The CFPB received 18,435 complaints about payday loans, title loans, personal loans and advance loans from October 2025 through September 2026. The most common issue, in 4,274 of them (23%), was being charged fees or interest the person did not expect. The year before, the count was 11,763.
3,037 complaints were about making payments, 1,903 about struggling to pay and 1,819 about getting the loan. The CFPB groups these loan types into one product, so this page cannot separate payday loans from personal loans. For how many adults use payday loans, see our survey page.
Texas had the most complaints, 2,221, followed by California (2,203) and Florida (1,982). Per resident, Florida was highest at 8 per 100,000 people.
What these numbers are
These are complaints, not findings. The CFPB does not verify every claim, one person can file more than one complaint, and the issue is the category the consumer picked. Complaint counts also move with awareness of the CFPB and with how companies route customers to it, so a change in the count is not by itself a change in how companies behave.
Complaints by issue
| Issue the consumer chose | Complaints | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Charged fees or interest you didn't expect | 4,274 | 23.2% |
| Problem when making payments | 3,037 | 16.5% |
| Struggling to pay your loan | 1,903 | 10.3% |
| Getting the loan | 1,819 | 9.9% |
| Problem with additional add-on products or services | 1,591 | 8.6% |
| Problem with the payoff process at the end of the loan | 1,356 | 7.4% |
| Incorrect information on your report | 1,154 | 6.3% |
| Problem with a company's investigation into an existing problem | 460 | 2.5% |
| Getting a line of credit | 396 | 2.1% |
| Can't stop withdrawals from your bank account | 340 | 1.8% |
| Can't contact lender or servicer | 247 | 1.3% |
| Received a loan you didn't apply for | 241 | 1.3% |
| Issues with repayment | 195 | 1.1% |
| Money was taken from your bank account on the wrong day or for the wrong amount | 168 | 0.9% |
| Vehicle was repossessed or sold the vehicle | 154 | 0.8% |
| Loan payment wasn't credited to your account | 142 | 0.8% |
| Improper use of your report | 141 | 0.8% |
| Confusing or misleading advertising or marketing | 110 | 0.6% |
| Was approved for a loan, but didn't receive the money | 110 | 0.6% |
| Confusing or missing disclosures | 100 | 0.5% |
| Problems receiving the advance | 93 | 0.5% |
| Unexpected fees | 86 | 0.5% |
| Credit monitoring or identity theft protection services | 77 | 0.4% |
| Problem with cash advance | 56 | 0.3% |
| Credit limit changed | 41 | 0.2% |
| Vehicle was damaged or destroyed the vehicle | 37 | 0.2% |
| Problem with fraud alerts or security freezes | 34 | 0.2% |
| Unable to get your credit report or credit score | 30 | 0.2% |
| Was approved for a loan, but didn't receive money | 20 | 0.1% |
| Property was damaged or destroyed property | 8 | 0.0% |
| Property was sold | 7 | 0.0% |
| Lost or stolen refund | 5 | 0.0% |
| Problem with customer service | 3 | 0.0% |
Complaints by state
| State | Complaints | Per 100,000 residents |
|---|---|---|
| Texas | 2,221 | 7.1 |
| California | 2,203 | 5.6 |
| Florida | 1,982 | 8.5 |
| Georgia | 886 | 7.9 |
| New York | 771 | 3.9 |
| North Carolina | 639 | 5.8 |
| Ohio | 599 | 5.0 |
| Pennsylvania | 569 | 4.4 |
| New Jersey | 534 | 5.6 |
| Illinois | 524 | 4.1 |
| Virginia | 511 | 5.8 |
| Arizona | 499 | 6.6 |
| Tennessee | 417 | 5.8 |
| Michigan | 415 | 4.1 |
| South Carolina | 397 | 7.2 |
| Maryland | 381 | 6.1 |
| Washington | 345 | 4.3 |
| Louisiana | 333 | 7.2 |
| Indiana | 310 | 4.5 |
| Missouri | 292 | 4.7 |
| Alabama | 287 | 5.6 |
| Colorado | 273 | 4.6 |
| Nevada | 255 | 7.8 |
| Oklahoma | 212 | 5.2 |
| Wisconsin | 212 | 3.6 |
| Massachusetts | 210 | 2.9 |
| Mississippi | 188 | 6.4 |
| Oregon | 184 | 4.3 |
| Kentucky | 181 | 3.9 |
| Utah | 181 | 5.2 |
| Minnesota | 144 | 2.5 |
| Arkansas | 140 | 4.5 |
| Connecticut | 127 | 3.5 |
| Kansas | 122 | 4.1 |
| New Mexico | 89 | 4.2 |
| Delaware | 85 | 8.1 |
| Iowa | 79 | 2.4 |
| Idaho | 68 | 3.4 |
| Rhode Island | 59 | 5.3 |
| Hawaii | 54 | 3.7 |
| District of Columbia | 50 | 7.1 |
| New Hampshire | 50 | 3.5 |
| Nebraska | 49 | 2.4 |
| West Virginia | 47 | 2.7 |
| Maine | 41 | 2.9 |
| North Dakota | 31 | 3.9 |
| South Dakota | 26 | 2.8 |
| Montana | 22 | 1.9 |
| Wyoming | 22 | 3.7 |
| Alaska | 21 | 2.8 |
| Vermont | 13 | 2.0 |
50 states and D.C. 85 complaints had no state or a territory or military address, so the state rows add to less than the total. The rate per 100,000 residents is our calculation using Census 2024 ACS one-year population.
Source
Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, Consumer Complaint Database, product "Payday loan, title loan, personal loan, or advance loan", date received October 1, 2025 through September 30, 2026, queried through the public API on October 14, 2026. U.S. government data in the public domain. Population: U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 2024 one-year estimates (B01003). Our tables are available under CC BY 4.0. Credit "My Credit Guide (mycreditguide.org)".
Steven Reynolds, "Payday, Title and Personal Loan Complaints," My Credit Guide, October 14, 2026, https://mycreditguide.org/data/payday-personal-loan-complaints/.