Long Beach Ranks Third In U.S. For Pay Equality: Study

LONG BEACH, CA — The top cities in the U.S. where women earn almost as much as men are all in California, and Long Beach is third on the list, according to a new study.

The study, conducted by financial services website Best Money, found that on average, women earn 96% of what men do in Long Beach.

"In February 2026, our team analyzed median annual earnings for full-time men and women in more than 6,500 places in the U.S. to determine where there is the most equality in earnings, and the few places where women earn more than men on average," the Best Money editorial team explained of its methodology.

The only two big cities above Long Beach in the rankings were Oakland, Calif., where women actually outearn men by a slight margin (0.01%), and Los Angeles, where women earn 98% of what men do.

Men earn $64,438 on average in Long Beach, while women earn $61,754, according to the study. In Los Angeles, women earn a median salary of $61,057, while men earn $62,173.

Data for the study was sourced from the U.S. Census Bureau’s Annual Community Survey, 5-Year Estimate, 2020 - 2024, which was published in January 2026.