With April being National Financial Literacy Month and less than half of adults setting a budget, the free credit score website WalletHub released its report on 2023’s Most & Least Financially Literate States, which analyzes financial-education programs and consumer habits in each of the 50 states and the District of Columbia, along with expert commentary.
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After the Great Recession, it became clear that more people needed to learn financial literacy. The housing-market collapse and following financial crisis reminded Americans of our obsession with debt and the dangers of quick access to finances for under-informed consumers. The importance for people to be smart about their finances became even more pronounced during the COVID-19 pandemic, and remains crucial in the present during this period of high inflation.
But how much have we learned from past mistakes, and what are we doing to help future generations avoid repeating them?
Not enough, it would seem. We ended 2022 with over $1 trillion in total credit-card debt. Our mountain of debt is unsurprising, considering that less than half of adults actually have a budget. It’s clear that better financial education is necessary to try to turn this trend around. The problems aren’t as pronounced in every state, though. Some states are more responsible than others.
The study uses a data set of 17 key metrics, which range from high-school financial literacy grade to the share of adults with a rainy-day fund. The metrics also include the results of WalletHub’s WalletLiteracy Survey.
Financial Literacy in North Carolina (1=Most Financially Literate, 25=Avg.):
14th – % of Adults Aged 18+ Who Spend More than They Earn
20th – % of Unbanked Households
30th – % of Adults Aged 18+ Who Compare Credit Cards Before Applying
1st – High-School Financial Literacy Grade
22nd – Public High-School Graduation Rate
Most Financially Literate States
Overall RankStateTotal ScoreWalletLiteracyFinancial Planning & HabitsFinancial Knowledge & Education1Nebraska69.0630372Utah68.54112323Virginia68.41121364Colorado68.402885Minnesota67.86110106Iowa67.12326127Washington66.68311138Maine65.64241519North Carolina65.443743410Ohio65.134252711Wisconsin64.69424612Maryland64.2814201113Vermont63.842323514Massachusetts63.577192515New Hampshire63.21935316New Jersey63.0125211517Illinois62.5828142818Delaware62.1510222919North Dakota61.5316252620Missouri61.324474321Pennsylvania61.2821272222Oregon61.0619124623Kansas61.0535281424Texas60.8436134225Michigan60.5226312026Indiana60.5240163527Montana60.373842228Rhode Island60.3318293029Hawaii60.176412130Alabama59.964194731Florida59.6215304132Wyoming59.612947433Arizona59.4333371834New York58.7517442335Idaho58.6920343836California58.445433937District of Columbia58.2113481938Tennessee58.1339174839Georgia57.4043323740Alaska57.262251941Connecticut57.098334942Nevada57.0331364443West Virginia56.9047382444South Dakota56.4527501745South Carolina55.8534463146Kentucky55.7346185147Mississippi55.5651263348Oklahoma54.2450404049New Mexico54.1349491650Louisiana53.1848394551Arkansas51.00454550
Note: With the exception of “Total Score,” all of the columns in the table above depict the relative rank of that state, where a rank of 1 represents the best conditions for that metric category.