In its latest visualization of the dominant economic trends across the disparate geographical regions of the US, HowMuch.com has created a color-coded map that displays a state’s average credit score compared with its average income.
As the map clearly shows, there’s a correlation: States with higher median incomes tend to have higher average credit scores.
Immediately, three regional groupings become clear: One group stretches from the Northwest across the Northern Great Plains, all the way to the Great Lakes. All of these states have similar credit scores over 685 and decent-sized incomes, with Minnesotans in the lead with a score of 722 and a median income of $63,217. There’s another pocket of rich states in the Northeast, the richest being Massachusetts at 706 and $70,954. And finally, there’s a large group of states across the Deep South where people on average have very bad credit scores. Mississippians post the worst scores in the country (648) while on average earning just $40,528.
Here’s a list off the top 10 states ranked by average credit score, together with the median household income.
1. Minnesota: 722 and $63,217
2. North Dakota: 713 and $59,114
3. Vermont: 713 and $56,104
4. New Hampshire: 712 and $68,485
5. South Dakota: 711 and $52,078
6. Wisconsin: 710 and $54,610
7. Iowa: 708 and $54,570
8. Massachusetts: 706 and $70,954
9. Washington: 704 and $62,848
10. Hawaii: 702 and $71,977
Since a good income makes it easier to pay the bills, it follows that families with higher earnings have better credit scores.
However, there is one exception to this: Alaska.
Alaskans enjoy some of the highest incomes in the country ($74,444) thanks to the energy industry, but the state has an average credit score of 675.
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