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Population that identifies as LGBT: 2.0%
Sample size: 2,160

The state with the smallest LGBT population is South Dakota, whichÌýmade headlines in 2017 for passingÌý. These laws wereÌýenacted under the banner of religious liberty, which allows taxpayer-funded agencies to discriminate against the LGBT community. MAP, which tracks state laws and policies that affect LGBT people,ÌýÌýa dismal -0.5 equality profile out of a possible 37. This rating is thanks to the few laws designed to protect South Dakota'sÌý13,043 LGBT residents, as well asÌýthe existence of several laws that negatively target them.

Population that identifies as LGBT: 2.7%
Sample size: 2,079

In 2016,ÌýÌýon the demise of the only gay bar in North Dakota, a rural state the publication described as a "hostile landscape" for its LGBT community.ÌýÌýlargely confirms that assessment through an analysis of the protections afforded to the state'sÌýÌýLGBT residents — or more accurately, lack of protections. No laws exist to protect the LGBT community from school bullying, conversion therapy or hate crimes, norÌýfrom discrimination in education, housing, public accommodations, employment or health care. The other two issues HRC deems critical are marriage equality, which is now nationally enshrined, and the legal change of gender markers on identifying documents, which North Dakota only partially protects.

Population that identifies as LGBT: 2.8%
Sample size: 4,858

A fullÌýÌýof Idaho'sÌýÌýcitizens are women, 77% are white and 42% are raising children. The state scores a low 4 out of 37 on theÌý,Ìý²¹²Ô»åÌý, Idaho does not have even the most basic anti-discrimination and protection laws in place.

Population that identifies as LGBT: 3.0%
Sample size: 11,166

Ìýare dramatically more likely to be unemployed, less likely to have health insurance and more likely to earn less than $24,000 a year than non-LGBT South Carolinians.ÌýNevertheless, both groups attend college in equal percentages. The state fails to provide eight of the 10 basic measures of legal protectionÌý,Ìýand scores a lowÌý.

Population that identifies as LGBT: 3.0%
Sample size: 4,235

Although Montana earns aÌý, it does provide some basic protections for its LGBT community, which is 24,447 Montanans strong. Like non-LGBT residents in the state, a large percentage of the community fallsÌý. Nearly one in four LGBT Montana residents is raising children.

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Population that identifies as LGBT: 3.0%
Sample size: 7,938

´¡°ù°ì²¹²Ô²õ²¹²õ&#³æ27;ÌýÌýare divided fairly evenly between women and men, withÌý53% to 47%, respectively. The state earns a lowÌýÌýthanks to laws that offer little protection for, and sometimes directly target, Arkansas' LGBT population. Residents there do not yet have theÌýÌýon identification documents.

Population that identifies as LGBT: 3.0%
Sample size: 12,133

Almost half ofÌýÌýare non-white, and 35% are raising children. The heart of the Bible Belt in the Deep South, Alabama presents an unforgiving landscape for the community. ItsÌýÌýisÌýpoor: -2.5 out of 37. LGBT residents thereÌý, and several state laws were written to restrict and impede them.

Population that identifies as LGBT: 3.0%
Sample size: 2,225

Alaska stands out for itsÌý. Roughly 40% of the state'sÌýÌýis comprised of 18- toÌý24-year-olds, an age group that represents just 15% of the non-LGBT population. Like those in other remote and rural states, LGBT Alaskans suffer from aÌý—the state maintains a lowÌý

Population that identifies as LGBT: 3.1%
Sample size: 7,024

Like Alaska, Kansas is home to anÌý. More than 40% are 18- to 24-year-olds, for an average age of 36. The state's 67,962 LGBT residents are divided into an almost exactly even 50/50 split between men and women. Kansas has failed to instituteÌýÌýmonitored by the HRC and, thanks in part to several religious exemption laws, has earned aÌýÌýof just 3.5 out of 37.

Population that identifies as LGBT: 3.1%
Sample size: 17,050

±·±ð²¹°ù±ô²âÌýÌýcall Tennessee home, nearlyÌýÌýand a little more than one in four is raising children. The conservative Southern state can be hostile, earning a drearyÌý. In fact, the state expressly forbids cities and towns from passing laws that would prevent discrimination based on gender identity or sexual orientation.

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Population that identifies as LGBT: 3.2%
Sample size: 6,783

In 2017, Mississippi subjected its 72,558 LGBT citizens to choking legislationÌýÌýas "by far the most sweeping and devastating state law to be enacted against LGBTQ people in the country." Just a handful of thin protections exist in the state, which earned aÌý.Ìý

Population that identifies as LGBT: 3.2%
Sample size: 8,064

There's a 54% to 46% split between women and men, respectively, inÌý, which consists of nearlyÌý. Iowa is the first state on this list to earn aÌýnot considered low (13.5 out of 37) and a decentÌýÌýof laws that protect LGBT citizens instead of marginalizing them. Iowa fully supports laws on six key issues, and partially supports two others.

Population that identifies as LGBT: 3.3%
Sample size: 10,804

One in three members of Kentucky'sÌýÌýÌýis raising children, and they go to college at the exact same rate as the state's non-LGBT residents. After failing to enact laws enshriningÌýÌýKentucky earnedÌýa lowÌýÌýof 6 out of 37.

Population that identifies as LGBT: 3.3%
Sample size: 8,349

Utah hasÌýÌýthree crucial protections for its LGBT residents, but neglected to enact seven others. A lack of so-called religious exemption laws, however, has helped the state squeak out a decentÌýÌýof 9.5 out of 37. Nearly three out of four of the 70,272ÌýÌýare not raising children, and nearly one in three earns less than $24,000 a year.

Population that identifies as LGBT: 3.4%
Sample size: 4,635

Ìýare younger on average by nearly a decade than their non-LGBT counterparts. They're overwhelmingly white and female, and are disproportionately young adults—32% of the population is 18-24 years old, compared to just 9% of the larger population. West Virginia's lowÌýÌýis largely attributed to the state's failure to enact gender identity protections, as well as its passing of laws that are hostile with regards to gender identity.

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Population that identifies as LGBT: 3.4%
Sample size: 13,632

More thanÌýÌýcitizens have made their homes in Missouri, a state that affords them limited protection and aÌýÌýof just 3.75 out of 37. Although a plurality of the community falls within the 40-59 age demographic, the state has a robust population of young LGBT residents. Just 11% ofÌýÌýis 18-24 years old, compared to 26% of LGBT Missourians who fall into that age group.

Population that identifies as LGBT: 3.4%
Sample size: 14,078

In contrast to many other states, Wisconsin's LGBT community is dominated by men by a margin of 62 to 38. Just 18% of the state'sÌýÌýare raising children. Legislatively and culturally, Wisconsin is a mixed bag. The state onlyÌý,Ìýand doesn't support three others at all. Wisconsin has aÌýÌýin protecting people based on sexual preference, but is negligent in terms of preventing discrimination and worse still when the discrimination is based on gender identity.

Population that identifies as LGBT: 3.4%
Sample size: 20,357

, one in four of whom is raising children. As is the case for so many others residing in Southern states, they face aÌý. Religious exemption laws are on the books, as are laws criminalizing exposure to or transmission of HIV. Just 3% of the state's population is protected against discrimination in housing, employment and public accommodations based on sexual orientation. Only 2% are protected based on gender identity.

Population that identifies as LGBT: 3.5%
Sample size: 7,984

Although it doesn't even break out of the bottom 20 states in terms of its percentage of LGBT population, Connecticut is leaps and bounds above the previously covered states in terms of equality. The stateÌýÌýdeemed critical by HRC, and earns an impressive 28 out of 37 on the MAP equality profile.Ìý.

Population that identifies as LGBT: 3.5%
Sample size: 23,169

Ìýcall North Carolina home, and they're split fairly evenly between men and women as well as between white and non-white.Ìý, but they're much less likely to have health insurance and much more likely to earn low salaries or to be unemployed. North Carolina supports just two of the 10 issues deemed critical by theÌý, which calledÌýa 2017 update to the state's controversial anti-LGBT HB2 law "shameful."

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Population that identifies as LGBT: 3.5%
Sample size: 10,689

Oklahoma shunsÌý, and the one it does support—marriage equality—was mandated by the Supreme Court. The state targets itsÌý, and the climate is especially unsympathetic toward gender identity issues. Oklahoma earnedÌýa MAP equality score of zero out of 37. Even still, the state's LGBT community is more than 100,000 strong, and more than one in three LGBT citizens chooses to raise children there.

Population that identifies as LGBT: 3.5%
Sample size: 2,202

Ìýis home to fewer than half a million adults and just 15,631 LGBT residents. There isÌýÌýon the community's demographic makeup and the exact number of LGBT Wyoming residentsÌýraising children. What is known, however, is that the state hasÌýÌýacross all nine of the 10 critical Human Rights Campaign issues that weren't forced on it by the Supreme Court.

Population that identifies as LGBT: 3.6%
Sample size: 5,646

Nebraska'sÌýÌýis split nearly evenly between men and women and about one in three is raising children.ÌýÌýare more likely to have health insurance than the state's non-LGBT members, but they're also far more likely to be unemployed or have low-paying jobs. The state scores aÌý, and the resulting environment is particularly harsh in terms of gender identity. Gender identity, in fact,ÌýÌýby the only voluntary protection the state offers its LGBT community, out of the 10 considered important by the HRC.

Population that identifies as LGBT: 3.6%
Sample size: 18,575

Ìýis most heavily concentrated in, and distributed within five percentage points across, the 18-24, 25-39 and 40-59 age demographics. The Garden State's quarter-million-plus-strong LGBT population enjoys strong protections in a state that earned aÌý.

Population that identifies as LGBT: 3.6%
Sample size: 32,473

With aÌýÌýand no protection laws in seven of 10 key categories, Pennsylvania isn't nearly as friendly to its almostÌýÌýas its neighbor to the east, New Jersey.ÌýÌýare split nearly equally between men and women, and a 37% plurality of LGBT Pennsylvanians fall into the 40-59 age range.

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Population that identifies as LGBT: 3.6%
Sample size: 53,349

Nearly three-quarters of a million LGBT AmericansÌý, but the community isn't only large,Ìý. A 35% plurality falls between the ages of 18-24 in a state that generally skews much older. TheÌýÌýthat in 2017, thousands of Texans, including many corporate and faith leaders, rallied against SB3, a bill that was widely panned as discriminatory in a state that lacks basic protections across eight of 10 key categories.

Population that identifies as LGBT: 3.7%
Sample size: 9,958

, laws that target HIV patients and "don't say gay" laws restricting speech on the subject by educatorsÌýin classrooms combine with aÌý, allÌýmaking Louisiana one of the least LGBT-friendly states in America. Even so,ÌýÌýmembers of the community live there, giving the state a high enough concentration to put it in the top half in terms of population by percentage.ÌýÌýof unemployment, college attainment and health insurance coverage compared to the state's non-LGBT residents.

Population that identifies as LGBT: 3.8%
Sample size: 25,535

In the state of Ohio,Ìý, about 28% of whom are raising children there. The state isÌýÌýHRC deems critical to protecting its citizens equally. The state's efforts at preventing discrimination based on gender identity are particularly bleak, earning Ohio a paltryÌý.

Population that identifies as LGBT: 3.8%
Sample size: 19,860

With more thanÌýÌýfor 3.8% of the state's total population, no one can deny that the Wolverine State has a robust LGBT community.ÌýThat's not reflected in Michigan's weak and sometimes antagonistic laws, however.ÌýThe state hasÌýÌýthat weren't mandated by the Supreme Court, and the 31% of the state's LGBT community raising children there are forced to do so in a climate that earned Michigan aÌýÌýof just four out of 37.

Population that identifies as LGBT: 3.8%
Sample size: 2,121

Hawaii is part of the Pacific region, which includes Alaska and the West Coast, that is now home to the highest LGBT concentrations in America. This is reflected in the state's robust laws and protections. Hawaii'sÌý, four in 10 of whom are raising children there, enjoy legal protections that earned the state a strongÌý. Hawaii fully supportsÌý,Ìýand partially supports two others.

Population that identifies as LGBT: 3.9%
Sample size: 12,532

As previously stated, the Mid-Atlantic region has experienced significant growth in the terms of the percentage of LGBT residents, and Maryland is the heart of the Mid-Atlantic. More thanÌýÌýcall the state home, more than one in four of whom is raising children. The state welcomes them withÌý, earning Maryland a sturdyÌý.

Population that identifies as LGBT: 3.9%
Sample size: 22,199

Ìýand earning a strongÌý, Illinois stands out as a Midwestern state that has written its commitment to the security of more than 385,000 LGBT residents into law. AboutÌýÌýbetween men and women.ÌýThe community is most highly concentrated in the 40-59 age demographic, just like Illinois' non-LGBT residents.

Population that identifies as LGBT: 4.0%
Sample size: 20,999

Home to nearlyÌýÌýidentifying as LGBT, Georgia is the first state on this list where a full 4% of its population fits into the category, putting it more on par in terms of population with traditionally LGBT-friendly states than with the Deep South. Georgia's draconian laws, however, mirror much more closely the apparent disdain for minorities that has shaped so much of the history of the state and region. The stateÌýÌýthat wasn't forced on it by the Supreme Court and,Ìý.

Ìý

Population that identifies as LGBT: 4.0%
Sample size: 13,176

Ìýis raising children in the Land of 10,000 Lakes, which doesn't protect children from so-called conversion therapy. It does, however,Ìý. Split evenly between men and women,ÌýÌýskews young, with the largest plurality found in the 18-24 age demographic.

Population that identifies as LGBT: 4.0%
Sample size: 17,402

With nearlyÌýconstituting a full 4% of the population, Arizona's LGBT population is large, vibrant and dangerously under-protected. The Southwestern state earns aÌý, thanks largely to punitive policies regarding gender identity and a so-called religious exemption law that enshrines legal discrimination.ÌýÌýon seven of the 10 key HRC protections, and only partially supports another.

Population that identifies as LGBT: 4.0%
Sample size: 2,395

Although Rhode Island'sÌý—they reside in a tiny state with slightly more than a million residents—that's enough for them to claim a 4 percent stake in the population. The community isÌý, who represent nearly three out of every four LGBT Rhode Island residents. They have the luxury of residing in a tolerant and welcoming state that has enacted laws forÌýÌýfor a MAP score of 30.25 out of 37—the first state to break the MAP benchmark of 30.

Population that identifies as LGBT: 4.1%
Sample size: 15,642

Ìýof more than 207,000, but they're confined by laws that earned the Hoosier State a low 6.5 out of 37 MAP score. The stateÌýÌýof the 10 critical HRC metrics, but that isn't saying much considering the Obergefell v. Hodges Supreme Court ruling that legalized same-sex marriage requires all states to support itÌýby law.

Population that identifies as LGBT: 4.2%
Sample size: 5,790

New Mexico has a decent record in terms of protections afforded to itsÌý, a record that looks better when you consider the state is in the heart of the Southwest—sandwiched between Texas and Arizona, which have far less-inclusive policies. New Mexico has a middle-of-the-packÌýÌýandÌýÌýof the HRC's 10 most important issues.

Population that identifies as LGBT: 4.2%
Sample size: 42,605

Florida's vibrant LGBT community includesÌýÌýthat represent 4.2% of the state's population. One in four is raising children,ÌýÌýare non-white and nearly one in four is between the ages of 18-24. With a lowÌý, however, the state does not go out of its way to accommodate them. In fact, the state that suffered the Pulse nightclub shooting hasÌýÌýa single one of the 10 key HRC protections of its own volition.

Population that identifies as LGBT: 4.3%
Sample size: 13,844

More thanÌýÌýmake their home in Colorado, and nearly one in three of them is raising children there. TheÌýÌýis nearly identical, and the community is spread out closely among the three youngest age demographics. Colorado has made great strides in accommodating its LGBT citizens,ÌýÌýnine of the HRC's 10 crucial issues, which has helped it earn a respectableÌý.

Population that identifies as LGBT: 4.5%
Sample size: 4,094

There are fewer thanÌý, although that's enough to grab a 4.5% stake in the population, and more than a quarter of them are raising children there. The state has earned a highÌýÌýscore,ÌýÌýjust two of the HRC's most important issues facing the community.

Population that identifies as LGBT: 4.5%
Sample size: 41,203

Home to New York City where the modern gay rights movement began, the Empire State is home toÌýÌýLGBT Americans. A bastion of equality, New YorkÌýÌýof the HRC's crucial metrics and boasts aÌýÌýof 27.25.ÌýÌýis only slightly more female than male, and is concentrated by all but 9% in the three youngest age demographics.Ìý

Population that identifies as LGBT: 4.6%
Sample size: 3,129

The overwhelming majority of New Hampshire's nearlyÌýÌýLGBT population is concentrated in theÌý. The state lags behind many of its New England neighbors with aÌýÌýthat is satisfactory at best. ItÌý, and only partially supports two others, but theÌýÌýprotecting transgender residents from discrimination.

Population that identifies as LGBT: 4.7%
Sample size: 1,976

A huge plurality—nearly half—ofÌýÌýis concentrated in the 40-59 age demographic, and fewer than one in four is raising children there. Although the Mid-Atlantic region has made great strides in accommodating its rapidly growing LGBT population, Delaware limps to the finish line with anÌýÌýthan can be summed up as "just okay." The state's 35,146 LGBT community members enjoy full support on justÌý.

Population that identifies as LGBT: 4.8%
Sample size: 5,888

Nevada's LGBT population is large and young, with a combinedÌýÌýof theÌýÌýcommunity packed into the 18-24 and 25-39 age demographics. They enjoy living in a state with a highÌýÌýrating andÌýÌýfor all 10 critical issues touted as important by HRC.

Population that identifies as LGBT: 4.9%
Sample size: 11,859

Oregon is at the center of the Pacific region, which is now the heart of America's LGBT community.ÌýÌýcall the state home.ÌýÌýto have health insurance, more likely to go to college and less likely to be unemployed. The stateÌýÌýtracked by HRC and tops out with aÌý.

Population that identifies as LGBT: 4.9%
Sample size: 69,467

California has long been one of the epicenters of LGBT life and culture in America, and its massive 1.48 million-member community reflects that heritage—so, too, do the Golden State's laws. The state's permissive, protective legal framework earned it a whoppingÌý,ÌýwhileÌýÌýcrucial HRC protections.

Ìý

Population that identifies as LGBT: 4.9%
Sample size: 15,193

Ìýof Massachusetts' LGBT population, which totals more than a quarter-million residents, is raising children in the state. MassachusettsÌýÌýof the HRC's 10 primary issues, and partially supports one other. Those efforts have earned the state aÌýÌýof 27 out of 37.

Population that identifies as LGBT: 5.3%
Sample size: 2,200

One of just three states (including Washington, D.C.) that boasts an LGBT population greater than 5% of all residents,ÌýÌý9 of the 10 key HRC metrics and partially supports the other, earning the state a strongÌý.ÌýÌýin 10 of the nearlyÌýÌýare women.

Population that identifies as LGBT: 8.6%
Sample size: 1,746

The state with the highest concentration of LGBT Americans isn't actually a state at all. It's the nation's capital, Washington, D.C., whereÌýÌýis male and just 15% is raising children. ItsÌýÌýbests even the high bar set by California. The District'sÌýÌýenjoy legal protection acrossÌý.