A fascinating new study shows that among residents in the five-county Times News area, those in Stroudsburg, Monroe County spend the most on their monthly household bills while those who live in Lehighton in Carbon County spend the least.

The study was done by Doxo, a payment network that measured the average most important monthly bills. These include mortgage and rent payments, auto loans, utility bills, insurance costs, phone bills and cable and internet.

The report, which shows actual bill payment activity in more than 97% of U.S. ZIP codes, identifies the most and least expensive states for Americans to live in based on average monthly spending on actual household bill payments.

The average household in the country spends $2,046 a month on the 10 most common household bills, according to the report. Pennsylvania residents pay an average of $1,496 less in a year than the national average to cover their major household bills, according to the Doxo report, which examined the $3.87 trillion U.S. consumer bill pay market. Our state’s residents pay more than the national average for monthly mortgage payments, auto insurance and health insurance, the study shows. Household expenses in Pennsylvania account for one-third of the average annual household income, which Doxo lists at $66,974.

How much is that per month? Doxo shows that the average Keystone State household pays $1,922 every month on bills - or $23,061 per year. The Doxo report also identifies the most expensive cities to live in by state, based on the average amount of these bills.

The average monthly household bills among all five communities in our counties total less than the state average. Stroudsburg comes in first among the five-county communities with $1,920 per month, placing it 116th highest among the Pennsylvania communities surveyed. This is just $2 less than the average monthly payments in the state. Then comes Northampton borough at $1,858 (128th highest), Whitehall in Lehigh County at $1,826 (134th highest), Pottsville in Schuylkill County, $1,661 (172nd highest) and Lehighton at $1,639 (176th highest).

According to the report, Lehighton’s average monthly household costs in these key categories are about half of those of the Montgomery County village of Wynnewood, whose $3,243 tops the selected state communities. The closest community in the Top 10 to our area is Doylestown in Bucks County, which placed fourth highest at $2,929 a month.

In comparison, here are some northeastern Pennsylvania community figures - Scranton in Lackawanna County, $1,779 per month (144th highest in the state), Wilkes-Barre in Luzerne County, $1,491 per month (200th), Milford in Pike County $2,119 per month (74th) and Honesdale in Wayne County, $1,603 per month (180th).

When it comes to which state has the highest average monthly bills, Hawaii tops the list at $3,070 per month, followed by California ($2,838), New Jersey ($2,727), Massachusetts ($2,656) and Maryland, $2,569.

Doxo believes that by comparing your household expenses in these key categories to these sampling of communities near you or if you happen to live in one of them you will get a good idea of whether your spending is in line or out of whack with statewide and national norms.

By BRUCE FRASSINELLI| tneditor@tnonline.com

The foregoing opinions do not necessarily reflect the views of the Editorial Board or Times News LLC.