2023 LGBTQ+ State Safety Rankings

What is the LGBTQ+ State Safety Ranking?

This state ranking is unique from others as the scoring system was based on the opinions of 1,000 American LGBTQ+ individuals. Based on their insights, we calculated how heavily these unique legal factors would weigh upon each state’s safety score: parenting freedoms, criminal justice rights, non-discrimination rights, youth protections, and health laws.

Though we based the scores on more detailed questions in each category, we asked LGBTQ+ Americans generally about laws that promote equality and ones that damage it.

The pro-equality rules people cared most about outlaw discrimination, such as in employment and housing, while laws allowing discrimination in healthcare were the most concerning on the anti-equality side.

Then, using data from the Human Rights Campaign, we tallied each state's share of laws in each category. Next, we ranked the states based on the number of measures they’ve taken to support LGBTQ+ rights legislatively and created a scoring scale where 100 is the best and 0 is the worst to rank. (For the full, detailed methodology, jump to the end of the article.)

LGBTQ+ Safety Index Rankings by State

Our rankings indicate that California, Maine, and D.C. have the best legal safety protections for queer people, while Mississippi, Tennessee, and Alabama scored lowest in our analysis.

The Safest States for LGBTQ+ Americans

Let’s take a closer look at the five states at the top of the list when it comes to safety for members of the queer community and how they got to where they are.

#1: California – Safety Index Score: 100

California scored the highest for LGBTQ+ safety and equality, meaning they have the most pro-equality laws compared to other states. Additionally, the state has no anti-equality laws on the books, which is essential considering the categories that matter most to queer people in our research. California scored 100, the highest possible score.

Lawmakers in California have adopted several laws in recent years to support LGBTQ+ residents, reinforcing the state’s long-standing pro-equality reputation. In 2008, California became only the second state behind Massachusetts to begin issuing marriage licenses to same-sex couples. However, a ballot initiative later that year put marriages on hold for several years.

Protections on the books in California include:

• Second parent adoption
• Surrogacy laws
• Foster care non-discrimination
• Mandatory reporting of hate crime statistics
• Prohibition of profiling by law enforcement
• Non-discrimination in housing, employment, education, adoption, juries, colleges, etc.
• Anti-bullying
• Laws addressing LGBTQ+ youth homelessness
• Ban on insurance exclusions for trans healthcare

The bevy of state laws ensuring that queer residents of California have access to the same treatment as other people in the state is, perhaps, one reason why the state remains a popular destination for gay couples. California has more than 160,000 households with same-sex couples, whether married or unmarried. On a population-adjusted basis, the state ranks sixth in this area, just behind Massachusetts.

#2: Maine –  Safety Index Score: 97

Similarly, Maine has been at the forefront of advancing LGBTQ+ rights. In 2012, Maine became one of the first states to adopt marriage equality through a popular vote. Additionally, the state allows same-sex couples to adopt children, providing LGBTQ+ individuals and couples the opportunity to form families and enjoy the legal benefits associated with marriage and adoption.

Queer people in Maine enjoy many of the same protections as those in California, but there is some work to do in Maine. For example, the state has no policies to address LGBTQ+ youth homelessness or to implement inclusive sex education in schools. The absence of laws like these lowered its overall score.

#3: District of Columbia – Safety Index Score: 91

Due to its population density, D.C. is home to more same-sex couple households than any other state or district, at a rate of 25 per 1,000 households, nearly double the next-highest location (Hawaii).

But D.C. is likely also a welcoming spot for LGBTQ+ couples and families due to the protections enshrined in law in the district. D.C., for example, has most of the same anti-discrimination laws found in national leader California, except for legislation that expressly prohibits anti-gay discrimination in jury selection.

In addition to jury duty-related protections, D.C. could improve its standing for LGBTQ+ safety by adopting laws that protect queer people from profiling by law enforcement and prohibiting foster care discrimination against queer prospective parents.

#4: New York – Safety Index Score: 86.9

New York was among the first states to enshrine marriage equality into law, and queer couples in the Empire State began getting married in the summer of 2011. But, of course, New York’s place in the battle for acceptance of the LGBTQ+ community goes back much further, as the Stonewall Uprising, one of the first major milestones of the gay rights movement, began in June 1969 in New York City’s Greenwich Village.

But New York’s place near the top of this list isn’t just due to ancient history. Indeed, the state has no anti-equality laws on the books, and lawmakers have passed several important safety and equality measures, including second-parent adoption, mandatory reporting of hate crime data, and many anti-discrimination policies.

New York could gain ground on the states it trails by ensuring non-discrimination in insurance based on sexual orientation; currently, the state’s non-discrimination in insurance law applies only to gender identity. The state also lacks LGBTQ+-inclusive sex education laws for youths.

#5: New Jersey – Safety Index Score: 86.8

New Jersey is fifth in our ranking, just a fraction of a point behind neighboring New York. Like its neighbor, New Jersey doesn’t have blatantly discriminatory laws targeting LGBTQ+ individuals.

And like New York, the Garden State has passed measures like second-parent adoption and mandatory reporting of hate crime statistics, and unlike New York, it bars profiling based on LGBTQ+ status by law enforcement.

However, while covering major areas like housing and employment, the state's anti-discrimination protections don’t prevent anti-queer discrimination in jury selection. In insurance coverage, only gender identity is a protected factor.

The Worst States for LGBTQ+ Safety

Unlike the states at the top of our list, many of those falling to the bottom have actively hostile laws targeting members of the queer community, and they often also have yet to pass laws banning things like anti-gay discrimination or conversion therapy. This abusive practice attempts to change an individual’s orientation.

Notably, all five of the bottom states are in the South. However, as explored in the next section, the anti-trans legislative wave in the U.S., which has picked up its pace in 2023, is not limited to Southern states.

#1: Mississippi – Safety Index Score: 0

Mississippi had the worst possible score in our ranking based on the presence of several anti-equality laws, including still having sodomy laws on the books, as well as criminalizing non-disclosure of HIV status. Like others at the bottom of this list, Mississippi also bars trans youth from sports and restricts discussions of LGBTQ+ topics in schools.

Balancing those factors against the few pro-equality measures the state has passed, which include laws regarding non-discrimination based on sexual orientation (but not gender identity) in adoption and foster care, it's easy to see why it ranks so poorly in our analysis.

In the first month of 2023 alone, state lawmakers in Mississippi introduced 31 anti-LGBTQ+ bills. Though not all of the bills will pass, they can still negatively impact people’s mental and physical health.

As you might expect, Mississippi is not a popular place for queer Americans to reside. There are fewer than 6,000 same-sex couple households, with a population-adjusted rate that’s just over half the national average, putting it 48th among the states and D.C. Only Montana, North Dakota, and South Dakota are worse.

#2 Tennessee – Safety Index Score: 1

Tennessee just barely squeaked by without landing in the bottom spot, ranking just one point ahead of last-place Mississippi. And similarly to its neighbor to the south, Tennessee’s place on the list is primarily due to a near-total lack of pro-equality measures.

While Tennessee doesn’t still criminalize sodomy like Mississippi does, it has few laws that bar anti-gay discrimination and actively bars municipalities in the state from putting local ordinances in place to do so.

Like so many other states that performed poorly in our ranking, Tennessee lawmakers have also targeted trans youth, barring them from sports. In late May 2023, the state passed laws to legally define “sex” as an immutable biological characteristic, effectively eliminating trans identities in Tennessee. Other bills protect teachers

#3 Alabama – Safety Index Score: 9.3

Compared to Tennessee and Mississippi, Alabama has fewer openly discriminatory laws. However, like others near the bottom of this list, the state has rules that bar trans children from participating in sports. The state also restricts the discussion of certain LGBTQ+ topics in schools.

The state lacks anti-discrimination laws protecting queer individuals in most areas except for colleges and universities, and it permits anti-gay discrimination in adoption and foster placement. Alabama has recently enacted more legislation restricting LGBTQ+ residents, such as limiting transgender athletes’ participation in college sports, but many Alabamans have been pushing back with protests against restrictive laws.

#4 Louisiana – Safety Index Score: 9.3

Louisiana’s score is a fraction ahead of Alabama's mainly due to many anti-equality laws in the state. For example, the state restricts gestational surrogacy to straight, married couples only. It has both sodomy and HIV criminalization regulations. However, LGBTQ+ parents have some protections, including second-parent adoption.

Like many others at the bottom of this list, Louisiana does not have laws barring anti-gay discrimination in housing, employment, or education, and the state allows religious exemptions to protect those with anti-gay views.

Louisiana state lawmakers sent additional anti-LGBTQ+ legislation to their governor’s desk during the first week of Pride Month 2023: a copycat of Florida’s “Don’t Say Gay” law, a ban on gender-affirming care for minors, and guidelines for pronoun usage in schools.

#5 Oklahoma – Safety Index Score: 9.9

Oklahoma’s place on the list is due mainly to the absence of many anti-equality measures that other low-ranking states have. However, the state permits anti-gay discrimination in adoption and foster placement and has laws against sodomy and non-disclosure of HIV status. Even more legislation has been considered and passed this year, such as a ban gender-affirming care for patients under age 18.

However, balancing the other side of the ledger are some protections for queer parents, including de facto parental recognition, granting some legal rights to otherwise non-legal parents.

Anti-Trans Laws

We based our analysis on data from the Human Rights Commission covering 2022, but in 2023 lawmakers have unleashed many new rules targeting transgender and nonbinary people, as well as other members of the queer community.

And while many of these efforts have centered around Florida, led by Republican presidential candidate Gov. Ron DeSantis, lawmakers in many other states have proposed and even passed harmful legislation.

North Dakota, for example, passed bills during the 2023 legislative session that forbid trans students from using school restrooms that match their gender identity. They also now prohibit schools and state employers from using individuals’ chosen pronouns. Another bill prohibits queer people from bringing claims of discrimination based on sexual orientation or gender identity in employment, housing, and public accommodations.

According to the ACLU, 18 states have passed laws curtailing the rights of LGBTQ+ people this year, and even more are still under consideration.

State Laws Aren’t Enough: More Federal Protections Needed

Though lawmakers in some states have enshrined protections for LGBTQ+ people, federal protections are still lacking in most areas. For example, marriage equality is the law of the land not because of an act by Congress but because of a Supreme Court decision.

For many of the LGBTQ+ people we talked to for this report, the lack of federal legislation often means they still face difficulties, fear, and danger in various places.

Our study also revealed many LGBTQ+ individuals still face discrimination in healthcare settings, which can be life-threatening. Sixteen percent of all people in our study had faced obstacles in accessing healthcare because of their sexual orientation or gender identity, and this percentage was much higher among respondents who were transgender (31% had faced obstacles in healthcare).

Though there has been progress in many states, these figures illustrate the urgent need for federal action and improved education about the issues impacting LGBTQ+ Americans. Federal rulings could override harmful legislation enacted by more conservative states.

Our Data and Methodology

We conducted an internet poll of 1000 LGBTQ+ identifying individuals of all ages to get their views on each of the categories of pro- and anti-equality legislation identified by the Human Rights Campaign’s 2022 State Equality Index. Respondents included 1,000 adults who identify as LGBTQ+. 38% were men, 51% were women, and 34% identified with at least one other gender (multiple selections were allowed). 22.5% identified as transgender. 22% were aged 18-29, 26% were 30-44, 25% were 45-59, and 37% were aged 60 or older.

Using the responses from our survey participants, we calculated weights for how important each of these categories are to LGBTQ+ people:

• Parenting
• Hate crimes and criminal justice
• Non-discrimination
• Religious Refusal & Relationship Recognition
• Youth Laws
• Health & Safety Laws

Then, for each of the 50 states and D.C., we calculated the percentages of enacted laws within each category and multiplied them by our weights to determine a score for each category. We then added up the scores for pro-equality legislation categories, subtracted the scores for anti-equality legislation, and normalized the resulting number to be a score from 0 to 100: