnings: San Jose, CA ($160,920)
- % Change of female tech earnings (2019-2023): Miami, FL (44%)
- Number of tech jobs per 1,000 jobs: San Jose, CA (57)
- Share of female workers with health insurance: Grand Rapids, MI (65%)
- Female unemployment rate: Minneapolis, MN & 15 other metros (3%)
- Number of coworking spaces per 100K people: San Diego, CA (13)
San Jose, CA continues to lead in terms of earnings ($161,000), the fastest wage growth and highest female representation are actually emerging in the South.
Best performers among mid-sized metro areas:
- Share of female tech workers from total tech workers: Columbia, SC (41%)
- % Change of female tech workers (2019-2023): Little Rock, AR (198%)
- Female Tech Earnings: Durham, NC ($101,320)
- % Change of female tech earnings (2019-2023): Lancaster, PA (73%)
- Number of tech jobs per 1,000 jobs: Huntsville, AL (46)
- Share of female workers with health insurance: Madison, WI (69%)
- Female unemployment rate: Madison, WI & 3 other metros (2%)
- Number of coworking spaces per 100K people: Durham, NC (6)
Durham-Chapel Hill is another notable metro for women in tech, ranking first among mid-sized metros for female tech professionals. Here, women now make up 31 percent of the region’s tech workforce to mark a significant 6 percent increase since 2024 and reinforce Durham’s leadership in gender diversity within the industry.
Best performers among small metro areas:
- Share of female tech workers from total tech workers: Myrtle Beach, SC (56%)
- % Change of female tech workers (2019-2023): Ocala, FL (703%)
- Female Tech Earnings: Hilton Head Island, SC ($168,328)
- % Change of female tech earnings (2019-2023): Erie, PA (295%)
- Number of tech jobs per 1,000 jobs: Lexington Park, MD (65)
- Share of female workers with health insurance: Rochester, MN (70%)
- Female unemployment rate: Burlington, VT & Appleton, WI (1%)
- Number of coworking spaces per 100K people: Boulder, CO (9)
Lexington Park claims the top spot among small metros for women in tech, driven by a 41 percent female representation in the tech workforce and the highest number of tech job openings — 65 per 1,000 jobs.
In addition, there has been a 167 percent surge in female tech earnings, which now average $103,000, making it the eighth-highest-paying small metro for women in tech. Additionally, 62 percent of female tech professionals have health insurance, providing strong job security and benefits.
