The Average Credit Card Balance

In January 2011, Americans had a combined $795 billion in outstanding credit card balances. That may sound like a lot of money, but it represented a decline from a high of $941 billion in 2007. Nearly a third of American households don't have credit cards. According to the credit bureau TransUnion, the average balance for each credit card account was $4,695 at the end of 2010.

State Variation

According to TransUnion, individual states see significant variation in average credit card balances. In Alaska, the average balance is $7,010, the highest in the U.S. For another example, average balances in North Carolina are about $5,700. On the other end of the scale, several Midwestern states see lower average balances. In Iowa, the average balance was $3,900.

Trends

Just as total credit card debt has fallen since 2007, average balances have fallen as well. TransUnion says that between 2010 and 2009, average balances fell by 8.6 percent. The 4Q 2010 data may show that trend is slowing. Average balances went up between the previous quarter by $1.

Demographics

According to a Federal Reserve report released in 2009, about 73 percent of households had credit cards. About 60 percent of those carried a balance. Holding a balance is less common among families in the lowest and highest income brackets. Families headed by someone 65 years of age or less are also less likely to carry a balance.

Delinquency

According to TransUnion's data, about 0.8 percent of cardholders were more than 90 days delinquent at the end of 2010. Nevada, with a delinquency rate of 1.27 percent, has a rate that is 50 percent as high as the national average. Cardholders in Mississippi and Florida are delinquent at rates above 1 percent.