Americans have acquired an overwhelming amount of credit card debt. In 2026, consumers are expected to increase their credit card debt by $100 billion, for a total of nearly $1.4 trillion.
States are different, however, when it comes to credit card debt.
“Looking at the median credit card debt in a state can give you a good idea of whether people are struggling or doing well compared to people in other states, but it’s also important to look at how much residents put toward paying their debts off each month,” Chip Lupo, an analyst for WalletHub, a personal finance website, said.
Lupo said low average payments lead to long payoff timelines, which in turn lead to high amounts of interest accrued. For example, Vermont’s median credit card debt is relatively low, but it ranks as the state with the third-biggest debt problem due to low average monthly payments.
To determine the time and cost required to repay the median credit card balance in each of the 50 states and the District of Columbia, WalletHub analyzed data from TransUnion, the Federal Reserve, and the U.S. Census Bureau, then calculated credit card payoff.
States Where It Takes the Longest to Pay Off Credit Card Debts
1.District of Columbia
2. Alaska
3. Vermont
4. Colorado
5. Connecticut
6. Washington
7. Massachusetts
8. New Mexico
9. New Hampshire
10. Oregon
States Where It Takes the Least Amount of Time to Pay Off Credit Card Debts
42. Ohio
43. Iowa
44. Mississippi
45. Pennsylvania
46. Hawaii
47. Kentucky
48. Utah
49. Arkansas
50. Montana
51. West Virginia
Findings from the study
- The District of Columbia has the worst credit card debt problem in the nation, with the median debt of $3,647 across an average of three credit cards per person. The average resident pays $255 per month on their credit card debt, which means it would take an average of more than 16 months to pay off their debt, and they would accrue $541 in interest during that time.
- Alaska is the state with the second-highest credit card debt, with the median amount per person of $3,827. Residents’ debt is spread across an average of 2.89 credit cards per person. Since the average person in Alaska pays $269 toward their credit card bill each month, it would take more than 16 months to pay off their entire debt, and they would pay $564 in interest.
- Vermont has the third-biggest credit card debt problem, with the median debt of $2,735, spread across an average of 2.8 cards per person. Vermont residents only have the 28th-highest median credit card debt in the nation. However, residents make very low average monthly payments, at only $210 per month. This causes them to have the third-longest debt payoff period in the nation, at 14.7 months, and accrue the eighth-most interest, at $363.
The best way to become debt free is not to incur debt with very high interest rates in the first place, S. Abraham Ravid, Sy Syms professor of finance at Sy Syms School of Business, Yeshiva University, said.
Ravid said people should have money available in an emergency fund so credit cards with high interest rates, currently almost 24 percent, don’t need to be used.
