Where Payday Lending Is Off the Table — and What Replaces It
Half the country does not allow the classic two-week payday loan. Here is what the rules actually say.
- 27 — states without ordinary payday lending
- 15 — fully banned
- 9 — installment only
- 3 — restricted
- 24 — states where it is allowed
The numbers
States where single-payment payday lending is banned, restricted or installment-only.
| State | Code | Status | Effective APR cap, % | Max loan, $ | Statute |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Arkansas | AR | Banned | 17 | n/a | Ark. Const. Amend. 89 (17% constitutional rate c |
| Connecticut | CT | Banned | 12 | n/a | Conn. Gen. Stat. Sec. 36a-563 (Small Loan Act, 1 |
| District of Columbia | DC | Banned | 24 | n/a | D.C. Code Sec. 28-3301 (24% APR usury cap; payda |
| Georgia | GA | Banned | 60 | n/a | O.C.G.A. Sec. 16-17-1 et seq. (Payday Lending Ac |
| Maryland | MD | Banned | 33 | n/a | Md. Comm. Law Sec. 12-301 et seq. (Consumer Loan |
| Massachusetts | MA | Banned | 23 | n/a | Mass. Gen. Laws ch. 140 Sec. 96-100 (small loan; |
| Montana | MT | Banned | 36 | n/a | Mont. Code Ann. Sec. 31-1-722 (I-164 voter-passe |
| Nebraska | NE | Banned | 36 | n/a | Neb. Rev. Stat. Sec. 45-918 (Initiative 428 vote |
| New Jersey | NJ | Banned | 30 | n/a | N.J. Stat. Sec. 17:11C-1 et seq. (NJ Consumer Fi |
| New York | NY | Banned | 25 | n/a | N.Y. Penal Law Sec. 190.40 (criminal usury 25% A |
| North Carolina | NC | Banned | 30 | n/a | N.C. Gen. Stat. Sec. 53-281 (Consumer Finance Ac |
| Pennsylvania | PA | Banned | 24 | n/a | 41 Pa. C.S. Sec. 201 (Loan Interest and Protecti |
| South Dakota | SD | Banned | 36 | n/a | S.D. Codified Laws Sec. 54-4-44 (voter-passed In |
| Vermont | VT | Banned | 18 | n/a | 8 V.S.A. Sec. 2233 (Licensed Lenders; 18% APR ca |
| West Virginia | WV | Banned | 31 | n/a | W. Va. Code Sec. 46A-4-107 (consumer loan; 31% A |
| Arizona | AZ | Installment only | 36 | 2500 | Ariz. Rev. Stat. Sec. 6-601 et seq.; payday lend |
| Colorado | CO | Installment only | 36 | 500 | Colo. Rev. Stat. Sec. 5-3.1-101 et seq. (Deferre |
| Hawaii | HI | Installment only | 36 | 1500 | Haw. Rev. Stat. Sec. 480F-1 et seq. (amended Act |
| Illinois | IL | Installment only | 36 | 1000 | 815 ILCS 123 (Payday Loan Reform Act); Predatory |
| New Hampshire | NH | Installment only | 36 | 500 | N.H. Rev. Stat. Ann. Sec. 399-A (Small Loans Act |
How we counted
- Banned means single-payment payday lending is not available under state law.
- Installment only means lenders must spread repayment over several payments.
Data updated 2026-07-31. Full dataset: data.csv.
Use this research
Free to cite, quote and chart — with attribution. Journalists and researchers are welcome to reuse the table and the dataset.
Citation: Nimblepayday, “Where Payday Lending Is Off the Table — and What Replaces It”, 2026. Available at https://nimblepayday.com/research/where-payday-is-off-the-table/