States Where It Will Take the Longest to Pay Off Credit Card Debt

Americans are known for racking up credit-card debt, but just how much we have is shocking. In 2024, Americans increased their credit card debt by $52 billion. The grand total owed by credit-card holders now is around $1.3 trillion.

Americans aren’t all in the same boat when it comes to credit-card debt, though. People in some states charge less than others, whether because they have been less impacted by inflation, they are more responsible about their finances or a number of other factors. To determine which states have the least and most sustainable credit-card debts, WalletHub drew upon TransUnion credit data to calculate the cost and time required to pay off the median card balances of each of the 50 states and the District of Columbia.

“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. 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.”

Chip Lupo, WalletHub Analyst

Main Findings

States Where It Will Take the Longest to Pay Off Credit Card Debt

Note: *No. 1 = Least Sustainable Credit Card Debt

Median Credit Card Debt

Highest

• 1. Alaska
• 2. District of Columbia
• 3. Colorado
• 4. Georgia
• 5. Connecticut

Lowest

• 47. Indiana
• 48. Kentucky
• 49. West Virginia
• 50. Wisconsin
• 51. Iowa

Best State vs. Worst State: 2x Difference

Alaska vs. Iowa

Median Earnings for Full-Time Workers

Lowest

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

Highest

• 47. Connecticut
• 48. Maryland
• 49. New Jersey
• 50. Massachusetts
• 51. District of Columbia

Best State vs. Worst State: 2x Difference

Mississippi vs. District of Columbia

Expected Payoff Timeframe

Longest

• 1. Alaska
• 2. District of Columbia
• 3. Vermont
• 4. Colorado
• 5. New Hampshire

Shortest

• 47. Pennsylvania
• 48. Louisiana
• 49. Utah
• 50. Kentucky
• 51. Mississippi

Best State vs. Worst State: 2x Difference

Alaska vs. Mississippi

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In-Depth Look at the Top States

Alaska

Alaska is the state with the highest credit card debt, with the median amount per person reaching $3,683. Residents’ debt is spread across an average of 2.84 credit cards per person.

Given that the average person in Alaska pays $259 toward their credit card bill each month, it would take more than 16 months to pay off their entire debt, and they would pay $553 in interest.

District of Columbia

The District of Columbia has the second-worst credit card debt problem in the nation, with the median debt reaching $3,502 across an average of three credit cards per person.

D.C. residents also make smaller credit card payments each month than Alaska residents do, despite having a much higher median income. The average resident pays $253 per month on their credit card debt, which means it would take an average of almost 16 months to pay off their debt and they would accrue $508 in interest during that time.

Vermont

Vermont has the third-biggest credit card debt problem, with the median debt reaching $2,627, spread across an average of 2.8 cards per person.

What’s interesting about this ranking is that Vermont residents only have the 34th-highest median credit card debt in the nation. However, residents make very low average monthly payments, at only $209 per month. This causes them to have the third-longest debt payoff period in the nation, at 14.2 months, and accrue the 16th-most interest, at $344.

Since our ranking is based primarily on how long it would take to become debt-free, rather than the raw starting amount of debt, Vermont ranks third. If its residents start making higher average monthly payments, its ranking could improve quite a bit in the future.

Ask the Experts

With Americans owing nearly $1.4 trillion in credit card debt, we asked a panel of credit experts to shed light on the unsustainable credit behavior that leads to such negative results and their effects on the economy. Click on the experts’ profiles to read their bios and thoughts on the following key questions:

1. What daily behaviors lead people to amass credit card debt?
2. What are the key situations when going into debt is worth it?
3. What are three easy steps a person should take in order to become debt-free?
4. What steps can a person take to be better prepared for unpredicted financial difficulties?
5. What role, if any, should the government play in incentivizing and encouraging people to maintain low debt to income ratios (e.g., through tax incentives)?

Ask the Experts

Gary Simmerman
MBA, MPS, CFP®, Adjunct Faculty, Finance - Southern New Hampshire University
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Debby Lindsey-Taliefero
Ph.D. – Professor Emeritus of Business Economics, School of Business, Howard University
Read More

Carolin Schellhorn
Ph.D. – Assistant Professor, Department of Finance – Saint Joseph's University
Read More

Jill Channing
Ph.D. – Associate Professor and Associate Director, Department of Educational Leadership and Policy Analysis – East Tennessee State University
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Juan E. Gallardo
Ph.D. – Director, Texan Smart Financial Education Center and Instructor, Dr. Sam Pack College of Business – Tarleton State University
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Carole Makela
Professor, Family and Consumer Sciences Education, College of Health and Human Sciences – Colorado State University
Read More

More Experts

Methodology

In order to determine the states with the most and least sustainable credit card debts, we first looked at the median credit card balances and credit card payments of residents in each of 50 states and the District of Columbia as of April 2025, based on TransUnion data. Our analysis includes credit cards that carried a balance and excludes store cards.

Using the median credit card balance and monthly credit card payment of residents in each state, we determined the required number of months to pay off that balance and the resulting finance charges. In order to do so, we made the following assumption:

• Consumers would pay an average 21.91% interest rate, based on the APR paid by existing cardholders, according to the average interest rate assessed on accounts with finance charges. Using that percentage, we computed the cost of paying off the state’s median credit card balance.

Finally, we ranked the states based on the calculator’s outputs. Rank 1 corresponds with the state with the least sustainable credit card debt — that is, the state with the longest payoff timeline.

 
Sources: Data used to create this ranking were collected as of June 24, 2025 from the U.S. Census Bureau, Federal Reserve and TransUnion.

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