A new report has found the states in which consumers are adding the most debt.
And as this is a Pennsylvania-based publication, most readers would probably like to know where the Keystone State falls.
As conducted and published by WalletHub, the report ranked Pennsylvania in 37th overall. In other words, Pennsylvanian consumers are among the top 15 spots adding the least amount of debt.
In order to figure this out, researchers at the site set down two key dimensions to assess each state against: “Change in Average Debt” and “Average Debt.” Relevant sub-metrics — “Percent Change in Average Auto Loans Balance” and “Average Credit Card Balance” among them — were also factored in.
West Virginia saw the lowest debt added overall. As for the top three states that saw the highest debt increases, those were Hawaii in third; Wyoming in second; and Maine in first.
“Maine had the biggest consumer debt increase overall in the final quarter of 2025, and credit card debt showed the second-most dramatic change,” the report reads. “The average credit card balance in Maine increased by nearly eight percent from Q3 2025 to Q4 2025, rising to nearly $8,000.
“For context, the vast majority of states saw increases of less than five percent.”
WalletHub notes that United States residents have a collective $1.3 trillion in credit card debt currently, as well as about $1.7 trillion in auto loan debt. That latter increased by over 14 percent within a decade.
“At a time when interest rates are very high, it’s especially important to minimize the accumulation of debt,” said WalletHub Editor John Kiernan.
“Americans have added a staggering amount of new debt in the past decade, and it can be very easy for that debt to become more unsustainable, leading to future issues like default and major credit score damage.”