State by State Bill Pay Report: 2024
Today we released a new report that reveals that the average U.S. household spends $25,512 annually on the most essential household bills. This annual bill spend of roughly $2,126 per month takes up 34% of the U.S. household median income of $74,755. With many states ranking well above or below the national average, the 2024 State by State Bill Pay Report reveals Hawaii, California, Massachusetts and New Jersey are the most expensive states to live in, while West Virginia, Mississippi, Arkansas and Kentucky are the most affordable.
doxo’s proprietary and comprehensive dataset — based on actual bill payments across 97% of U.S. zip codes and 45 bill pay service categories, enables precision much greater than typical survey-based estimates of market size and consumer spend. This latest state-level breakdown of household bill expenses provides more detail on how bills contribute to the overall cost of living in all 50 states. Doxo’s Cost of Bills Index™, introduced in its inaugural report earlier this year, provides a consistent basis of comparison for any location in the country. The 2024 State by State Bill Pay report provides resolution at the state level, enabling the deepest and most complete picture of The Bill Pay Economy™ across the 50 states.
This unique view of relative expenses, and how much of household income is required to cover bills in each state, is especially relevant given continued strains on household budgets. In fact, a recent doxoINSIGHTS report revealed that three in four consumers (74%) have made changes to their spending and savings habits this year, and the vast majority of Americans (85%) remain worried about their ability to pay their household bills.
The findings outlined in the 2024 State by State Bill Pay Market report include, for each state, the total monthly spend for bills each month, as well as a breakout of each of the ten most common household bills including: Mortgage; Rent; Auto Loan; Utilities (electric, gas, water & sewer, and waste & recycling); Auto Insurance; Cable & Internet; Mobile Phone; Health Insurance (consumer paid portion); Alarm & Security; and Life Insurance.
The report shows that Hawaiians spend $3,091 each month on the 10 most common household bills, which is +45% above the national average. At the other end of the spectrum, households in West Virginia spend an average of $1,596 across the top ten categories, -25% below the average nationwide. The 10 most expensive and least expensive states to live are outlined below.
10 Most Expensive States for Household Bills
| State | Monthly Bill Expense per Household* | Cost of Bills Index (COBI)** | Percent of Household Income | Percent Above National Average |
| Hawaii | $3,091 | 145 | 39% | + 45% |
| California | $3,010 | 142 | 36% | + 42% |
| Massachusetts | $2,817 | 133 | 33% | + 33% |
| New Jersey | $2,802 | 132 | 32% | + 32% |
| Maryland | $2,676 | 126 | 32% | + 26% |
| Washington | $2,644 | 124 | 33% | + 24% |
| New York | $2,627 | 124 | 35% | + 24% |
| Connecticut | $2,569 | 121 | 31% | + 21% |
| Colorado | $2,553 | 120 | 34% | + 20% |
| New Hampshire | $2,482 | 117 | 32% | + 17% |
10 Least Expensive States for Household Bills
| State | Monthly Bill Expense per Household* | Cost of Bills Index (COBI)** | Percent of Household Income | Percent Below National Average |
| Kansas | $1,864 | 88 | 31% | – 12% |
| South Dakota | $1,854 | 87 | 32% | – 13% |
| Missouri | $1,835 | 86 | 32% | – 14% |
| Alabama | $1,831 | 86 | 36% | – 14% |
| Indiana | $1,786 | 84 | 31% | – 16% |
| Oklahoma | $1,786 | 84 | 34% | – 16% |
| Kentucky | $1,783 | 84 | 35% | – 16% |
| Arkansas | $1,762 | 83 | 37% | – 17% |
| Mississippi | $1,719 | 81 | 38% | – 19% |
| West Virginia | $1,596 | 75 | 35% | – 25% |
*Household Bill Pay Expense averages shown above reflect the ten most common bills paid, including housing (rent/mortgage). See report for details.**For the Cost of Bills Index (COBI), the number 100 represents the national average and then, states, counties and cities are assigned a number, either above or below 100, based on how they compare to the national average.
State by State Bill Pay Market for 2024
A state by state look at the $4.46 trillion U.S. consumer bill pay market, with a specific emphasis on the $3.35 trillion spend across the 10 most common household bill pay categories.