- National analysis identifies Utah as the state with the least student debt.
- The state with the most student debt in the U.S.: Mississippi.
- Several factors likely contribute to Utah having low student debt rates — including relatively low tuition and statewide financial literacy instruction.
For political candidates and college football teams, it’s good to be sitting atop the national poll. But sometimes, being ranked dead last is the coveted spot.
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A recent national survey placed Utah at the bottom — No. 51 out of 51 — in its “States with the Most Student Debt in 2026” poll.
The WalletHub analysis compared the Beehive State with the other 49 states and the District of Columbia across a dozen measures of student-loan indebtedness.
Student debt, of course, remains a major financial burden for millions of Americans. And it’s a primary reason why many across the country are questioning the payoff traditionally associated with pursuing — and paying for — higher education.
And the student debt totals keep rising. “At the end of the second quarter of 2026, outstanding student loan balances exceeded $1.72 trillion, according to the Department of Education,” WalletHub reported.
“That amounts to more than $40,000 per borrower across 42.6 million Americans.”
The state sitting on the opposite end of Utah in WalletHub’s “States with the Most Student Debt” report? Mississippi — followed by Delaware, Pennsylvania, South Carolina and West Virginia.
Besides Utah, the states included in the top 5 “Least Student Debt States” are Hawaii, California, Washington and New Mexico.
“College keeps getting progressively more expensive, and so does borrowing money to attend,” said WalletHub analyst Chip Lupo. “Federal student loan interest rates recently hit a 12-year high and remain elevated, making it important for borrowers to plan carefully when taking on student debt.”
So how did Utah ‘sink’ to the bottom of the student debt rankings?
There are several likely reasons why Utah college students are carrying a lighter debt burden than their counterparts across the country.
The most obvious: It’s cheaper to attend a higher education institution in Utah than in most states. Utah was ranked No. 5 in the 2026 U.S. News & World Report measuring the average college tuition and fees required of in-state students at public four-year institutions.
Earlier this year, the Utah Board of Higher Education approved a sub-inflationary 2.28% systemwide average increase among its degree-granting colleges for the current academic year.
“The board’s tuition and fee approvals this year reflect our ongoing focus on keeping higher education affordable across the system — including maintaining low-cost technical education and carefully reviewing tuition proposals at our degree-granting institutions,” said Amanda Covington, chair of the Utah Board of Higher Education, when the tuition increases were announced.
Meanwhile, well-attended private schools in Utah such as Brigham Young University and Ensign College — which are both sponsored by The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints — are considered “exceptional value” institutions.
Utah is also ranked near the bottom of the national rankings in “student debt as percent of income” and “percent of student loans past due or in default.”
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And Utah students have been lauded for having more “money savvy” than students in other states.
The state-provided finance tools that Utah teens are acquiring in high school may be what’s protecting them from unmanageable college debt and other future money disasters.
Every Utah high school student — regardless of their academic or career interests — is required to take a personal finance course. And they are also given a standardized personal finance test.
The goal of, according to the Utah Board of Education, “is to help students to become financially responsible and conscientious members of society as they contribute to their own financial well-being.
“Students should feel empowered to achieve financial success.”
Methodology: Determining the best/worst states for student debt
The recent WalletHub survey examining student debt focused on a pair of key dimensions: “Student-Loan Indebtedness” and “Grant & Student Work Opportunities.”
Metrics evaluated in the “Student-Loan Indebtedness” included the average student debt in each state, the proportion of students with debt and the share of student loans in past-due or default status.
The survey’s “Grant & Student Work Opportunities” metrics included each state’s unemployment rate among young people, the availability of student jobs and paid internships, and the growth of student grants.
How did Mississippi end up with student debt ranking no state wants?
The Magnolia State has the biggest student debt problem in the nation, according to WalletHub. The average amount owed by people in Mississippi with student loan debt equals over 54% of the median income in the state, the highest rate in the U.S.
“In addition,” noted the analysis, “Mississippi has the highest default rate on student debt, which shows people are having trouble paying off what they borrow.”
Mississippi also reportedly has the third-worst availability of jobs to students, and the second-lowest share of paid internships.
Meanwhile, student borrowers in Delaware owe an average of close to $40,000, the second-highest amount in the country, according to WalletHub.
“Jobs don’t come easily to students in Delaware,” added the analysis. “The state has the eighth-worst availability of student jobs and the sixth-highest underemployment rate.”