These cities have the most debt collection accounts in 2025

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FILE-In this photo illustration, a person holds a wallet filled with money. (Photo Illustration by Thomas Trutschel/Photothek via Getty Images)

Falling behind on debt is a situation that no one wants to find themselves in, especially given outcomes associated with it, like having your account submitted to a collection agency.

An account in collections can severely impact your credit score and will stay on your credit report for many years.

WalletHub released a new study looking at cities nationwide struggling the most with debt in collections.

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The personal finance website produced its rankings of the cities with the most debt collection accounts by comparing 100 of the largest cities across two key data points: Collection account status and change in average collection accounts and how those figures changed between the first and second quarters of 2025.

WalletHub then assessed those categories using four metrics which were graded on a 100-point scale. Researchers then determined each city’s average across the specific categories to produce the overall score.

Cities with most debt collection accounts in 2025

1. Garland, Texas
2. Fort Worth, Texas
3. Arlington, Texas
4. Lubbock, Texas
5. Henderson, Nevada
6. Austin, Texas
7. Reno, Nevada
8. Plano, Texas
9. Houston, Texas
10. Dallas, Texas

A closer look at the top cities

Dig deeper:

Three cities in Texas ranked as the top areas for debt collection accounts, and WalletHub offers an analysis of their findings.

Garland, TX

Garland, Texas ranked first as the city with the most debt collection accounts because residents have collection accounts with an average of 3.6 each as of the second quarter of 2025, representing the highest in the U.S.

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According to WalletHub, the average increased 3.4% from the first quarter to the second quarter of 2025, the 13th-highest percentage in the nation.

The study found that Garland residents owe an average of $1,248 on each account in collections, but the average balance soared by more than 4% between the first quarter and second quarter of 2025.

Fort Worth, TX

WalletHub reported that Fort Worth residents have an average of 3.6 collection accounts each as of the second quarter of 2025. The number of collection accounts per person jumped 2% between the first quarter and second quarter of 2025.

Meanwhile, residents in the area have the 42nd-highest average collection account balance in the nation, at $1,496. According to the study, the average balance spiked by roughly 1.5% between the first and second quarters of 2025.

Arlington, TX

Arlington, Texas ranks third on the list mainly based on a rise in both the number and balance of collection accounts between the first and second quarter of 2025. The average collection balance is $1,545, and the average collection balance rose 5%. Residents with collection accounts in the city have an average of 3.4 accounts each. And the number of collection accounts increased by 4.1% during the same period.