Signed into law as part of the American Rescue Plan Act, the expanded child tax credit increased the tax credit from $2,000 per child to as much as $3,600 per child in 2021. Our team of analysts discovered how people in each state spent the expanded credit.
Key takeaways:
- 79% of people spent the tax credit on food
- 40% of people spent the tax credit on utilities or housing costs
- 25% of people used the tax credit to pay off debt
- 13% of people saved the tax credit
Food, clothing and housing costs are the main ways Americans spent the expanded child tax credit in the first four months of 2022. Nearly 80% of people (4 out of 5) used part of the child tax credit to buy food. However, a substantial number of people also used the money to make vehicle payments, pay for child care services or donate to charity.
| Spending category | % of people who spent money in each category |
|---|---|
| Food | 79% |
| Clothing | 46% |
| Childcare | 16% |
| Education | 21% |
| After School Programs | 5% |
| Transportation | 7% |
| Recreational Goods | 8% |
| Housing (rent or mortgage) | 40% |
| Utility | 40% |
| Vehicle and debt payments | 26% |
| Charitable Donations | 2% |
| Savings | 4% |
| Other | 6% |
| Figures will not equal 100% because multiple categories can be chosen | |
How people in each state spent money from the expanded child tax credit varies significantly from state to state. For example, nearly 96% of people in Alaska spent money on food, while only 58% of people did in Rhode Island. We found similar variation between states when it comes to spending on clothing, education, housing, utilities and debt payments.
| State | Food | Clothing | Education | Housing | Utilities | Debt |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Alabama | 84% | 41% | 25% | 35% | 33% | 32% |
| Alaska | 96% | 36% | 13% | 42% | 39% | 37% |
| Arizona | 85% | 48% | 13% | 44% | 40% | 32% |
| Arkansas | 94% | 45% | 21% | 36% | 57% | 30% |
| California | 82% | 45% | 16% | 41% | 29% | 20% |
| Colorado | 76% | 48% | 11% | 37% | 33% | 22% |
| Connecticut | 87% | 40% | 22% | 33% | 37% | 24% |
| Delaware | 66% | 34% | 14% | 24% | 54% | 25% |
| Florida | 71% | 40% | 20% | 49% | 39% | 26% |
| Georgia | 62% | 39% | 24% | 31% | 37% | 29% |
| Hawaii | 87% | 43% | 24% | 45% | 57% | 54% |
| Idaho | 80% | 40% | 15% | 35% | 23% | 19% |
| Illinois | 81% | 46% | 24% | 38% | 39% | 30% |
| Indiana | 65% | 53% | 19% | 34% | 49% | 30% |
| Iowa | 77% | 59% | 16% | 51% | 50% | 34% |
| Kansas | 84% | 40% | 17% | 44% | 43% | 46% |
| Kentucky | 73% | 49% | 12% | 31% | 48% | 17% |
| Louisiana | 76% | 61% | 27% | 58% | 62% | 25% |
| Maine | 81% | 41% | 12% | 34% | 44% | 36% |
| Maryland | 72% | 44% | 27% | 23% | 26% | 30% |
| Massachusetts | 82% | 53% | 29% | 42% | 37% | 33% |
| Michigan | 77% | 41% | 24% | 29% | 45% | 27% |
| Minnesota | 76% | 32% | 11% | 36% | 34% | 33% |
| Mississippi | 91% | 48% | 11% | 50% | 54% | 29% |
| Missouri | 75% | 41% | 17% | 49% | 53% | 29% |
| Montana | 75% | 32% | 15% | 54% | 50% | 19% |
| Nebraska | 65% | 41% | 19% | 47% | 45% | 34% |
| Nevada | 79% | 43% | 31% | 43% | 30% | 48% |
| New Hampshire | 77% | 48% | 13% | 29% | 43% | 14% |
| New Jersey | 75% | 46% | 32% | 41% | 34% | 13% |
| New Mexico | 87% | 59% | 22% | 37% | 53% | 31% |
| New York | 83% | 46% | 23% | 30% | 35% | 12% |
| North Carolina | 87% | 62% | 15% | 26% | 30% | 14% |
| North Dakota | 78% | 41% | 22% | 24% | 42% | 41% |
| Ohio | 82% | 37% | 25% | 51% | 53% | 24% |
| Oklahoma | 85% | 62% | 29% | 28% | 45% | 28% |
| Oregon | 83% | 39% | 16% | 27% | 35% | 27% |
| Pennsylvania | 76% | 43% | 21% | 52% | 47% | 50% |
| Rhode Island | 58% | 56% | 6% | 61% | 30% | 25% |
| South Carolina | 78% | 41% | 24% | 30% | 41% | 32% |
| South Dakota | 71% | 51% | 24% | 27% | 38% | 21% |
| Tennessee | 90% | 56% | 11% | 45% | 44% | 33% |
| Texas | 83% | 53% | 31% | 40% | 39% | 22% |
| Utah | 74% | 43% | 15% | 44% | 37% | 35% |
| Vermont | 84% | 46% | 18% | 33% | 40% | 36% |
| Virginia | 82% | 43% | 22% | 50% | 60% | 49% |
| Washington | 77% | 42% | 21% | 50% | 46% | 29% |
| West Virginia | 90% | 50% | 27% | 42% | 49% | 20% |
| Wisconsin | 81% | 39% | 15% | 40% | 43% | 35% |
| Wyoming | 70% | 31% | 19% | 34% | 34% | 30% |
| United States | 79% | 46% | 21% | 40% | 40% | 26% |
| Figures will not equal 100% because multiple categories can be chosen. Dept category includes vehicle payments, student loans, credit cards and other payments. | ||||||
While people spent money from the expanded child tax credit on a wide range of goods and services, most of the money was used to pay off debt. Nationwide, 25% of people said they paid debts down or off, while 18% mostly spent it and 13% mostly saved it.
On a state level, Alaska had the highest number of people who spent most of the tax credit, Maine and Vermont had the highest numbers of savers and Arizona had the highest number of people who put the money towards existing debts.
| State | Mostly Spent It | Mostly Saved It | Mostly Paid Off Debt |
|---|---|---|---|
| Alabama | 18% | 12% | 25% |
| Alaska | 24% | 15% | 28% |
| Arizona | 15% | 9% | 33% |
| Arkansas | 16% | 12% | 32% |
| California | 19% | 9% | 22% |
| Colorado | 15% | 16% | 17% |
| Connecticut | 19% | 10% | 31% |
| Delaware | 19% | 17% | 29% |
| Florida | 18% | 11% | 25% |
| Georgia | 19% | 13% | 21% |
| Hawaii | 21% | 13% | 25% |
| Idaho | 14% | 15% | 19% |
| Illinois | 18% | 10% | 25% |
| Indiana | 13% | 13% | 29% |
| Iowa | 16% | 14% | 28% |
| Kansas | 17% | 13% | 25% |
| Kentucky | 19% | 13% | 28% |
| Louisiana | 17% | 9% | 21% |
| Maine | 11% | 21% | 27% |
| Maryland | 16% | 15% | 26% |
| Massachusetts | 17% | 17% | 22% |
| Michigan | 18% | 10% | 25% |
| Minnesota | 21% | 18% | 21% |
| Mississippi | 19% | 7% | 22% |
| Missouri | 20% | 15% | 27% |
| Montana | 17% | 17% | 18% |
| Nebraska | 18% | 17% | 20% |
| Nevada | 17% | 19% | 26% |
| New Hampshire | 21% | 19% | 24% |
| New Jersey | 21% | 10% | 24% |
| New Mexico | 23% | 13% | 28% |
| New York | 19% | 13% | 21% |
| North Carolina | 19% | 15% | 23% |
| North Dakota | 24% | 12% | 19% |
| Ohio | 15% | 11% | 29% |
| Oklahoma | 19% | 17% | 30% |
| Oregon | 20% | 18% | 27% |
| Pennsylvania | 19% | 14% | 23% |
| Rhode Island | 15% | 14% | 26% |
| South Carolina | 14% | 12% | 32% |
| South Dakota | 21% | 15% | 21% |
| Tennessee | 16% | 19% | 23% |
| Texas | 18% | 11% | 26% |
| Utah | 19% | 19% | 28% |
| Vermont | 18% | 21% | 29% |
| Virginia | 15% | 13% | 26% |
| Washington | 23% | 17% | 22% |
| West Virginia | 20% | 14% | 27% |
| Wisconsin | 18% | 16% | 28% |
| Wyoming | 20% | 11% | 30% |
| United States | 18% | 13% | 25% |
| Figures will not equal 100% because multiple categories can be chosen | |||
Methodology
To calculate how people spent money from the expanded child tax credit, QuoteWizard analyzed data from the United State Census Bureau Household Pulse Survey. Data from weeks 41, 42 and 43 were used. Figures are rounded to the nearest whole number and may not equal 100% because multiple categories can be chosen.
References:
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