Key Takeaways
- Georgia ranks as the third-least disciplined state in credit card use, which may lead to higher interest costs for residents.
- Average credit card balance in Georgia is $7,238, with a median income of $62,468.
- Georgians use 34% of their available credit, which negatively impacts credit scores despite an average FICO score of 695.
- Low incomes, aggressive credit marketing, and financial literacy gaps trap residents in long debt cycles, according to experts.
- Southern states, including Louisiana and Texas, also show poor credit management trends, indicating regional issues.
If your wallet feels a little lighter each month, you’re not imagining it. A new study finds Georgia is the third-least disciplined state when it comes to credit card use — and that could mean higher interest bills for many Peach State residents.
What It Means For You: More Georgians are carrying bigger balances and using a larger share of their available credit, which can raise monthly costs and hurt credit scores when lenders look.
What’s Happening: The Las Vegas law firm Ladah Injury & Car Accident Lawyers analyzed three things for every state: credit card debt as a share of median income, credit card use, and average FICO score. Georgia scored 38.5 out of 100, putting it third from the bottom.
- Average credit card balance: $7,238
- Median income: $62,468 (balance is 11.6% of income)
- Average utilization: 34%
- Average FICO score: 695
Between the Lines: That FICO score looks OK until you see the rest. High balances and high utilization are the real money drains.
- Scoring breakdown: debt ratio 5/40, utilization 5/30, FICO 28/30 — Georgia’s low overall score comes from heavy balances and high use of available credit, even though credit scores are near the national average.
Why This Matters: Credit utilization — how much of your available credit you use — is a big factor in how lenders and loan rates treat you. Using a third of your credit, as Georgia’s average does, can push interest costs up and slow progress on paying down principal.
What They Said: A Ladah spokesperson blamed a mix of low incomes, aggressive credit marketing and gaps in financial literacy, saying those conditions create “perfect storms” that trap people in long debt cycles. The firm published the full analysis and data online.
The Big Picture: Several Southern states dominate the bottom of the list. The top three worst scores are Louisiana (33.6), Texas (35.6) and Georgia (38.5). The pattern suggests regional trends in income, credit access and consumer education, not just personal failure.
The Sources: Ladah Injury & Car Accident Lawyers, Experian, U.S. Census
How to Read and Understand the News
Truth doesn’t bend because we dislike it.
Facts don’t vanish when they make us uncomfortable.
Events happen whether we accept them or not.
Good reporting challenges us. The press isn’t choosing sides — it’s relaying what official, verified sources say. Blaming reporters for bad news is like blaming a thermometer for a fever.
Americans have a history of misunderstanding simple things. In the 1980s, A&W rolled out a 1/3-pound burger to compete with McDonald’s Quarter Pounder. It failed because too many people thought 1/3 was smaller than 1/4. If we can botch basic math, we can certainly misread the news.
Before dismissing a story, ask yourself:
- What evidence backs this?
- Am I reacting to facts or feelings?
- What would change my mind?
- Am I just shooting the messenger?
And one more: Am I assuming bias just because I don’t like the story?
Smart news consumers seek truth, not comfort.
B.T. Clark
B.T. Clark is an award-winning journalist and the Publisher of The Georgia Sun. He has 25 years of experience in journalism and served as Managing Editor of Neighbor Newspapers in metro Atlanta for 15 years and Digital Director at Times-Journal Inc. for 8 years. His work has appeared in several newspapers throughout the state including Neighbor Newspapers, The Cherokee Tribune and The Marietta Daily Journal. He is a Georgia native and a fifth-generation Georgian.
