How the numbers are calculated
Balances come from the New York Fed's Consumer Credit Panel, built from Equifax credit reports. For each state it publishes the credit card and auto loan balance per person with a credit report, and the share of card balances that are 90 or more days delinquent, at the end of each year. We ran each state's average card balance through this site's credit card payoff calculator at the Federal Reserve's 2025 average rate on credit card accounts that were charged interest (22.32%, G.19 release), in two ways: paying a fixed $100 a month, and paying it off in 24 months.
Two limits: the per-person figure includes people with no card or a zero balance, so it is lower than what a typical cardholder with a balance owes; and the rate is a national average, while individual APRs vary widely.
Where card balances are highest
How long the average balance takes to pay off
A fixed payment only works if it is larger than the monthly interest. At 22.32%, interest on a balance of $5,376 or more already exceeds $100 a month, so that payment never clears it. Among states where $100 does work, it takes longest in Alaska (204 months, $15,150 in interest) and shortest in Mississippi (45 months).
Delinquency
The national trend
| Year (Q4) | Card debt per person | Auto debt per person | Card balances 90+ days late | Average card rate (G.19) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2015 | $2,816 | $4,078 | 7.6% | n/a |
| 2016 | $2,942 | $4,347 | 7.2% | n/a |
| 2017 | $3,113 | $4,542 | 7.5% | n/a |
| 2018 | $3,236 | $4,714 | 7.5% | n/a |
| 2019 | $3,403 | $4,872 | 8.1% | n/a |
| 2020 | $2,983 | $4,967 | 9.2% | n/a |
| 2021 | $3,071 | $5,222 | 8.2% | 16.45% |
| 2022 | $3,498 | $5,473 | 7.5% | 17.91% |
| 2023 | $3,973 | $5,638 | 9.6% | 22.15% |
| 2024 | $4,191 | $5,675 | 11.2% | 22.89% |
| 2025 | $4,365 | $5,645 | 12.3% | 22.32% |