10 Best Places to Be a Working Mom

Whether they want to work – or have to – the daily juggle of challenges in the office and at home is a reality for most mothers in this country. Nearly two-thirds of women in families with children under the age of 18 and 73% of single moms are employed, according the latest Bureau of Labor Statistics survey.

And while juggling careers and family is never easy, certain states make it a lot easier on moms than others:  They’re home to better jobs, have more affordable and higher-quality child care and offer residents family leave – even if employers don’t.

Of course, each state has its tradeoffs. Hawaii offers paid family leave and a low unemployment rate, for example, but paid maternity leave in the state is expensive and difficult to get. And while Massachusetts moms enjoy well-paid professional jobs, they also pay the highest prices for child care in the country.

To figure out which states are the most mom-friendly, SmartMoney pored over research reports and statistics, such as wage gap and unemployment data, and we spoke with experts. We looked at child care rankings from the nonprofit National Association of Child Care Resource and Referral Agencies, or NACCRRA, and data from the Institute for Women’s Policy Research on where the highest percentage of women hold professional or managerial occupations. Tax information provider CCH helped us find the states that offer the best credits for child-care expenses and other child-related tax breaks. Finally, we also spoke with the Families and Work Institute, which annually ranks companies in terms of workplace flexibility -- a key factor for moms stuck in less-than-ideal child-care situations.

Here are 10 states that stood out.