15 States Where People Use Credit Cards to Cover Living Expenses

Editor's Note: This story originally appeared on Upgraded Points.

The combination of high interest rates and rising costs has put American households in a challenging position. Nearly 70% of people report they are finding it difficult to pay for basic living expenses — up from less than 50% in May 2021.

At the same time, more and more Americans have turned to their credit cards. As of February 2023, 37% of adults said they used credit cards to cover basic living expenses, up from 23% in March 2021.

Aside from regular income sources, credit cards or loans are the most common payment method used to cover basic living expenses.

The 37% of adults who reported using credit cards or loans to pay for living expenses is nearly 10 percentage points higher than the 28% of adults who used savings, sold assets/possessions, or made retirement account withdrawals.

While many adults are turning to credit cards to meet their spending needs, credit card dependence varies by location.

Here are the states with the most adults using credit cards to cover living expenses. Find details on the methodology at the end.

1. Connecticut

• Share of Adults Using Credit Cards to Cover Expenses: 42.5%
• Total Adults Using Credit Cards to Cover Expenses: 1,051,156
• Share of Adults With Difficulty Covering Expenses: 74.6%
• Total Adults With Difficulty Covering Expenses: 1,886,738

2. Massachusetts

• Share of Adults Using Credit Cards to Cover Expenses: 41.4%
• Total Adults Using Credit Cards to Cover Expenses: 1,993,177
• Share of Adults With Difficulty Covering Expenses: 64.3%
• Total Adults With Difficulty Covering Expenses: 3,186,312

3. New York

• Share of Adults Using Credit Cards to Cover Expenses: 41.1%
• Total Adults Using Credit Cards to Cover Expenses: 5,413,583
• Share of Adults With Difficulty Covering Expenses: 70.9%
• Total Adults With Difficulty Covering Expenses: 9,529,943

4. New Hampshire

• Share of Adults Using Credit Cards to Cover Expenses: 40.9%
• Total Adults Using Credit Cards to Cover Expenses: 414,589
• Share of Adults With Difficulty Covering Expenses: 65.8%
• Total Adults With Difficulty Covering Expenses: 678,271

5. Delaware

• Share of Adults Using Credit Cards to Cover Expenses: 40.4%
• Total Adults Using Credit Cards to Cover Expenses: 287,896
• Share of Adults With Difficulty Covering Expenses: 64.8%
• Total Adults With Difficulty Covering Expenses: 471,643

6. California

• Share of Adults Using Credit Cards to Cover Expenses: 40.3%
• Total Adults Using Credit Cards to Cover Expenses: 10,683,020
• Share of Adults With Difficulty Covering Expenses: 70.9%
• Total Adults With Difficulty Covering Expenses: 19,333,920

7. Texas

• Share of Adults Using Credit Cards to Cover Expenses: 40.2%
• Total Adults Using Credit Cards to Cover Expenses: 7,575,103
• Share of Adults With Difficulty Covering Expenses: 75.1%
• Total Adults With Difficulty Covering Expenses: 14,510,810

8. Hawaii

• Share of Adults Using Credit Cards to Cover Expenses: 39.7%
• Total Adults Using Credit Cards to Cover Expenses: 403,568
• Share of Adults With Difficulty Covering Expenses: 63.6%
• Total Adults With Difficulty Covering Expenses: 652,663

9. New Jersey

• Share of Adults Using Credit Cards to Cover Expenses: 39.7%
• Total Adults Using Credit Cards to Cover Expenses: 2,422,101
• Share of Adults With Difficulty Covering Expenses: 69.2%
• Total Adults With Difficulty Covering Expenses: 4,331,596

10. Colorado

• Share of Adults Using Credit Cards to Cover Expenses: 39.5%
• Total Adults Using Credit Cards to Cover Expenses: 1,598,071
• Share of Adults With Difficulty Covering Expenses: 65.0%
• Total Adults With Difficulty Covering Expenses: 2,677,301

11. Maryland

• Share of Adults Using Credit Cards to Cover Expenses: 39.1%
• Total Adults Using Credit Cards to Cover Expenses: 1,673,871
• Share of Adults With Difficulty Covering Expenses: 62.5%
• Total Adults With Difficulty Covering Expenses: 2,723,161

12. Pennsylvania

• Share of Adults Using Credit Cards to Cover Expenses: 39.0%
• Total Adults Using Credit Cards to Cover Expenses: 3,416,585
• Share of Adults With Difficulty Covering Expenses: 68.8%
• Total Adults With Difficulty Covering Expenses: 6,198,417

13. Wisconsin

• Share of Adults Using Credit Cards to Cover Expenses: 39.0%
• Total Adults Using Credit Cards to Cover Expenses: 1,623,222
• Share of Adults With Difficulty Covering Expenses: 61.8%
• Total Adults With Difficulty Covering Expenses: 2,607,624

14. Nevada

• Share of Adults Using Credit Cards to Cover Expenses: 38.9%
• Total Adults Using Credit Cards to Cover Expenses: 856,412
• Share of Adults With Difficulty Covering Expenses: 75.4%
• Total Adults With Difficulty Covering Expenses: 1,694,172

15. Florida

• Share of Adults Using Credit Cards to Cover Expenses: 38.3%
• Total Adults Using Credit Cards to Cover Expenses: 5,933,666
• Share of Adults With Difficulty Covering Expenses: 72.7%
• Total Adults With Difficulty Covering Expenses: 11,518,683

Methodology

To determine the states where people are using credit cards to cover basic living expenses, researchers at Upgraded Points analyzed the latest data from the U.S. Census Bureau’s Household Pulse Survey.

The researchers ranked states according to the share of adults who self-reported recently using credit cards to meet their spending needs. Adults were surveyed during the month of February 2023.

In the event of a tie, the state with the larger total number of adults that used credit cards to cover basic living expenses was ranked higher.

Researchers also calculated the total adults using credit cards to cover expenses, the share of adults with difficulty covering expenses, and the total adults with difficulty covering expenses.