What states are paying down the most credit card debt this year?

FILE - This Aug. 11, 2019 file photo shows credit cards in New Orleans. U.S. consumer borrowing fell in March for the first time in more than eight years, with the category covering credit cards dropping by the largest amount in over three decades, the Federal Reserve reported Thursday, May 7, 2020. (AP Photo/Jenny Kane, file) FILE - This Aug. 11, 2019 file photo shows credit cards in New Orleans. U.S. consumer borrowing fell in March for the first time in more than eight years, with the category covering credit cards dropping by the largest amount in over three decades, the Federal Reserve reported Thursday, May 7, 2020. (AP Photo/Jenny Kane, file)

By Dave Flessner, compiler September 21, 2020 2 min read

U.S. consumers paid down $118 billion in credit card debt during the first half of 2020 – an all-time record. According to the personal finance website WalletHub.com, the reduction in credit card debt has been driven largely by generous unemployment benefits and stimulus checks and household austerity measures stemming from the pandemic. WalletHub projects that U.S. consumers will end the year with a slight reduction in credit card debt for the first time since the end of the Great Recession in 2009. The states where the typical consumer paid down the most debt over the past year are:

1. Alaska where the average consumer paid down $663 to an average credit card debt of $11,250

2. Hawaii where the average consumer paid down $647 to an average credit card debt of $10,987

3. Virginia where the average consumer paid down $565 to an average credit card debt of $9,589

4. California where the average consumer paid down $558 to an average of credit card debt of $9,472