U.S. women lead in engagement and burnout, Gallup report finds
NEW YORK, UNITED STATES — Women employed full-time in the United States report higher workplace engagement and a stronger drive for career advancement than their male counterparts.
Yet, they also experience significantly higher rates of burnout, according to new data from Gallup’s Q4 2025 report.
This dual dynamic reveals a workforce segment that is both highly motivated and under significant strain, with women leading men by six percentage points in engagement while simultaneously reporting an eight-point higher rate of frequent burnout.
The report notes, “For now, women’s higher engagement and higher burnout are coexisting. This dynamic raises important questions about how sustained effort can be supported, and whether unaddressed burnout could ultimately limit women’s long-term leadership trajectories.”
The engagement-burnout paradox
According to the findings of Gallup, 34% of women say that they are engaged at work as opposed to 28% of men, a six-point difference that has not changed much in the last several years.
This engagement, however, comes at a price: almost three out of ten women (31%) say they very often or always feel burned out, compared to less than a quarter of men (23%) who say the same.
The causes of this divergence include some of the most important workplace factors in which women report more positive experiences, which may also contribute to persistent strain.
Women are more likely (by 7 points) than men to say that someone at the workplace contributes to their development (33% vs. 26%) and that they have a clear understanding of what is expected of them.
“The burnout gap is not confined to any single field. While it is wider in education and healthcare, women report higher burnout than men across several different business and industry sectors,” the report reads.
Although these elements, such as a best friend at work, a sense of belonging to the organizational mission, and so forth, boost engagement, burnout rates are very high, suggesting that the effort women need to sustain this performance is wearing down their long-term health.
The greatest drive amid heaviest load
The survey shows that the group with the highest burnout rates is also the most willing to develop their careers.
Although women report a higher incidence of burnout, they are more likely than men to report being extremely motivated to pursue career growth opportunities, with 20% of women feeling so motivated compared to 16% of men.
This incentive is highest among women with children, with 25% stating they are highly motivated to grow, the largest number of any workforce demographic.
There is an outstanding burnout gap in leadership positions and in certain sectors, raising questions about the sustainability of this pipeline. From 2022 to 2025, women in leadership were on average reporting burnout 29% of the time, versus 19% of men, a 10-point gap.
Burnout rates are higher in education and healthcare, too, which is why the data imply that although women’s motivation is an indicator of future organizational power, unresolved strain may narrow the scope for long-term retention and leadership paths.
The report concludes that “women are maintaining high engagement and reporting motivation to grow, even as burnout remains elevated.”
Gallup asserts that performance protection demands deliberate work design, such as frequent discussions about workload and the alignment of priorities, to ensure that the high level of engagement nowadays is translated into long-term leadership rather than attrition.
“Organizations that invest in these areas will be better positioned to support high-performing contributors while strengthening their future leadership pipeline,” Gallup stated.
