In October 2024, the public debt of the United States was around 35.46 trillion U.S. dollars, a slight decrease from the previous month. The U.S. public debt ceiling has become one of the most prominent political issues in the States in recent years, with debate over how to handle it causing political turmoil between Democrats and Republicans. The public debt The public debt of the United States has risen quickly since 2000, and in 2022 was more than five times higher than in 2000. The public debt is the total outstanding debt that is owed by the federal government. This figure comprises debt owed to the public (for example, through bonds) and intergovernmental debt (debt owed to various governmental departments), such as Social Security. Debt in Politics The debt issue has become a highly contentious topic within the U.S. government. Measures such as stimulus packages, social programs and tax cuts add to the public debt. Additionally, spending tends to peak during large global events, such as the Great Depression, the 2008 financial crisis, or the COVID-19 pandemic - all of which had a detrimental impact on the U.S. economy. Although both major political parties in the U.S. tend to blame one another for increases in the country's debt, a recent analysis found that both parties have contributed almost equally to national expenditure. Debate on raising the debt ceiling, or the amount of debt the federal government is allowed to have at any one time, was a leading topic in the government shutdown in October 2013. Despite plans from both Democrats and Republicans on how to lower the national debt, it is only expected to increase over the next decade.

In September 2023, the national debt of the United States had risen up to 33.17 trillion U.S. dollars. The national debt per capita had risen to 85,552 U.S. dollars in 2021. As represented by the statistic above, the public debt of the United States has been continuously rising.

U.S. public debt Public debt, also known as national and governmental debt, is the debt owed by a nations’ central government. In the case of the U.S., national debt is owed by the federal government to Treasury security holders. Generally speaking, government debt increases with government spending, and can be decreased through taxes. During the COVID-19 pandemic, the U.S. government increased spending significantly to finance virus infrastructure, aid, and various forms of economic relief.

International public debt

Venezuela leads the global ranking of the 20 countries with the highest public debt in 2021. In relation to the Gross Domestic Product (GDP), Venezuela's public debt amounted to around 306.95 percent of GDP. Eritrea was ranked fifth, with an estimated debt of 170 percent of the Gross Domestic Product.

The national debt of the United Kingdom is forecasted to grow from 87 percent in 2022 to 70 percent in 2027, in relation to the Gross Domestic Product. These figures include England, Wales, Scotland as well as Northern Ireland.

Greece had the highest national debt among EU countries as of the 4th quarter of 2020 in relation to the Gross Domestic Product. Germany ranked 13th in the EU, with its national debt amounting to 69 percent of GDP in the same time period.

Tuvalu was one of the 20 countries with the lowest national debt in 2021 in relation to the GDP, while Macao had an estimated level of national debt of zero percent, the lowest of any country. The data refer to the debts of the entire state, including the central government, the provinces, municipalities, local authorities and social insurance.

Summarizes the U.S. government's total outstanding debt at the end of each fiscal year from 1789 to the current year.

During the Great Recession of 2008-2009, the advanced economies of the G7 experienced a period of acute financial crises, downturns in the non-financial economy, and political instability. The governments of these countries in many cases stepped in to backstop their financial sectors and to try to stimulate their economies. The scale of these interventions was large by historical standards, with observers making comparisons to the measures of the New Deal which the U.S. undertook in the 1930s to end the Great Depression.

The bailouts of financial institutions and stimulus packages caused the government debt ratios of the United States, United Kingdom, and Japan in particular to rise sharply. The UK's government debt ratio almost doubled due to the bailouts of Northern Rock and Royal Bank of Scotland. On the other hand, the increases in government debt in the Eurozone were more measured, due to the comparative absence of stimulus spending in these countries. They would later be hit hard during the Eurozone crisis of the 2010s, when bank lending to the periphery of the Eurozone (Portugal, Spain, Ireland and Greece in particular) would trigger a sovereign debt crisis. The Canadian government, led by a Conservative premier, engaged in some fiscal stimulus to support its economy, but these packages were small in comparison to that in most other of the G7 countries.

Graph and download economic data for Federal Debt: Total Public Debt (GFDEBTN) from Q1 1966 to Q1 2025 about public, debt, federal, government, and USA.

As of December 2024, Japan held United States treasury securities totaling about 1.06 trillion U.S. dollars. Foreign holders of United States treasury debt According to the Federal Reserve and U.S. Department of the Treasury, foreign countries held a total of 8.5 trillion U.S. dollars in U.S. treasury securities as of December 2024. Of the total held by foreign countries, Japan and Mainland China held the greatest portions, with China holding 759 billion U.S. dollars in U.S. securities. The U.S. public debt In 2023, the United States had a total public national debt of 33.2 trillion U.S. dollars, an amount that has been rising steadily, particularly since 2008. In 2023, the total interest expense on debt held by the public of the United States reached 678 billion U.S. dollars, while 197 billion U.S. dollars in interest expense were intra governmental debt holdings. Total outlays of the U.S. government were 6.1 trillion U.S. dollars in 2023. By 2029, spending is projected to reach 8.3 trillion U.S. dollars.

The United States recorded a Government Debt to GDP of 124.30 percent of the country's Gross Domestic Product in 2024. This dataset provides - United States Government Debt To GDP - actual values, historical data, forecast, chart, statistics, economic calendar and news.

United States Federal Debt: Public Debt Securities: Interest Expenses data was reported at 31.648 USD bn in Oct 2018. This records an increase from the previous number of 28.981 USD bn for Sep 2018. United States Federal Debt: Public Debt Securities: Interest Expenses data is updated monthly, averaging 22.310 USD bn from Oct 1997 (Median) to Oct 2018, with 253 observations. The data reached an all-time high of 110.973 USD bn in Jun 2008 and a record low of -52.817 USD bn in Jul 2012. United States Federal Debt: Public Debt Securities: Interest Expenses data remains active status in CEIC and is reported by Bureau of the Fiscal Service. The data is categorized under Global Database’s United States – Table US.F004: Federal Debt. A onetime adjustment of $75 USD BN decreased the interest expense on public debt data for the month of July 2012 causing the value to be negative. Adjustment was made due to the change in the accounting method for the Department of Defense (DOD) market based securities.

The statistic shows the national debt of the United States from 2020 to 2024, with projections up until 2030. The amount of the debt of the United States amounted to around 35.25 trillion U.S. dollars in 2024. National debt of the United States National debt in the United States is a topic of much debate and controversy, primarily due to large amounts of unnecessary spending. Despite the fact that the United States had the highest gross domestic product (GDP) in the world in 2016, along with being one of the most developed powerhouses in the world, the country suffers in many economical aspects. When analyzing the country’s imports and exports, the United States has recorded a trade deficit for more than a decade as of 2015, meaning that its imports exceeded its exports every year. However, despite being significantly affected by the world economic crisis in 2008, the country’s trade balance noticeably improved in 2009, almost halving the country’s total trade deficit. An economical aspect that did not improve during the world economic crisis was the country’s unemployment rate. The number of unemployed in the United States increased greatly in 2009 and continued to rise in 2010, however finally stabilized in the following years and has since declined yearly. When considering the total population of the United States, which amounted to roughly 322 million in 2015, a large percentage of citizens, who are capable of work, have been left without a job for roughly 7 years.

United States Federal Debt: PDS Held By Private Investors: Average Length data was reported at 5.420 Year in Jun 2018. This stayed constant from the previous number of 5.420 Year for May 2018. United States Federal Debt: PDS Held By Private Investors: Average Length data is updated monthly, averaging 5.000 Year from Dec 1994 (Median) to Jun 2018, with 283 observations. The data reached an all-time high of 6.000 Year in Jun 2001 and a record low of 3.830 Year in Dec 2008. United States Federal Debt: PDS Held By Private Investors: Average Length data remains active status in CEIC and is reported by Bureau of the Fiscal Service. The data is categorized under Global Database’s United States – Table US.F004: Federal Debt.

United States Debt: Flow: Foreign: saar data was reported at 78.121 USD bn in Jun 2018. This records a decrease from the previous number of 426.764 USD bn for Mar 2018. United States Debt: Flow: Foreign: saar data is updated quarterly, averaging 8.520 USD bn from Dec 1951 (Median) to Jun 2018, with 267 observations. The data reached an all-time high of 528.863 USD bn in Jun 2014 and a record low of -508.402 USD bn in Sep 2008. United States Debt: Flow: Foreign: saar data remains active status in CEIC and is reported by Federal Reserve Board. The data is categorized under Global Database’s USA – Table US.AB001: Borrowing by Sector: Flows and Outstanding.

Adding to national debt is an inevitable fact of being President of the United States. The extent to which debt rises under any sitting president depends not only on the policy and spending choices they have made, but also the choices made by presidents and congresses that have come before them. Ronald Reagan and George W. Bush President Ronald Reagan increased the U.S. debt by around **** trillion U.S. dollars, or ****** percent. This is often attributed to "Reaganomics," in which Reagan implemented significant supply-side economic policies in which he reduced government regulation, cut taxes, and tightened the money supply. Spending increased under President George W. Bush in light of the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. To finance the wars, President Bush chose to borrow the money, rather than use war bonds or increase taxes, unlike previous war-time presidents. Additionally, Bush introduced a number of tax cuts, and oversaw the beginning of the 2008 financial crisis. Barack Obama President Obama inherited both wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, and the financial crisis. The Obama administration also did not increase taxes to pay for the wars, and additionally passed expensive legislation to kickstart the economy following the economic crash, as well as the Affordable Care Act in 2010. The ACA expanded healthcare coverage to cover more than ** million more Americans through programs like Medicare and Medicaid. Though controversial at the time, more than half of Americans have a favorable view of the ACA in 2023. Additionally, he signed legislation making the W. Bush-era tax cuts permanent.

Private Debt to GDP in the United States decreased to 142 percent in 2024 from 147.50 percent in 2023. United States Private Debt to GDP - values, historical data, forecasts and news - updated on July of 2025.

United States - Federal Debt Held by Federal Reserve Banks as Percent of Gross Domestic Product was 15.19971 % of GDP in January of 2025, according to the United States Federal Reserve. Historically, United States - Federal Debt Held by Federal Reserve Banks as Percent of Gross Domestic Product reached a record high of 24.80604 in January of 2022 and a record low of 3.19887 in July of 2008. Trading Economics provides the current actual value, an historical data chart and related indicators for United States - Federal Debt Held by Federal Reserve Banks as Percent of Gross Domestic Product - last updated from the United States Federal Reserve on July of 2025.

United States Debt: Flow: DN: saar: Nonfederal (NF) data was reported at 861.788 USD bn in Jun 2018. This records a decrease from the previous number of 902.040 USD bn for Mar 2018. United States Debt: Flow: DN: saar: Nonfederal (NF) data is updated quarterly, averaging 256.704 USD bn from Dec 1951 (Median) to Jun 2018, with 267 observations. The data reached an all-time high of 2,789.876 USD bn in Jun 2006 and a record low of -1,429.562 USD bn in Dec 2008. United States Debt: Flow: DN: saar: Nonfederal (NF) data remains active status in CEIC and is reported by Federal Reserve Board. The data is categorized under Global Database’s United States – Table US.AB001: Borrowing by Sector: Flows and Outstanding.

United States Illinois: Debt Outstanding: LT: By Purpose: Public Debt for Private data was reported at 28,164,799.000 USD th in 2015. This records an increase from the previous number of 27,797,075.000 USD th for 2014. United States Illinois: Debt Outstanding: LT: By Purpose: Public Debt for Private data is updated yearly, averaging 27,768,195.000 USD th from Jun 1993 (Median) to 2015, with 20 observations. The data reached an all-time high of 32,356,974.000 USD th in 2008 and a record low of 15,685,718.000 USD th in 1993. United States Illinois: Debt Outstanding: LT: By Purpose: Public Debt for Private data remains active status in CEIC and is reported by US Census Bureau. The data is categorized under Global Database’s USA – Table US.F008: Debt Outstanding: State and Local Government: By State.

The financial indicators are based on data compiled according to the 2008 SNA "System of National Accounts, 2008". Many indicators are expressed as a percentage of Gross Domestic Product (GDP) or as a percentage of Gross Disposable Income (GDI) when referring to the Households and NPISHs sector. The definition of GDP and GDI are the following:

Gross Domestic Product:
Gross Domestic Product (GDP) is derived from the concept of value added. Gross value added is the difference of output and intermediate consumption. GDP is the sum of gross value added of all resident producer units plus that part (possibly the total) of taxes on products, less subsidies on products, that is not included in the valuation of output [System of National Accounts, 2008, par. 2.138]. GDP is also equal to the sum of final uses of goods and services (all uses except intermediate consumption) measured at purchasers’ prices, less the value of imports of goods and services [System of National Accounts, 2008, par. 2.139]. GDP is also equal to the sum of primary incomes distributed by producer units [System of National Accounts, 2008, par. 2.140].

Gross Disposable Income:
Gross Disposable Income (GDI) is equal to net disposable income which is the balancing item of the secondary distribution income account plus the consumption of fixed capital. The use of the Gross Disposable Income (GDI), rather than net disposable income, is preferable for analytical purposes because there are uncertainty and comparability problems with the calculation of consumption of fixed capital. GDI measures the income available to the total economy for final consumption and gross saving [System of National Accounts, 2008, par. 2.145].

Definition of Debt:
Debt is a commonly used concept, defined as a specific subset of liabilities identified according to the types of financial instruments included or excluded. Generally, debt is defined as all liabilities that require payment or payments of interest or principal by the debtor to the creditor at a date or dates in the future. Consequently, all debt instruments are liabilities, but some liabilities such as shares, equity and financial derivatives are not debt [System of National Accounts, 2008, par. 22.104]. According to the SNA, most debt instruments are valued at market prices. However, some countries do not apply this valuation, in particular for securities other than shares, except financial derivatives (AF33). In this dataset, for financial indicators referring to debt, the concept of debt is the one adopted by the SNA 2008 as well as by the International Monetary Fund in “Public Sector Debt Statistics – Guide for compilers and users” (Pre-publication draft, May 2011). Debt is thus obtained as the sum of the following liability categories, whenever available / applicable in the financial balance sheet of the institutional sector:special drawing rights (AF12), currency and deposits (AF2), debt securities (AF3), loans (AF4), insurance, pension, and standardised guarantees (AF6), and other accounts payable (AF8). This definition differs from the definition of debt applied under the Maastricht Treaty for European countries. First, gross debt according to the Maastricht definition excludes not only financial derivatives and employee stock options (AF7) and equity and investment fund shares (AF5) but also insurance pensions and standardised guarantees (AF6) and other accounts payable (AF8). Second, debt according to Maastricht definition is valued at nominal prices and not at market prices.

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United States - Foreign Banking Offices in the U.S.; Debt Securities; Asset, Level was 295112.00000 Mil. of $ in January of 2025, according to the United States Federal Reserve. Historically, United States - Foreign Banking Offices in the U.S.; Debt Securities; Asset, Level reached a record high of 491473.00000 in October of 2008 and a record low of 251.00000 in October of 1947. Trading Economics provides the current actual value, an historical data chart and related indicators for United States - Foreign Banking Offices in the U.S.; Debt Securities; Asset, Level - last updated from the United States Federal Reserve on July of 2025.

The statistic shows the national debt of the United States from 2019 to 2022 in relation to the gross domestic product (GDP), with projections up until 2029. In 2022, the national debt of the United States was at around 120.03 percent of the gross domestic product. See the US GDP for further information. US finances There has been a dramatic increase in the public debt of the United States since 1990, although the month-to-month change has been quite stable over the last few months. Public debt is defined as the amount of money borrowed by a country to cover budget deficits. A ranking of individual state debt in the United States shows that California is leading by a clear margin, with more than double the amount of runner-up New York. Vermont, North Dakota and South Dakota are the states with the lowest amount of debt. Even before the recession of 2008, the national debt of the United States had been increasing steadily and excessively, and it is predicted to rise even further. Budget cuts and fewer job opportunities as a result of the crisis are taking their toll on the American economy, which is still recovering. Trade figures as well as unemployment are still below average. Subsequently, the national debt and the national debt of the United States per capita have more or less quadrupled since the 1990s. Interestingly, the United States is not even among the top ten of countries with the highest public debt in relation to gross domestic product in international comparison. Japan, Greece and Italy – among others – report far higher figures than the United States.

The average amount of debt for university graduates from the class of 2023 in the United States was 29,374 U.S. dollars, an increase from the 21,211 U.S. dollars of debt that graduates from the class of 2008 had on average.