| Winner: | Katherine Shindle |
| Represented: | Illinois |
| Date: | September 13, 1997 |
| Presenters: | John Callahan Eva LaRue |
| Venue: | Boardwalk Hall, Atlantic City, New Jersey |
| Broadcaster: | ABC |
| Before: | 1997 |
| Next: | 1999 |
Miss America 1998, the 71st Miss America pageant, was held at the Boardwalk Hall in Atlantic City, New Jersey on Saturday, September 13, 1997 and was televised by the ABC Network. ABC replaced NBC as the pageant's television home.
| Placement | Contestant | |
|---|---|---|
| Miss America 1998 | ||
| 1st Runner-Up |
| |
| 2nd Runner-Up |
| |
| 3rd Runner-Up |
| |
| 4th Runner-Up |
| |
| Top 10 |
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| Awards | Contestant | |
|---|---|---|
| Lifestyle and Fitness |
| |
| Talent |
|
| Awards | Contestant | |
|---|---|---|
| Talent |
| |
| Interview |
|
| Results | Contestant | Platform | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Winner |
| Child Abuse Education, Awareness, and Prevention | |
| 1st runner-up |
| - | |
| 2nd runner-up |
| - |
| Alabama | Beth Stomps | 20 | Mobile | Vocal, "Love Changes Everything" from Aspects of Love | ||||
| Alaska | Michelle Titus | 19 | Fairbanks | Vocal, "There is a Savior" | ||||
| Arizona | Stacey Momeyer | 21 | Phoenix | Vocal, "Wishing You Were Somehow Here Again" from The Phantom of the Opera | 3rd runner-up | Previously National Sweetheart 1996 | ||
| Arkansas | Stacy Freeman | 22 | Sheridan | Tap Dance, "Sing, Sing, Sing" | Previously Miss Arkansas Teen USA 1992 | |||
| California | Rebekah Ann Keller | 22 | Lakewood | Vocal, "Someone Like You" from Jekyll & Hyde | 4th runner-up | Preliminary Lifestyle & Fitness Award | Later Miss California USA 2000 | |
| Colorado | Regina Flores | 21 | Colorado Springs | Vocal, "Don't Cry For Me Argentina" | ||||
| Connecticut | Merissa Starnes | 21 | Bloomfield | Contemporary Ballet en Pointe | Non-finalist Talent Award | |||
| Delaware | Alison White | 18 | Millsboro | Classical Vocal, "Poor Wand'ring One" from The Pirates of Penzance | Non-finalist Talent Award | |||
| District of Columbia | Sonya Gavankar | 21 | Joliet, IL | Vocal, "The Power of the Dream" | ||||
| Florida | Christy Neuman | 20 | Jacksonville | Rhythmic Gymnastics Dance, Theme from | Top 10 | Preliminary Talent Award | ||
| Georgia | Candice Little | 23 | Hartwell | Tap Dance, "Jump 'N Jive" | ||||
| Hawaii | Erika Kauffman | 18 | Kailua-Kona | Vocal, "God Help the Outcasts" from The Hunchback of Notre Dame | Top 10 | Preliminary Lifestyle & Fitness Award | ||
| Idaho | Sherrie Belnap | 20 | Roberts | Classical Piano, "Polonaise in A Flat" | ||||
| Illinois | Katherine Shindle | 20 | Evanston | Vocal, "Don't Rain on My Parade" | Winner | Preliminary Talent Award | ||
| Indiana | Sara Engerman | 19 | Kendallville | Tap Dance, "Shout And Feel It" | ||||
| Iowa | Sheri Riley | 19 | Clear Lake | Gospel Vocal, "His Eye Is on the Sparrow" | ||||
| Kansas | Lesley Moss | 24 | Hoxie | Vocal, "You'll Have to Swing It" | ||||
| Kentucky | Lori Menshouse | 24 | Ashland | Piano, "Revolutionary Etude" by Chopin | Later Miss Kentucky USA 1999 | |||
| Louisiana | Mette Boving | 24 | Ruston | Popular Vocal, "How Do I Live" | Top 10 | Later Mrs. Colorado 2015 | ||
| Maine | Rachel Binder | 23 | Presque Isle | Lyrical Ballet, "Seasons of Love" | ||||
| Maryland | Jaime Fox | 21 | Frederick | Vocal, "With One Look" from Sunset Boulevard | ||||
| Massachusetts | Samira Zebian | 20 | Westfield | Irish Step Dance | Waterford Crystal Award for Business Marketing & Management | |||
| Michigan | Kimberly Stec | 22 | Rochester | Jazz Dance, "And I Am Telling You I'm Not Going" | ||||
| Minnesota | Jennifer Ostergaard | 22 | Winona | Dramatic Monologue, "Clear Glass Marbles" from Talking With... | Non-finalist Talent AwardQuality of Life Winner | |||
| Mississippi | Myra Barginear | 23 | Grenada | Classical Vocal, "Una Voce Poco Va" from The Barber of Seville | 2nd runner-up | Dr. David B. Allman Medical Scholarship | ||
| Missouri | Michele Eise | 24 | St. Louis | Gospel Vocal, "How Great Thou Art" | ||||
| Montana | Kristen Garlock | 24 | Billings | Vocal, "Romany Life" from The Fortune Teller | ||||
| Nebraska | Kendra Quandt | 23 | Davenport | Classical Piano, "Prelude in C Sharp Minor" by Rachmaninoff | Non-finalist Talent AwardQuality of Life 1st runner-up | |||
| Nevada | Amanda Gunderson | 19 | Reno | Classical Vocal, "Der Hölle Rache kocht in meinem Herzen" | ||||
| New Hampshire | Michelle Lamontagne | 22 | Goffstown | Vocal, "Route 66" | ||||
| New Jersey | Kathy Nejat | 21 | Voorhees | Classical Ballet en Pointe, "The Dying Swan" | Preliminary Lifestyle & Fitness AwardNon-finalist Talent Award | |||
| New Mexico | Jennifer Babin | 22 | Alamogordo | Piano | ||||
| New York | Lisa Esler | 21 | Northville | Vocal, "Memory" | ||||
| North Carolina | Michelle Warren | 22 | Gastonia | Vocal, "And I Am Telling You I'm Not Going" | 1st runner-up | Preliminary Talent Award | ||
| North Dakota | Roxana Saberi | 20 | Fargo | Classical Piano, Prelude in G minor by Rachmaninoff | Top 10 | Miss America Scholar | In 2009 gained worldwide attention after being imprisoned for 100 days for alleged espionage in Iran | |
| Ohio | Kelly Creager | 19 | Hamler | Vocal, "Remember Me This Way" from Casper | ||||
| Oklahoma | Kelli Master | 24 | Midwest City | Baton Twirling, "Gonna Fly Now" | Non-finalist Talent Award | |||
| Oregon | Tamara Ann Finch | 24 | Myrtle Creek | Classical Piano, "Scherzo No. 2 in B Flat Minor" by Chopin | Top 10 | Steinway Talent Award | ||
| Pennsylvania | Heather Busin | 20 | Grove City | Vocal, "I Will Listen" | ||||
| Rhode Island | Kelly Jo Roarke | 24 | Cranston | Comic Reading, "Non-Bridaled Passion" | Non-finalist Talent Award | |||
| South Carolina | Janet Powers | 21 | Hartsville | Vocal Medley, "Go Tell It on the Mountain," "Gonna Build a Mountain," & "Ain't No Mountain High Enough" | Non-finalist Talent Award | |||
| South Dakota | Shantel Swedlund | 24 | Arlington | Alto Saxophone | Current chairwoman of the Miss America Organization Board of Directors | |||
| Tennessee | Lanna Keck | 23 | Knoxville | Gospel Vocal, "Go Light Your World" | ||||
| Texas | Reagan Hughes | 23 | Midland | Dramatic Vocal, "I Dreamed a Dream" | ||||
| Utah | Mary McDonough | 19 | Layton | Piano, "Des Danzas Creoles" by Alberto Ginastera | Non-finalist Talent AwardQuality of Life 2nd runner-up | |||
| Vermont | Jill Renee Cummings | 20 | Montgomery Center | Vocal, "Someone to Watch Over Me" | ||||
| Virginia | Kelli Quick | 20 | Lynchburg | Vocal, "I Go To the Rock" from The Preacher's Wife | Non-finalist Talent Award | |||
| Washington | Mariana Loya | 19 | Tacoma | Classical Violin, "Concerto in E minor" | Miss America Scholar | Later Miss Arizona USA 2005 | ||
| West Virginia | Eisa Krushansky | 24 | Westover | Tap Dance, "Dancin' Fool" from Copacabana | ||||
| Wisconsin | Nicole Jean Locy | 22 | Glendale | Vocal, "Someone Else's Story" from Chess | Non-finalist Interview Award | |||
| Wyoming | Jeffie Ventling | 24 | Laramie | Vocal, "The Phantom of the Opera" |