Graph and download economic data for Federal government current expenditures: Interest payments (A091RC1Q027SBEA) from Q1 1947 to Q1 2025 about payments, expenditures, federal, government, interest, GDP, and USA.

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.

Graph and download economic data for Federal Outlays: Interest as Percent of Gross Domestic Product (FYOIGDA188S) from 1940 to 2024 about outlays, federal, percent, interest, GDP, and USA.

As of October 2024, the United States government has a monthly interest rate of *** percent on its debt, continuing an upward trend in interest rates that began at the beginning of 2022. In April 2024, U.S. debt reached ***** trillion U.S. dollars.

Interest payments (% of revenue) in United States was reported at 17.98 % in 2023, according to the World Bank collection of development indicators, compiled from officially recognized sources. United States - Interest payments (% of revenue) - actual values, historical data, forecasts and projections were sourced from the World Bank on July of 2025.

Key information about United States Government Debt: % of GDP

• United States Government debt accounted for 124.0 % of the country's Nominal GDP in Dec 2024, compared with the ratio of 123.1 % in the previous quarter.
• US government debt to GDP ratio data is updated quarterly, available from Mar 1969 to Dec 2024.
• The data reached an all-time high of 130.4 % in Mar 2021 and a record low of 31.8 % in Sep 1974.

CEIC calculates quarterly Government Debt as % of Nominal GDP from monthly Government Debt and rolling sum of quarterly Nominal GDP. The Bureau of the Fiscal Service provides Government Debt in USD. The Bureau of Economic Analysis provides Nominal GDP in USD. Government Debt covers Central Government only.


Related information about United States Government Debt: % of GDP

• In the latest reports, US National Government Debt reached 36,220.2 USD bn in Jan 2025.
• The country's Nominal GDP reached 6,632.4 USD bn in Mar 2023.

By 2034, the gross federal debt of the United States is projected to be about 54.39 trillion U.S. dollars. This would be an increase of around 21 trillion U.S. dollars from 2023, when the federal debt was around 33 trillion U.S. dollars.

The federal debt of the U.S.

The federal debt, also called the national debt or public debt, is the amount of debt held by the United States government. This debt may be to other countries, or to different departments within the government itself. The public debt of the United States has increased significantly over the past 30 years, as it was around 3.2 trillion U.S. dollars in 1990 and surpassed 30 trillion dollars for the first time in 2022. When broken down per capita, the national debt amounted to about 80,885 U.S. dollars of debt per person in the United States in 2021.

The problem of the federal debt

Over the past decade, the federal debt limit in the United States has increased significantly. The U.S. debt ceiling can only be changed by an act of Congress which is then signed by the president. The raising of the ceiling has become a recurring political issue in recent years, especially during times when the Presidency and chambers of Congress are controlled by different parties.

The debt ceiling is a tool that allows the Treasury to issue bonds without congressional approval, allowing for efficiency in the way that the government pays for programs and services. It is thought to be further valuable in that it keeps federal finances in check. However, when the two parties are unable to come to an agreement on raising the debt ceiling, the government comes to a shutdown because they can no longer fund themselves. The Republican Party in particular often positions itself against raising the federal debt ceiling, characterizing themselves as the party of fiscal conservativism. However, analyses have shown that both parties have contributed to the country's debt in almost equal measures.

United States US: Expenditure: Interest Payments: % of Revenue data was reported at 13.642 % in 2016. This records an increase from the previous number of 12.630 % for 2015. United States US: Expenditure: Interest Payments: % of Revenue data is updated yearly, averaging 15.112 % from Sep 1972 (Median) to 2016, with 45 observations. The data reached an all-time high of 19.229 % in 1985 and a record low of 6.428 % in 1973. United States US: Expenditure: Interest Payments: % of Revenue data remains active status in CEIC and is reported by World Bank. The data is categorized under Global Database’s United States – Table US.World Bank.WDI: Government Revenue, Expenditure and Finance. Interest payments include interest payments on government debt--including long-term bonds, long-term loans, and other debt instruments--to domestic and foreign residents.; ; International Monetary Fund, Government Finance Statistics Yearbook and data files.; Median;

Graph and download economic data for Government current expenditures: Interest payments (A180RC1Q027SBEA) from Q1 1947 to Q1 2025 about payments, expenditures, government, interest, GDP, and USA.

In 2023, the gross federal debt in the United States amounted to around ****** U.S. dollars per capita. This is a moderate increase from the previous year, when the per capita national debt amounted to about ****** U.S. dollars. The total debt accrued by the U.S. annually can be accessed here. Federal debt of the United States The level of national debt held by the United States government has risen sharply in the years following the Great Recession. Federal debt is the amount of debt the federal government owes to creditors who hold assets in the form of debt securities. As with individuals and consumers, there is a common consensus among economists that holding debt is not necessarily problematic for government so long as the public debt is held at a sustainable level. Although there is no agreed upon ratio of debt to gross domestic product, the increasing debt held by the Federal Reserve has become a major part of the political discourse in the United States. Politics and the national debt In recent years, debate over the debt ceiling has been of concern to domestic politicians, the owners of federal debt, and global economy as a whole. The debt ceiling is a legislated maximum amount that national debt can reach intended to impose a degree of fiscal prudence on incumbent governments. However, as national debt has grown the debt ceiling has been reached, thus forcing legislative action by Congress. In both 2011 and 2013, new legislation was passed by Congress allowing the debt ceiling to be raised. The Budget Control Act of 2011 and the No Budget, No Pay Act of 2013 successively allowed the government to avoid defaulting on national debt and therefore avert a potential economic crisis.

United States - Government current expenditures: Interest payments was 1367.05500 Bil. of $ in January of 2025, according to the United States Federal Reserve. Historically, United States - Government current expenditures: Interest payments reached a record high of 1380.30300 in October of 2024 and a record low of 5.90100 in January of 1947. Trading Economics provides the current actual value, an historical data chart and related indicators for United States - Government current expenditures: Interest payments - last updated from the United States Federal Reserve on July of 2025.

A dataset of mentions, growth rate, and total volume of the keyphrase 'National Debt Interest Payments' over time.

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.

Ukraine National Debt: USD: Payments in USD data was reported at 32,523,926.233 USD th in Sep 2018. This records a decrease from the previous number of 32,557,152.666 USD th for Aug 2018. Ukraine National Debt: USD: Payments in USD data is updated monthly, averaging 29,697,808.131 USD th from Dec 2008 (Median) to Sep 2018, with 105 observations. The data reached an all-time high of 35,121,889.929 USD th in May 2014 and a record low of 10,180,969.380 USD th in Aug 2009. Ukraine National Debt: USD: Payments in USD data remains active status in CEIC and is reported by Ministry of Finance of Ukraine. The data is categorized under Global Database’s Ukraine – Table UA.F010: National Debt Payments.

United States US: Expenditure: Interest Payments data was reported at 475.117 USD bn in 2016. This records an increase from the previous number of 438.441 USD bn for 2015. United States US: Expenditure: Interest Payments data is updated yearly, averaging 218.950 USD bn from Sep 1972 (Median) to 2016, with 45 observations. The data reached an all-time high of 475.117 USD bn in 2016 and a record low of 14.820 USD bn in 1972. United States US: Expenditure: Interest Payments data remains active status in CEIC and is reported by World Bank. The data is categorized under Global Database’s United States – Table US.World Bank.WDI: Government Revenue, Expenditure and Finance. Interest payments include interest payments on government debt--including long-term bonds, long-term loans, and other debt instruments--to domestic and foreign residents.; ; International Monetary Fund, Government Finance Statistics Yearbook and data files.; ;

Ukraine National Debt: USD: Payments in UAH data was reported at 22,430,334.393 USD th in Oct 2018. This records a decrease from the previous number of 22,529,607.509 USD th for Sep 2018. Ukraine National Debt: USD: Payments in UAH data is updated monthly, averaging 22,077,277.190 USD th from Dec 2008 (Median) to Oct 2018, with 106 observations. The data reached an all-time high of 29,747,445.640 USD th in Jan 2014 and a record low of 4,579,089.900 USD th in Dec 2008. Ukraine National Debt: USD: Payments in UAH data remains active status in CEIC and is reported by Ministry of Finance of Ukraine. The data is categorized under Global Database’s Ukraine – Table UA.F010: National Debt Payments.

Ukraine National Debt: USD: Payments in Japanese Yen data was reported at 554,116.674 USD th in Sep 2018. This records a decrease from the previous number of 565,355.648 USD th for Aug 2018. Ukraine National Debt: USD: Payments in Japanese Yen data is updated monthly, averaging 422,900.330 USD th from Dec 2008 (Median) to Sep 2018, with 105 observations. The data reached an all-time high of 632,568.988 USD th in Sep 2016 and a record low of 151,534.120 USD th in Dec 2010. Ukraine National Debt: USD: Payments in Japanese Yen data remains active status in CEIC and is reported by Ministry of Finance of Ukraine. The data is categorized under Global Database’s Ukraine – Table UA.F010: National Debt Payments.

Ukraine National Debt: Payments in Euro data was reported at 175,680,477.367 UAH th in Oct 2018. This records a decrease from the previous number of 186,341,667.169 UAH th for Sep 2018. Ukraine National Debt: Payments in Euro data is updated monthly, averaging 20,721,107.380 UAH th from Dec 2008 (Median) to Oct 2018, with 106 observations. The data reached an all-time high of 186,341,667.169 UAH th in Sep 2018 and a record low of 13,404,550.950 UAH th in Feb 2009. Ukraine National Debt: Payments in Euro data remains active status in CEIC and is reported by Ministry of Finance of Ukraine. The data is categorized under Global Database’s Ukraine – Table UA.F010: National Debt Payments.

Total outstanding debt of the U.S. government reported daily. Includes a breakout of intragovernmental holdings (federal debt held by U.S. government) and debt held by the public (federal debt held by entities outside the U.S. government).

United States - Household Debt Service Payments as a Percent of Disposable Personal Income was 11.28% in October of 2024, according to the United States Federal Reserve. Historically, United States - Household Debt Service Payments as a Percent of Disposable Personal Income reached a record high of 15.85 in October of 2007 and a record low of 9.08 in January of 2021. Trading Economics provides the current actual value, an historical data chart and related indicators for United States - Household Debt Service Payments as a Percent of Disposable Personal Income - last updated from the United States Federal Reserve on July of 2025.