Where you live shapes your score. We mapped the average FICO score in all 50 states. Hover any state to see where it ranks, then find your own below.
Source: Experian consumer credit data. Scores are statewide averages and update annually.
Credit Booster AI reads your real score across all three bureaus, finds the errors dragging it down, and shows the exact points each move is worth.
Highest average score first. Type in the box above to jump to your state.
A 62 point gap separates the top of the map from the bottom. The Upper Midwest and New England hold nearly every top spot, while the Deep South fills out the other end. Here is how the extremes stack up.
Highest average scores
Lowest average scores
Your zip code does not set your credit score, but the economics around it tell a clear story. States with higher median incomes, lower unemployment, and a longer history of homeownership post higher average scores year after year. Minnesota, Vermont, Wisconsin, and New Hampshire all sit above 735, helped by steady employment and lower household debt relative to income.
The states at the bottom, Mississippi, Louisiana, and Alabama, carry a mix of lower median income and higher revolving debt. That combination pushes credit utilization up, and utilization is the second biggest factor in any FICO score. Thinner credit files and higher unemployment pull the average down further.
Draw a line across the map and the pattern is hard to miss. The northern tier, from Washington across to Maine, glows in the highest band. The Deep South sits in the lightest. It is not destiny, it is math. The same five factors decide every score in every state, and each one is something a person can change.
The most useful thing buried in this map is what it does not decide. Wherever you live, your own score comes down to five things: how reliably you pay, how much of your available credit you use, how old your accounts are, your mix of credit, and how many recent applications you have.
Two of those move fast. Paying a card below 30 percent of its limit can lift your score within a single billing cycle. Removing one reporting error can be worth 30 to 60 points. You do not have to wait for your whole state to improve.
Minnesota leads the country with an average FICO score of 742. The Upper Midwest and New England fill most of the top spots, helped by higher median incomes and lower household debt.
Mississippi has the lowest statewide average at 680, which still falls in the good range. The gap between the highest and lowest state is 62 points.
A FICO score of 670 to 739 is considered good, 740 to 799 is very good, and 800 and up is exceptional. Most state averages land in the good range, which means there is real room to move up.
No. Your zip code does not set your score. The economics of a state, income, unemployment, and average debt, shape the statewide average, but your own score is decided entirely by your payment history, how much of your credit you use, your credit age, your mix of accounts, and recent inquiries.
States with lower median income and higher revolving debt tend to see higher credit utilization, which is the second biggest factor in a score. Higher unemployment and thinner credit files also pull the average down. None of it decides your personal score, which you can improve in weeks.
