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.

Key information about United States Government Debt: % of GDP

• United States Government debt accounted for 120.9 % of the country's Nominal GDP in Jun 2025, compared with the ratio of 122.3 % in the previous quarter.
• US government debt to GDP ratio data is updated quarterly, available from Mar 1969 to Jun 2025.
• The data reached an all-time high of 130.3 % in Mar 2021 and a record low of 31.8 % in Sep 1974.

• In the latest reports, US National Government Debt reached 38,040.1 USD bn in Oct 2025.
• The country's Nominal GDP reached 7,621.4 USD bn in Jun 2025.

Households Debt in the United States decreased to 68.30 percent of GDP in the first quarter of 2025 from 69.40 percent of GDP in the fourth quarter of 2024. This dataset provides - United States Households Debt To Gdp- actual values, historical data, forecast, chart, statistics, economic calendar and news.

Historical dataset showing U.S. debt to gdp ratio by year from 1989 to 2023.

U.S. Public Debt vs. GDP

Trends and Comparisons

By Charlie Hutcheson [source]

About this dataset

This dataset contains quarterly data on the US Gross Domestic Product (GDP) and Total Public Debt from 1947 through 2020. It provides a comprehensive view into the development of debt versus GDP over the years, offering insights into how our economy has grown and changed since The Great Depression. Explore this valuable information to answer questions such as: How do debt and GDP relate to one another? Has US government spending been outpacing wealth throughout history? From what sources does our national debt originate? This dataset can be utilized by economists, governments, researchers, investors, financial institutions, journalists — anyone looking to gain a better understanding of where our economy stands today compared to past decades

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How to use the dataset

This dataset, U.S. GDP vs Debt Over Time, contains quarterly data on the Gross Domestic Product (GDP) and Total Public Debt of the United States between 1947 to 2020. This can be useful for conducting research into how the total public debt relates to economic growth in the US.

The dataset includes 4 columns: Quarter , Gross Domestic Product ($mil), Total Public Debt ($mil). The Quarter column consists of strings that represent each quarter from 1947-2020 with a corresponding number (e.g., “Q1-1947”). The Gross Domestic Product ($mil) and Total Public Debt ($mil) columns consist of numbers that indicate the respective amounts in millions for each quarter during this same time period.

By analyzing this dataset you can explore various trends over different periods as it relates to public debt versus economic growth in America and make informed decisions about how certain policies may affect future outcomes. Additionally, you could also compare these two values with other variables such as unemployment rate or inflation rate to gain deeper insights into America’s economy over time

Research Ideas

• Comparing the quarterly growth in GDP with public debt to show the correlation between economic growth and government spending.
• Creating a bar or line visualization that compares the US’s total public debt to comparable economic powers like China, Japan, and Europe over time.
• Examining how changes in government deficit have contributed towards an increase in public debt by analyzing which quarters saw significant leaps of growth from one year to the next

Acknowledgements

If you use this dataset in your research, please credit the original authors. Data Source

License

License: Dataset copyright by authors - You are free to: - Share - copy and redistribute the material in any medium or format for any purpose, even commercially. - Adapt - remix, transform, and build upon the material for any purpose, even commercially. - You must: - Give appropriate credit - Provide a link to the license, and indicate if changes were made. - ShareAlike - You must distribute your contributions under the same license as the original. - Keep intact - all notices that refer to this license, including copyright notices.

Columns

File: US GDP vs Debt.csv | Column name | Description | |:----------------------------------|:-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | Quarter | The quarter of the year in which the data was collected. (String) | | Gross Domestic Product ($mil) | The total value of all goods and services produced by the US in a given quarter. (Integer) | | Total Public Debt ($mil) | The total amount owed by the federal government. (Integer) |

Acknowledgements

If you use this dataset in your research, please credit the original authors. If you use this dataset in your research, please credit Charlie Hutcheson.

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Government Debt in the United States increased to 38040094 USD Million in October from 37637553 USD Million in September of 2025. This dataset provides - United States Government Debt- actual values, historical data, forecast, chart, statistics, economic calendar and news.

United States Gross Federal Debt: Annual: Percentage of GDP data was reported at 122.200 % in 2024. This records an increase from the previous number of 120.700 % for 2023. United States Gross Federal Debt: Annual: Percentage of GDP data is updated yearly, averaging 34.300 % from Sep 1940 (Median) to 2024, with 85 observations. The data reached an all-time high of 126.200 % in 2020 and a record low of 31.800 % in 1981. United States Gross Federal Debt: Annual: Percentage of GDP data remains active status in CEIC and is reported by Office of Management and Budget. The data is categorized under Global Database’s United States – Table US.F: Federal Debt: Annual.

Historical dataset showing Latin America & Caribbean debt to gdp ratio by year from 2019 to 2021.

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

United States US: Central Government Debt: Total: % of GDP data was reported at 99.457 % in 2016. This records an increase from the previous number of 97.375 % for 2015. United States US: Central Government Debt: Total: % of GDP data is updated yearly, averaging 54.468 % from Sep 1989 (Median) to 2016, with 28 observations. The data reached an all-time high of 99.457 % in 2016 and a record low of 15.109 % in 2001. United States US: Central Government Debt: Total: % of GDP 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. Debt is the entire stock of direct government fixed-term contractual obligations to others outstanding on a particular date. It includes domestic and foreign liabilities such as currency and money deposits, securities other than shares, and loans. It is the gross amount of government liabilities reduced by the amount of equity and financial derivatives held by the government. Because debt is a stock rather than a flow, it is measured as of a given date, usually the last day of the fiscal year.; ; International Monetary Fund, Government Finance Statistics Yearbook and data files, and World Bank and OECD GDP estimates.; Weighted average;

United States US: General Government: Net Debt: % of GDP data was reported at 83.669 % in 2023. This records an increase from the previous number of 82.141 % for 2022. United States US: General Government: Net Debt: % of GDP data is updated yearly, averaging 77.701 % from Dec 2001 (Median) to 2023, with 23 observations. The data reached an all-time high of 83.669 % in 2023 and a record low of 33.899 % in 2001. United States US: General Government: Net Debt: % of GDP data remains active status in CEIC and is reported by International Monetary Fund. The data is categorized under Global Database’s United States – Table US.IMF.FM: Government Finance Statistics.

The dataset contains All India Yearly Central and State Government Debt Indicators as percentage to GDP from Handbook of Statistics on Indian Economy.

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United States US: Gross Public Debt: % of GDP: General Government: Debt Securities, Loans, Currency and Deposits data was reported at 99.012 % in Mar 2018. This records an increase from the previous number of 97.067 % for Dec 2017. United States US: Gross Public Debt: % of GDP: General Government: Debt Securities, Loans, Currency and Deposits data is updated quarterly, averaging 62.860 % from Mar 1995 (Median) to Mar 2018, with 93 observations. The data reached an all-time high of 99.012 % in Mar 2018 and a record low of 46.902 % in Jun 2001. United States US: Gross Public Debt: % of GDP: General Government: Debt Securities, Loans, Currency and Deposits data remains active status in CEIC and is reported by World Bank. The data is categorized under Global Database’s USA – Table US.World Bank: QPSD: Gross Public Debt: % of GDP: General Government.