2021 U.S. Household Bill Pay Market Size: $2.91 Trillion Spent by American Consumers Each Year on Recurring Bills

Many of the same states also top the list for rent costs: Hawaii, California, Maryland , New Jersey, and Massachusetts.

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Thursday, February 25, 2021
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Software, Internet, Finance, Banking, Data management, Professional services, Technology, Mobile, Wireless, Payment systems, Software, Internet, Finance, Banking, Data management, Professional services, Technology, Mobile, Wireless, Payment systems
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United States, WASHINGTON, United States, WASHINGTON, CALIFORNIA, ALASKA, NEW HAMPSHIRE, MONTANA, CONNECTICUT, WEST VIRGINIA, MARYLAND, PENNSYLVANIA, NEW MEXICO, NEW YORK, WA, SOUTH DAKOTA, MAINE, MISSISSIPPI, NEW JERSEY, SEATTLE, IDAHO, VERMONT, KANSAS, HAWAII, MASSACHUSETTS, WYOMING
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Summary
Key Points: 
  • Many of the same states also top the list for rent costs: Hawaii, California, Maryland , New Jersey, and Massachusetts.
  • In addition to the $22,668 per year the average household spends on the most common bills, consumers also contend with additional hidden costs of bill pay.
  • This uniquely broad statistical foundation powers doxoINSIGHTS reports uncovering key trends for household financial health and bill payment behavior.
  • Billers on the network get paid directly, fast and free and consumers have complete bill pay independence over when and how they pay their bills.


doxo, the innovative web and mobile bill pay service, today released its 2021 U.S. Bill Pay Market Size & Category Breakout Report, revealing that Americans spend $2.91 trillion annually – one fifth (20%) of all U.S. consumer spending – across 10 primary bill payment categories. In this report, statistical analysis of actual household payments was used to size the market and category across 37,000+ U.S. zip codes and 45 types of services. The report found that the average U.S. household spends $22,668 per year on bills and breaks out the household spending market size for each bill category, percentage of households that pay each bill, and average monthly and annual bill pay costs by state.

“doxoINSIGHTS’ 2021 U.S. Bill Pay Market Size and Category Breakout Report leverages our proprietary dataset to help make the U.S. Bill Pay economy transparent and understandable for all,” said doxo co-founder and CEO, Steve Shivers. “Alongside our app that simplifies the task of staying on top of bills to help improve financial health, these reports support doxo’s ongoing mission to empower our consumer users, billers, and financial service providers alike to make better decisions.”

doxo’s proprietary dataset of consumer bill pay activity generates the industry’s most accurate category and regional statistics

doxo’s bill pay service enables all-in-one bill pay to more than 75,000 providers across the country in 45 different service categories. By incorporating tens of millions of bill payments across 37,000+ U.S. zip codes and all U.S. income and regional demographic segments, the 2021 U.S. Bill Pay Market Size & Category Breakout Report is a true and direct representation of what Americans actually pay on their bills. Updated for 2021, this proprietary dataset provides the foundation for doxoINSIGHTS’ bottoms-up market sizing of the 10 most common bills and makes category size and average spend transparent at the national, state, and local level. In contrast to other industry data sources – which often mix household recurring bill expenses with employer-paid or withheld expenditures (e.g. health insurance, taxes), and retail and discretionary spending (e.g. credit card balances) – doxo’s unique, nation-wide household bill pay data specifically quantifies the actual consumer portion of total recurring bill spend and household penetration rate for each category.

The report findings include breakouts by service category, household market penetration for each type of service, and household average spend per month by state.

$2.91 trillion total household bill pay spent across these categories:

The average U.S. household spends $22,668 per year on the most common bills

According to The U.S. Census Bureau, the real median household income in the U.S. is $65,712. This number, combined with doxo’s estimate that the average U.S. household spends $22,668 per year on common bills, suggests that more than one third of Americans’ yearly salary is put toward core expenses – a sizable portion of income by any measure.

While housing costs top monthly expenses, the report reveals that the average household is paying more out-of-pocket per month for mobile phone and cable/internet bills than health or life insurance, which are frequently covered by their employer or automatically deducted from paychecks. The average monthly amount of each bill paid in each category is:

  • $1,279 Mortgage
  • $1,062 Rent
  • $412 Auto Loan
  • $316 Utilities
  • $186 Auto Insurance
  • $116 Cable & Internet
  • $113 Health Insurance
  • $103 Mobile Phone
  • $89 Life Insurance
  • $87 Alarm & Security

Note that the market size of each category, and the total spend per household per year, factor in not just the average amount of each bill payment, but also the actual percentage of households paying each category. For example, consumers that pay rent are not typically also paying a mortgage. See the report for these category details.

Comparison data shows how bills rank by state

  • Mortgage payments are highest in New Jersey, California, Hawaii, New York, and Massachusetts, respectively. Many of the same states also top the list for rent costs: Hawaii, California, Maryland, New Jersey, and Massachusetts. West Virginia has the distinction of being the most affordable state for both mortgage and rent costs.
  • Auto Loan payments are highest in Wyoming and Alaska at $559 and $485/month, respectively. Pennsylvania and Maryland residents enjoy some of the lowest at $338 and $333/month, respectively.
    • While auto loan bills in Maryland may be less expensive, residents of the state happen to pay the most, along with Wyoming and Alaska, for Auto Insurance, while New Mexico and Idaho pay the least.
  • Utilities expenses are highest in Hawaii ($540/month) and New Jersey ($436/month), while South Dakota ($239/month) and Mississippi ($233/month) are the most affordable.
  • Cable & Internet bills make the biggest dent in the pockets of residents in Alaska, followed by a handful of states in the northeast including New Hampshire, Vermont, New York, New Jersey, Maine, Connecticut, and Massachusetts.
  • Mobile Phone bills are cheapest in Delaware ($71/month), but more than double that in Alaska ($149 per month).
  • Health Insurance expenses, when considering consumer out-of-pocket spending only (excluding employer payments), are lowest in Georgia ($68/month) and highest in Minnesota ($209 per month).
  • Life Insurance spend is highest in Wyoming ($164/month) and lowest in New Mexico ($63 per month).
  • Alarm & Security is least expensive for Alaska residents ($43/month) while Kansas ($137/month) and Montana ($123/month) pay the most for protection.

In addition to the $22,668 per year the average household spends on the most common bills, consumers also contend with additional hidden costs of bill pay. Identity theft and payment account fraud, late and overdraft fees, as well as detrimental credit impacts ultimately add up to an additional $577 each year per household, or $74 billion annually. The Hidden Costs of Bill Pay report from doxoINSIGHTS exposed these fees, as staying on top of bills is the single largest determinant for consumer financial health.

For more information, or to view the entire report, visit www.doxo.com/insights/.

About doxoINSIGHTS

doxoINSIGHTS provides direct insight into household financial health and spending activity by leveraging consumer surveys and doxo’s unique aggregate bill pay data set, comprising actual bill payment activity to confirmed household service providers across the country. doxo data brings together the broadest available data set for analyzing actual household bill payment activity, pulling from over 4 million paying consumers across over 90% of U.S. zip codes. doxo’s payment network covers over 75,000 billers in 45 different service categories and enables payments using bank accounts, credit cards or debit cards. This uniquely broad statistical foundation powers doxoINSIGHTS reports – uncovering key trends for household financial health and bill payment behavior.

About doxo

doxo provides simple, secure all-in-one bill payment to any biller, with any payment method, on any device. A doxoPLUS subscription adds free bank payments and five essential financial protections that boost household financial health. Through these services, doxo currently serves over four million paying users who can make payments to over 75,000 local and national businesses, making doxo the largest bill pay directory in the nation. Billers on the network get paid directly, fast and free – and consumers have complete bill pay independence over when and how they pay their bills. doxo expanded its user base by more than 70 percent in the past year and is expanding its team to further accelerate growth and change the bill pay landscape to focus on the customer. doxo investors include MDV, Sigma Partners, and Bezos Expeditions. doxo is based in Seattle, WA. For more information visit www.doxo.com.

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