More than ever before, women in the U.S. are taking control of their finances, investing in their future selves and making smart money choices.

But there’s still one obstacle in their way today: the gender pay gap.

Census Bureau data for 2023 estimates women working full time, year-round earned 83 cents for every dollar their male counterparts earned. Evidence of the gender pay gap is as well-documented as it is longstanding, but the extent to which it’s even worse for women of color and women who work in finance and insurance shows how stubborn and entrenched the problem is, according to a new Bankrate analysis of Census Bureau data.

The gender pay gap impacts all women, but not in the same way. It’s even more pronounced for certain racial and ethnic groups, industries and jobs. Where a woman lives can influence how much she earns compared to her male counterpart, and even education has yet to close the pay gap between women and men, despite more than half of women in the workforce having a college degree and prime-age women (ages 25-54) participating in the workforce at record rates.

Unequal pay leaves women working with less, ultimately impacting their ability to save money, pay down debt and achieve financial security. Women stand to lose more than $450,000 over a 40-year career if they earn as much as men typically do in the same positions, according to Bankrate’s calculations. The losses are even greater for Black and Hispanic women over a 40-year career: roughly $1 million and $1.3 million, respectively.

To shine a brighter spotlight on the gender pay gap, Bankrate analyzed Census Bureau data to determine where the widest gender pay gaps exist across industries, jobs and states — and who they’re impacting the most.

The gender pay gap is widest for Black and Hispanic women. Those groups of women earned 67 cents and 58 cents, respectively, for every dollar a white, non-Hispanic man earned in 2023. White women earned 80% as much as their white male counterparts, and Asian women have almost reached pay parity with white, non-Hispanic men, earning 94% as much as them in 2023.

Heavily male-dominated industries — such as finance, insurance, science and tech — have the widest gender pay gaps.

—Legal and sales occupations have the biggest differences in earnings between women and men.

States with the widest gender pay gaps are Utah and Louisiana. Meanwhile, women and men who live in Rhode Island have the smallest differences in earnings.

Women of color are hit the hardest by the gender pay gap. On average, Black women working full time, year-round earned 67% as much as white, non-Hispanic men in 2023. Hispanic women earned only 58% as much, according to Bankrate’s analysis of Census Bureau data.

Asian women are the closest to reaching pay equality as of 2023, making 94 cents for every dollar a white, non-Hispanic man earned. White women working full time, year-round earned 80% as much as their male counterparts in 2023, similar to the overall gender gap.

The pay gap has narrowed for all groups of women over the last three decades, but more so for white and Asian women than for Black and Hispanic women. Here’s how much the earnings gap narrowed for each group between 1988 and 2023:

• Asian women: 26 percentage points

• White women: 16 percentage points

• Black women: 8 percentage points

• Hispanic women: 5 percentage points

Economists and financial experts say the gender pay gap is fueled by discrimination, the increased likelihood of women ending up in lower-paying jobs, lack of family-friendly policies and the motherhood penalty.

For Black and Hispanic women, racial discrimination is also part of the equation. ...

The wider wage gap between Black and Hispanic women and white, non-Hispanic men can be attributed to the fact that fewer Black and Hispanic Americans are college-educated compared to white or Asian Americans, according to Pew Research. But even when looking at Black and Hispanic women with a bachelor’s degree or higher, Census Bureau data shows the pay gap persists. ...