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.

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.

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.

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.

In 2023, the U.S. government spent a total of 875 billion U.S. dollars on interest of public debt. 497 billion U.S. dollars was on interest for debt held by the public.

The national debt of the United Stated can be found here.

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.

This table contains 29 series, with data for years 2009 - 2019 (not all combinations necessarily have data for all years). This table contains data described by the following dimensions (Not all combinations are available): Geography (1 item: Canada) Central government debt (29 items: A. Federal debt (accumulated deficit), (B - E); B. Net debt, (C - D); C. Liabilities, gross debt; Accounts payable and accrued liabilities; ...).

The graph shows national debt in China related to gross domestic product until 2024, with forecasts to 2030. In 2024, gross national debt ranged at around 88 percent of the national gross domestic product. The debt-to-GDP ratio In economics, the ratio between a country's government debt and its gross domestic product (GDP) is generally defined as the debt-to-GDP ratio. It is a useful indicator for investors to measure a country's ability to fulfill future payments on its debts. A low debt-to-GDP ratio also suggests that an economy produces and sells a sufficient amount of goods and services to pay back those debts. Among the important industrial and emerging countries, Japan displayed one of the highest debt-to-GDP ratios. In 2024, the estimated national debt of Japan amounted to about 250 percent of its GDP, up from around 180 percent in 2004. One reason behind Japan's high debt load lies in its low annual GDP growth rate. Development in China China's national debt related to GDP grew slowly but steadily from around 23 percent in 2000 to 34 percent in 2012, only disrupted by the global financial crisis in 2008. In recent years, China increased credit financing to spur economic growth, resulting in higher levels of debt. China's real estate crisis and a difficult global economic environment require further stimulating measures by the government and will predictably lead to even higher debt growth in the years ahead.

Key information about Ukraine Government Debt: % of GDP

• Ukraine Government debt accounted for 79.4 % of the country's Nominal GDP in Dec 2023, compared with the ratio of 72.8 % in the previous quarter.
• Ukraine government debt to GDP ratio data is updated quarterly, available from Dec 2010 to Dec 2023.
• The data reached an all-time high of 79.4 % in Dec 2023 and a record low of 27.3 % in Jun 2012.

CEIC calculates quarterly Government Debt as % of Nominal GDP from monthly Government Debt and rolling sum of quarterly Nominal GDP. The Ministry of Finance of Ukraine provides Government Debt in local currency. The State Statistics Service of Ukraine provides Nominal GDP in local currency. Government Debt covers Central Government only.


Related information about Ukraine Government Debt: % of GDP

• In the latest reports, Ukraine National Government Debt reached 135.2 USD bn in Feb 2024.
• The country's Nominal GDP reached 44.4 USD bn in Dec 2022.

In 2023, the U.S. government had a budget deficit of 1.69 trillion U.S. dollars. This is compared to 2000, when the government had a budget surplus of 0.24 trillion U.S. dollars.

U.S. Government budget

The government budget is a financial statement that demonstrates the government’s suggested revenues and spending for the financial year. Budget surpluses occur when income exceeds expenditures. Budget deficits occur when spending exceeds income. The budget balance of the U.S. government has fluctuated since 2016, and is expected to decrease slightly by 2026.

Military spending

Defense outlays in the United States amounted to 714 billion U.S. dollars in 2020. It is expected to continue to increase over the next several years. The United States currently has the largest defense budget in the world, and is the largest employer in the world. The military budget funds the Army, Marine Corps, Navy, and Air Force. The amount of funding that goes towards the Department of Defense is heavily criticized by Democrats in the United States, because they believe that the funding should be more evenly distributed towards other social welfare programs such as public health insurance and education.

Greece recorded a Government Debt to GDP of 153.60 percent of the country's Gross Domestic Product in 2024. This dataset provides the latest reported value for - Greece Government Debt to GDP - plus previous releases, historical high and low, short-term forecast and long-term prediction, economic calendar, survey consensus and news.

This dataset provides values for GOVERNMENT DEBT TOGDP2012 reported in several countries. The data includes current values, previous releases, historical highs and record lows, release frequency, reported unit and currency.

The ratio of national debt to gross domestic product (GDP) of Croatia was estimated at approximately 57.65 percent in 2024. Between 1998 and 2024, the ratio rose by around 34.32 percentage points, though the increase followed an uneven trajectory rather than a consistent upward trend. The ratio is expected to drop by about 3.63 percentage points between 2024 and 2030, showing a continuous downward movement throughout the period.The general government gross debt consists of all liabilities that require payment or payments of interest and/or principal by the debtor to the creditor at a date or dates in the future. Here it is depicted in relation to the country's GDP, which refers to the total value of goods and services produced during a year.

In the last quarter of 2023, the debt to equity ratio in the United States amounted to 84.24 percent. Debt to equity ratio explained The debt to equity financial ratio indicates the relationship between shareholders' equity and debt used to finance the assets of a company. In order to make the calculation the data of the two required components are taken from the firm’s balance sheet. If the company is a publicly traded company then it is possible to make the calculation by taking the market value for both.The composition of debt and equity of an enterprise is much debated as is the influence that it is able to exert on the value of the firm. Nevertheless, it is important in helping investors such as banks to identify companies that are highly leveraged and therefore pose a higher risk. It is best explained by taking the example of an entrepreneur wishing to expand their operation and going to the bank for a loan. If this small business owner had total assets amounting to 120,000 U.S. dollars and liabilities (mostly loans) amounting to 100,000 U.S. dollars the bank to which the request is being made would first have to deduce the business owner’s equity; 20,000 dollars (total assets minus liabilities). With this figure the bank would proceed to divide total liabilities by equity, which gives the ratio of 500 percent. In other terms, this means that for every one dollar of equity the small business owner has 5 dollars of debt. He is highly leveraged and therefore represents high risk to the bank.

United States New Jersey: Debt Outstanding:LT: By Purpose: Public Debt for Private data was reported at 15,712,353.000 USD th in 2015. This records a decrease from the previous number of 15,796,190.000 USD th for 2014. United States New Jersey: Debt Outstanding:LT: By Purpose: Public Debt for Private data is updated yearly, averaging 14,749,432.500 USD th from Jun 1993 (Median) to 2015, with 20 observations. The data reached an all-time high of 16,648,244.000 USD th in 2012 and a record low of 11,237,568.000 USD th in 1993. United States New Jersey: 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.

External Debt in Egypt decreased to 155093.40 USD Million in the fourth quarter of 2024 from 155204.30 USD Million in the third quarter of 2024. This dataset provides - Egypt External Debt - actual values, historical data, forecast, chart, statistics, economic calendar and news.

United States North Dakota: Debt Outst: LT: By Purpose: Public Debt for Private data was reported at 1,461,505.000 USD th in 2015. This records a decrease from the previous number of 1,461,868.000 USD th for 2014. United States North Dakota: Debt Outst: LT: By Purpose: Public Debt for Private data is updated yearly, averaging 1,327,854.500 USD th from Jun 1993 (Median) to 2015, with 20 observations. The data reached an all-time high of 1,645,416.000 USD th in 2012 and a record low of 894,996.000 USD th in 1994. United States North Dakota: Debt Outst: 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.

United States Mississippi: Debt Outstanding data was reported at 14,177,299.000 USD th in 2015. This records a decrease from the previous number of 14,243,954.000 USD th for 2014. United States Mississippi: Debt Outstanding data is updated yearly, averaging 3,248,115.000 USD th from Jun 1957 (Median) to 2015, with 57 observations. The data reached an all-time high of 14,592,275.000 USD th in 2012 and a record low of 320,875.000 USD th in 1957. United States Mississippi: Debt Outstanding 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.

In the third quarter of 2024, household debt in the United States amounted to over 71.66 percent of its GDP. It can be generally observed that U.S. households are more indebted by the end of the year than in any other quarter. The debt of households peaked in the last quarter of 2020, reaching the highest value since 2013. Debt to GDP ratio As it can be observed here, the household debt to GDP ratio decreased overall in the recent years. The steady growth of the gross domestic product in the United States could be a factor explaining this tendency. If the volume of debt grows at a slower pace than the GDP, the debt to GDP ratio would decrease. In addition to that, the overall value of mortgage debt in the U.S., which is the most significant component of the household debt, decreased from 2012 to the third quarter of 2014, but it has rebounded since then. Public debt in the U.S. Public debt in the United States, which is the amount of money borrowed by the government to finance budget deficits, has been increasing almost every single year. Not only that, but according to that forecast it is also expected to keep increasing during the coming years. The major holders of American government debt, as of December 2023, were Federal Reserve and government accounts and foreign and international holders. The ratio of national debt to GDP of the United States was higher than that of other major economies, but lower than that of Japan. Some of the lowest debt to GDP ratios were observed in Hong Kong SAR, Kuwait, and Turkmenistan.