States with the Most and Least Student Debt (2026)

Student debt is a huge problem in America. Save for mortgages, student loans make up the largest component of household debt for Americans. Our collective debt keeps growing, too. At the end of the first quarter of 2025, total outstanding college-loan balances stood at over $1.66 trillion, according to the Department of Education. That comes out to an average of over $39,000 for each of the 42.5 million borrowers.

Not all states are equal when it comes to the burden of student loans, though. With student-loan debtors in mind, WalletHub compared the 50 states and the District of Columbia based on 12 key measures of indebtedness and earning opportunities. Our data set ranges from average student debt to unemployment rate among the population aged 25 to 34 to share of students with past-due loan balances.

States With the Most Student Debt

1. Mississippi
2. New Hampshire
3. Pennsylvania
4. Delaware
5. South Dakota

States With the Least Student Debt

47. Washington
48. New Mexico
49. California
50. Utah
51. Hawaii

If you’re considering going into debt for college or you’ve already taken out loans, we advise using a Student Loan Calculator to determine an affordable monthly payment and payoff timeline.

“College keeps getting progressively more expensive, and so does borrowing money to attend. Federal student loan interest rates recently hit a 12-year high, but they’re expected to ease slightly for the upcoming academic year, so it’s still important to plan carefully when borrowing. In addition to attending college in a less expensive state and pursuing other avenues of funding like financial aid and grants, students should also carefully calculate how much they can afford to borrow before taking out a loan.”

Chip Lupo, WalletHub Analyst

Main Findings

Student Debt by State

Notes: *No. 1 = Most Student Debt
With the exception of “Total Score,” all of the columns in the table above depict the relative rank of that state, where a rank of 1 represents the worst conditions for that metric category.
 

Avg. Student Debt

Highest

• 1. New Hampshire
• 2. Delaware
• 3. Pennsylvania
• 4. Rhode Island
• 5. Connecticut

Lowest

• 47. Wyoming
• 48. Nevada
• 49. California
• 50. New Mexico
• 51. Utah

Best State vs. Worst State: 2x Difference

New Hampshire vs. Utah

Proportion of Students with Debt

Highest

• 1. South Dakota
• 2. New Hampshire
• T-3. North Dakota
• T-3. West Virginia
• T-5. Minnesota
• T-5. Pennsylvania

Lowest

• T-46. California
• T-46. District of Columbia
• T-46. Nevada
• T-49. Hawaii
• T-49. New Mexico
• 51. Utah

Best State vs. Worst State: 2x Difference

South Dakota vs. Utah

Student Debt as % of Income (Adjusted for Cost of Living)

Highest

• 1. Mississippi
• 2. Alabama
• 3. Arkansas
• 4. West Virginia
• 5. South Carolina

Lowest

• 47. Washington
• 48. Utah
• 49. District of Columbia
• 50. Hawaii
• 51. California

Best State vs. Worst State: 4x Difference

Mississippi vs. California

Unemployment Rate for People Aged 25 to 34

Highest

• 1. Kentucky
• T-2. Alaska
• T-2. Washington
• 4. Louisiana
• T-5. Nevada
• T-5. New Jersey

Lowest

• T-42. Mississippi
• T-42. Montana
• T-42. Vermont
• T-42. Hawaii
• T-42. South Dakota

Best State vs. Worst State: 4x Difference

Kentucky vs. South Dakota

% of Student-Loan Balances Past Due or in Default

Highest

• 1. New Hampshire
• T-2. Alaska
• T-2. Kansas
• 4. Wyoming
• 5. Oklahoma

Lowest

• 47. Hawaii
• T-48. Oregon
• T-48. West Virginia
• 50. Illinois
• 51. Montana

Best State vs. Worst State: 8x Difference

New Hampshire vs. Montana

Show More

In-Depth Look at the States With the Most Student Debt

Mississippi

Mississippi has the biggest student debt problem in the country. The average amount owed by people with student loan debt equals about 56% of the median income in the state, the highest rate in the U.S. In addition, Mississippi has the 14th-highest default rate on student debt, which shows that people are having trouble paying off what they borrow.

One reason why student borrowers are struggling in Mississippi is that they are having a hard time finding jobs. Mississippi has the fourth-worst availability of jobs to students, and the second-lowest share of paid internships.

Mississippi also does not have a state student loan ombudsman law (which would create a position to resolve complaints regarding loans).

New Hampshire

New Hampshire has the second-biggest student loan debt problem. Borrowers owe an average of close to $40,000, the highest amount in the country. In addition, the Granite State has the highest student default rate in the country, and 70% of students have student loans.

In addition, affordability challenges persist for students in New Hampshire. The state has the third-largest decline in state and local grants per in-state student, reducing the amount of aid students receive from public sources. On top of that, it has the sixth-lowest share of borrowers enrolled in income-driven repayment plans, limiting access to repayment options that could ease the burden of high student debt.

New Hampshire does not have a state student loan ombudsman, which limits how well students can have their complaints about loans addressed.

Pennsylvania

Pennsylvania ranks third among the states struggling the most with student debt. It has the third-highest average student debt, at over $39,000. The average Pennsylvanian with student loan debt owes just under half (44%) of the median income in the state, the sixth-highest rate in the country.

On top of the high average student loan debt, there are also a lot of people borrowing. Around 64% of students in Pennsylvania have student loan debt, the fourth-highest percentage.

Like the other states with the biggest student loan problems, Pennsylvania lacks a student loan ombudsman law.

Ask the Experts

Having more student debt than one can handle can produce significant troubles in the future. To advance the discussion, we asked a panel of experts to share their advice and insight with current and potential student-loan borrowers. Click on the experts’ profiles to read their bios and responses to the following key questions:

1. What tips can you offer students looking to minimize the amount of debt they take out for higher education?
2. Should the government reduce the amount of money students can borrow? How about basing the total amount a student can borrow on the quality of the university and employability of the degree/field?
3. How does the growth of student loan debt affect the economy?
4. How should students and their parents think about the return on investment to spending on higher education?

Ask the Experts

Charles Corcoran
Ph.D., CFA, Professor of Finance, University of Wisconsin-River Falls
Read More

Joseph A. Newman
Ph.D., Adjunct Instructor; Professor of Finance – Retired - Auburn University at Montgomery
Read More

Dr. Genevieve Dobson
DBA, Adjunct Professor, Muma College of Business - University of South Florida
Read More

Bruce Johnson
Instructor of Business Management - Ness School of Management and Economics, South Dakota State University
Read More

Wookjae Heo
Ph.D. - Assistant Professor of Financial Counseling and Planning, Division of Consumer Science, White Lodging-J.W. Marriott Jr. School of Hospitality and Tourism Management - Purdue University
Read More

Joshua Klugman
Associate Professor in Sociology and Psychology - Temple University College of Liberal Arts
Read More

More Experts

Methodology

In order to determine the best and worst states for student debt, WalletHub compared the 50 states and the District of Columbia across two key dimensions, “Student-Loan Indebtedness” and “Grant & Student Work Opportunities.”

We evaluated those dimensions using 12 relevant metrics, which are listed below with their corresponding weights. Each metric was graded on a 100-point scale, with a score of 100 being granted to the state with the most student debt.

Finally, we determined each state and the District’s weighted average across all metrics to calculate its overall score and used the resulting scores to rank-order our sample.

Student-Loan Indebtedness - Total Points: 85

• Average Student Debt: Full Weight (~8.50 Points)
• Proportion of Students with Debt: Triple Weight (~25.50 Points)
• Student Debt as Share of Income: Double Weight (~17.00 Points)
  Note: This metric was calculated by dividing overall state-level student debt per borrower by median household income (adjusted for cost of living).
• Share of Student Loans in Past-Due or Default Status: Full Weight (~8.50 Points)
• Share of Federal Student Loan Borrowers Enrolled in an Income-Driven Repayment Plan: Full Weight (~8.50 Points)
• Share of Student-Loan Borrowers Aged 50 Years & Older: Double Weight (~17.00 Points)

Grant & Student Work Opportunities - Total Points: 15

• Unemployment Rate among Population Aged 25 to 34: Double Weight (~4.29 Points)
• Underemployment Rate: Full Weight (~2.14 Points)
• Availability of Student Jobs: Full Weight (~2.14 Points)
  Note: This metric measures student jobs per total civilian population aged 16 to 24 in the labor force.
• Availability of Paid Internships: Full Weight (~2.14 Points)
  Note: This metric measures paid internship listings per total civilian population aged 16 to 24 in the labor force.
• Grant Growth: Full Weight (~2.14 Points)
  Note: This metric measures the percentage change (2022 vs. 2021) in state- and local-government grants per in-district and in-state undergraduate student.
• Presence of “Student Loan Ombudsmen” Law: Full Weight (~2.14 Points)
  Note: This binary metric measures whether Student Loan Ombudsmen law was enacted or not in a state.

Sources: Data used to create this ranking were collected as of August 21, 2025 from the U.S. Census Bureau, Bureau of Labor Statistics, Institute for College Access & Success, Federal Reserve Bank of New York, Council for Community and Economic Research, U.S. Department of Education - College Affordability & Transparency Center, U.S. Department of Education - Federal Student Aid Office, Internships.com, LendEDU, The Pew Charitable Trusts, and Indeed.

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