Rockwall County ranks first in Texas for women’s economic opportunity, according to a statewide index released Oct. 27 by Texas Women’s Foundation.

The Texas Women’s Economic Opportunity Index scored 252 of the state’s 254 counties on a scale of 1 to 100. Rockwall took the top spot, followed by Galveston, Denton and Collin counties, according to the Royse City Herald-Banner.

Developed with nonprofit policy research organization Every Texan, the index combines 12 measures across four categories: work and economic security, health and well-being, childcare and family, and education and workforce development.

It builds on the foundation’s Economic Issues for Women in Texas reports published from 2014 through 2024.

Statewide barriers remain

Rockwall’s ranking comes amid persistent statewide gaps in childcare affordability, earnings and maternity care.

The foundation identified childcare as the weakest category in most counties. Seven of Texas’ 10 largest counties ranked in the bottom half for that category.

Its findings also show that 63% of Texas counties are maternity care deserts or have low access to maternity care. Among Texas women who gave birth in 2024, 36% did not receive prenatal care during their first trimester.

Women working full time, year-round earn 81 cents for every dollar earned by men, down from the 83 cents reported in 2024. Three in 10 women ages 18–64 live below 200% of the federal poverty level.

Those findings appear in the foundation’s release published by The Post Newspaper.

High opportunity, high living costs

A separate analysis places Rockwall among Texas’ four most expensive counties for a modeled working family to cover basic needs without public or private assistance.

Rockwall, Collin, Denton and Travis counties each have an annual family self-sufficiency threshold above $85,000, according to Texas 2036’s analysis of Texas Workforce Commission data.

That benchmark represents total family income, rather than one worker’s required salary. The 2026 model uses a household of approximately 1.69 adults and 1.60 children.

Rockwall was also among the counties with the largest annual increases in the threshold, ranging from 6% to 9%.

Within the model, average monthly childcare costs rose from $788 to $824 per family. Actual expenses vary with family size and children’s ages.

Exploring the findings

The foundation says the index will be updated as new data becomes available. Residents can compare county results and read the accompanying report through its research website.