"New York ranks first for overall interest in loans during the pandemic, which is surprising because the state has had the 18th highest recovery in unemployment since the pandemic started, despite being the hardest hit by the disease itself," Jill Gonzalez, WalletHub analyst, said.

Greater interest in getting a loan indicated that more people in the state are struggling to make ends meet. It also implied there may be more strain on the state's public assistance programs in the near future, and the state may experience a deeper recession than others will, according to WalletHub.

The bottom 10 states where consumers needed loans the least were Nebraska, New Hampshire, Maine, Idaho, Montana, Delaware, North Dakota, Wyoming, Rhode Island and Vermont.

"It makes sense that people in Vermont are searching for loans the least during the pandemic. Vermont's economy is only the 40th most affected by coronavirus, and it has experienced the fourth-highest recovery in unemployment since the pandemic started, according to recent WalletHub studies," Gonzalez explained. "Since Vermont is struggling less than many other states are, its residents naturally have less need for loans."

She noted, however, that there is expected to be an increased interest in loans from consumers once the extra $600 per week in unemployment benefits expires at the end of July.

"Right now, many people are getting paid more while unemployed than they did while employed, so there should be an opportunity to save cash and avoid loans," she said. "We should not forget that parts of our economy will not recover until we have a vaccine for COVID-19, so it is important that reasonable unemployment benefits continue through that period."

Based in Washington, D.C., WalletHub is a personal finance website.