The 2020-2021 U.S. Census estimates place New York as the largest city by population in the United States, with a total population of 8.47 million. According to Credit Karma data from July 13, 2022, of 432,186 members who live in New York City, the average overall debt for a New Yorker sits at $69,265. In this case, overall debt is made up of auto loans, auto leases, student loans, mortgages, credit card balances and medical debt (Click here for the full methodology.)
Read on to see a snapshot of debt in New York over the last 90 days.
Overall debt in New York City
The 432,186 Credit Karma members living in New York City held a combined total debt of $43.2 billion. The average overall debt for individuals was $69,265. The median overall debt was only $7,610 — implying that there are a minority of New Yorkers with very high debt compared to the rest of the population. The average next payment on that debt is $507.
In contrast, the national average debt for Credit Karma members is $49,197, and the median is $11,177.
New York’s debt dial
Image: copy-nycitydebtgaugeAuto loans, student loans, mortgage and credit card debt in New York City
The table below contains averages and medians for different types of debt among Credit Karma members in New York City.
| Debt type | Number of Credit Karma members with debt type | Average debt | Median debt | Average next payment |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Auto loan | 110,058 | $25,564 | $21,202 | $598 |
| Student loan | 145,249 | $41,268 | $18,420 | $83 |
| Mortgage | 74,947 | $611,880 | $436,151 | $3,442 |
| Credit card | 424,631 | $7,600 | $3,481 | $179 |
So how do New Yorkers stack up against the national averages? The table below compares the national average against the averages in New York City among Credit Karma members.
| Debt type | National average debt | New York average debt |
|---|---|---|
| Auto loan | $23,953 | $25,564 |
| Student loan | $32,226 | $41,268 |
| Mortgage | $234,162 | $611,880 |
| Credit card | $6,404 | $7,600 |
Overall, Credit Karma members in New York City had more debt than the national average across all categories. In some categories, such as mortgage and student loan debt, the difference is much larger. This could be because New York City has a notoriously high cost of living.
How does New York City rank against other cities?
We compared averages for Credit Karma members living in the top 100 cities by population according to 2021 U.S. Census population estimates.
Out of the top 100 cities, New York has the 14th highest overall average debt among Credit Karma members.
Here’s how New York City ranked against the other top 100 cities in America:
- Auto loan debt: 17th highest
- Credit card debt: 10th highest
- Student loan debt: 6th highest
- Mortgage debt: 3rd highest
Credit, inquiries and past-due accounts in New York City
Among Credit Karma members in New York City, the average VantageScore 3.0 credit score was 695 and the median was 719, both of which are considered prime. The national average VantageScore 3.0 for Credit Karma members was 674, while the median was 682.
New York members had an average of 3.1 inquiries on their credit reports, while the national average was 4.1.
New Yorkers average 0.58 accounts that were 30 days past due. The national average is 0.74 accounts.
Methodology
To determine averages across categories of debt — including auto lease, auto loan, credit card, mortgage, student loan and total debt — we analyzed the accounts of about 432,000 Credit Karma members living in New York City who had been active on the site within the last 36 months. Averages were based on information from members’ TransUnion credit reports from the 90 days previous to the data pull, which was between July 13 and 15, 2022. For the purposes of this analysis, auto lease, auto loan, credit card, mortgage and student loan debt is defined as any unpaid balances existing on members’ open accounts in aggregate at the time the data was pulled. All numbers in this report were rounded to the nearest whole.
Note that all data for this article were pulled between July 13 and 15, 2022.
Please contact gaby.lapera@creditkarma.com with any inquiries about this article.