We hear about the severity of student loan debt all the time.
Our country is up to its neck in it. It’s holding graduates back. It’s bad, bad, bad.
As depressing as it can be, it’s interesting to see where you stand among others. Sometimes it makes you feel better that you’re not that deep in poo — while other times, you realize you have more than the average.
Either way, it offers perspective, which the human spirit seems to appreciate.
Credit Sesame, a service that provides free credit scores and credit reports, recently tapped into its database to analyze 1 million of its accounts (with 4 million loans) to figure out which states were the best and worst for student loan debt.
The Five States With the Highest Student Loan Debt
Bad news first, right?
Here’s what Credit Sesame found after examining the the nearly 1 million accounts with student loan debt connected to its database:
- Washington, D.C. — $47,331
- Maryland — $40,473
- Georgia — $39,720
- South Carolina — $36,865
- Virginia — $36,828
The Five States With the Lowest Student Loan Debt
It feels weird saying “best,” because there’s nothing good about student loan debt, but these are the five “best” states, according to Credit Sesame:
- Wyoming — $28,303
- Utah — $29,158
- Rhode Island — $29,158
- Montana — $29,801
- Idaho — $29,935
Tools to Help You Tackle Student Loan Debt
If you’re curious about what you owe at this point — on anything — you’ll want to check your credit report.
You can snag a free credit report through Credit Sesame.
Next, you’ll want to create some type of strategy.
We, unfortunately, can’t tell you what your best route is, but we have some suggestions.
You could try refinancing through a platform like Credible. By refinancing your student loans, you could snag a lower interest rate, which could save you thousands over time.
You can also increase your income by taking on a side gig. Stash the money you earn in a separate, do-not-touch-except-for-student-loans account.
Another (easier) option is to use an app like Qoins. It rounds up all your purchases and dumps the change into an account that’ll go toward repaying your student loans. The pennies add up quickly!
You also have the option of applying for loan deferment — but only if you absolutely need to. Read the rest of our tips for getting out of debt here before committing to that option.
Carson Kohler (@CarsonKohler) is a junior writer at The Penny Hoarder.
This was originally published on The Penny Hoarder, one of the largest personal finance websites. We help millions of readers worldwide earn and save money by sharing unique job opportunities, personal stories, freebies and more. In 2016, Inc. 500 ranked The Penny Hoarder as the No. 1 fastest-growing private media company in the U.S.
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