Americans are now devoting roughly 30% of household income to recurring essential bills, according to a new report that offers collections professionals a fresh read on where consumers have room to pay and where they do not.
The 2026 U.S. Household Bill Pay Report from doxo, a Seattle-based bill payment platform, estimates that households collectively spend about $5.03 trillion a year on essential obligations, what the company calls the “Bill Pay Economy.” The median household pays close to $2,095 a month across 13 common categories, including mortgage and rent, auto loans, auto insurance, utilities, health insurance, mobile phone service, and cable or satellite.
The more useful signal for the ARM industry sits in the geography. The report found that household bills in the most expensive states run nearly 2.5 times higher than in the most affordable ones. California leads at a median of $2,892 a month, followed by Hawaii, Massachusetts, New Jersey, and Maryland. West Virginia anchors the bottom at $1,116, with Mississippi, Arkansas, Alabama, and Oklahoma also among the cheapest in raw dollars.
Raw cost, however, is not the same as affordability, a distinction that matters when assessing a consumer’s capacity to resolve debt. California, Hawaii, and Mississippi tie for the heaviest burden, with bills consuming 33% of income. Mississippi and Arkansas illustrate the trap: low monthly bills, but incomes that lag national averages, leaving little cushion once the essentials are covered. Higher-earning states such as Utah and Virginia carry above-median bills yet devote a smaller share of income to them.
The report functions as a map of disposable income. When fixed obligations claim a third of what a household earns, the margin available for debt repayment narrows, and that margin varies sharply by ZIP code.
The findings also reinforce a theme tracked across the industry: utility and insurance costs continue to climb, and energy bills remain a particular pressure point heading into the back half of the year.
