Average American Debt Statistics | Bankrate (2024)

FAQs

What is the average debt of an average American? ›

Terms may apply to offers listed on this page. American households carry a total of $17 trillion in debt as of the first quarter of 2023, and the average household debt is $101,915 as of the end of 2022. How is that debt split between mortgages, auto loans, credit cards, and other types of loans?

Even though household net worth is on the rise in America (at $141 trillion in the summer of 2021)—so is debt. The total personal debt in the U.S. is at an all-time high of $14.96 trillion. The average American debt (per U.S. adult) is $58,604 and 77% of American households have at least some type of debt.

The average credit card debt for 30 year olds is roughly $4,200, according to the Experian data report. Compared to people in their 50s, this debt is not so high. According to Experian, the people in their 50s have the highest average credit card debt, at around $8,360.

The total consumer debt balance increased to $16.38 trillion in 2022, up from $15.31 trillion in 2021. The 7% increase from 2021 to 2022 was larger than the 5.4% increase in the same period from 2020 to 2021. How much debt grew in 2022 varied across the different types of consumer debt.

Many people would likely say $30,000 is a considerable amount of money. Paying off that much debt may feel overwhelming, but it is possible. With careful planning and calculated actions, you can slowly work toward paying off your debt. Follow these steps to get started on your debt-payoff journey.

Debt-to-income ratio targets

Now that we've defined debt-to-income ratio, let's figure out what yours means. Generally speaking, a good debt-to-income ratio is anything less than or equal to 36%. Meanwhile, any ratio above 43% is considered too high.

Fewer than one quarter of American households live debt-free. Learning ways to tackle debt can help you get a handle on your finances.

With mortgage debt excluded, the average debt per person in America in 2022 was $17,051. Student and car loans make up the bulk of non-mortgage personal debt; the average American has more than $5,000 of debt in each category.

If your debt-to-income ratio is higher than the widely accepted standard of 43%, your financial life can be affected in multiple ways—none of them positive: Less flexibility in your budget. If a significant portion of your income is going towards paying off debt, you have less left over to save, invest or spend.

“Shark Tank” investor Kevin O'Leary has said the ideal age to be debt-free is 45, especially if you want to retire by age 60. Being debt-free — including paying off your mortgage — by your mid-40s puts you on the early path toward success, O'Leary argued.

At what age are most people debt free? ›

People between the ages of 35 to 44 typically carry the highest amount of debt, as a result of spending on mortgages and student loans. Debt eases for those between the ages of 45-54 thanks to higher salaries. For those between the ages of 55 to 64, their assets may outweigh their debt.

But when you break it down by age, most carry more than that. Those between the ages of 40 and 49 hold an average of about $7,600 in credit card debt — the highest of any age bracket, per TransUnion data provided to CNBC Make It.

How much credit card debt does the average person owe? On average, each U.S. household has $7,951 in credit card debt, as of this analysis. With an average of 2.6 people per household, according to the U.S. Census Bureau, that's about $3,058 in credit card debt per person.

Borrowing. Experian compared debt balances among men and women and found that, on average: Men have 2% more credit card debt than women. Men have 20% more personal loan debt than women.

According to usafacts.org, as of January 2023, Japan owned $1.1 trillion in US Treasuries, making it the largest foreign holder of the national debt. The second-largest holder is China, which owned $859 billion of US debt.

This ratio measures how much of your gross monthly income is eaten up by your monthly debts. Most mortgage lenders want your monthly debts to equal no more than 43% of your gross monthly income. To calculate your debt-to-income ratio, first determine your gross monthly income.

Based on our analysis, if you are a man and owe more than $100,000, or a woman and owe more than $70,000, you have high student loan debt and your debt is likely not worth the income you'll earn over your lifetime.

What is worse than being in debt? ›

Worse than being in debt is losing your peace.

It's called being human. For some people that adversity takes the form of being in debt. The main thing is to keep your peace, to know that God is taking care of each of us, and to remember to trust Him to provide.

Between mortgage loans, credit cards, student loans, and car loans, it's not uncommon for the typical American to have one or more types of debt. The ones who are living debt-free may seem like a rarity, but they aren't special or superhuman, nor are they necessarily wealthy.

The average American holds a debt balance of $96,371, according to 2021 Experian data, the latest data available.

Millennials are racking up debt due to soaring inflation, Fujita noted. Consumer prices have skyrocketed in the last year, particularly for gas, child care and food.

The average American household had transaction accounts worth $41,600 in 2019. This is 2.3% lower than the average recorded in 2016. In terms of median values, the 2019 figure of $5,300 is 10.65% higher than the 2016 median balance of $4,790.

Americans are sinking into debt after hunkering down and building their financial savings during the pandemic. The sharp rise in credit card debt has been a long time coming, with Americans increasingly relying on plastic to make purchases.

In most cases, it makes sense to start by paying off any high-interest debt. High-interest debt costs you more in interest—and the longer you have it, the more you'll end up paying overall. Usually, high-interest debts include things like personal loans, private student loans and credit cards.

Here's the average debt balances by age group: Gen Z (ages 18 to 23): $9,593. Millennials (ages 24 to 39): $78,396. Gen X (ages 40 to 55): $135,841.

The country with the highest free-and-clear homeownership rate in the list above was Lithuania at 83%. In the U.S., the free-and-clear homeownership rate was 23%. If free-and-clear homeownership is the American Dream, then apparently Lithuania and many other countries are living the American Dream.

What age do most people pay off their mortgage? ›

While the average age borrowers expect to pay off their mortgage is 59, the number of survey participants who have no idea when they will pay it off at all stood at 16%. In 2019, 9% of those asked didn't know and in 2020, 11% gave this answer.

The Average Debt for Those 65-74

In a perfect world, you would be debt-free by the time you retire. That scenario is not realistic for many Americans, however. Householders in this age group who have debt carry an average debt of $105,250.

It might appear impossible, but many consumers succeed in living their entire lives without any debt. People of a variety of ages and income levels have made this choice. It's not an easy feat, but if it's something you truly want, don't let naysayers talk you out of it.

Your 800 FICO^® Score falls in the range of scores, from 800 to 850, that is categorized as Exceptional. Your FICO^® Score is well above the average credit score, and you are likely to receive easy approvals when applying for new credit. 21% of all consumers have FICO^® Scores in the Exceptional range.

Credit scores are three-digit numbers that show an important piece of your financial history. Credit scores help lenders decide whether to grant you credit. The average credit score in the United States is 698, based on VantageScore^® data from February 2021. It's a myth that you only have one credit score.

A staggering 73% of U.S. millennials are scraping by paycheck-to-paycheck, according to new data from finance and commerce research hub PYMNTS.com. Survey respondents in that age group cited debt payments and supporting dependent family members as the main drivers behind living that way.

What Is Average Life? The average life is the length of time the principal of a debt issue is expected to be outstanding. Average life does not take into account interest payments, but only principal payments made on the loan or security.

Married consumers carried a total average debt of $112,627 in Q2 2019—that's over $61,000 more than the single consumer average and roughly $20,000 more than the national average debt load of $92,479.

Which state has the most debt? ›

Credit card debt today

A total of 35 percent of Americans carry credit card debt from month to month, according to a January 2023 Bankrate survey of 2,458 U.S. adults— an increase of 6 percent from 2022.

Wealthy people aren't afraid of borrowing. But they typically don't borrow money to live beyond their means or because they failed to save for emergencies or make a plan to cover expenses. Instead, rich people tend to use debt as a tool to help them build more wealth.

In fact, data from the Federal Reserve shows that wealthy people actually end up borrowing a lot more money than the country's lowest earners. And the top 1% of the population actually holds a whopping 4.6% of all debt, while the bottom 50% of the country only has 36% of outstanding debt.

The most common debt by total amount of debt in the U.S. is mortgage debt. Other types of common debt include credit card debt, auto loans, and student loans.

Key Takeaways. China invests heavily in U.S. Treasury bonds to keep its export prices lower. China focuses on export-led growth to help generate jobs. To keep its export prices low, China must keep its currency—the renminbi (RMB)—low compared to the U.S. dollar.

1. Hong Kong —0.1%. Hong Kong's market-driven economy is characterised by a lucrative financial banking sector, well-regulated financial controls, large foreign exchange reserves, and virtually no public debt.

“That's because the best balance transfer and personal loan terms are reserved for people with strong credit scores. $20,000 is a lot of credit card debt and it sounds like you're having trouble making progress,” says Rossman.

The average U.S. household has $6,473 in credit card debt

According to data from Experian, the average American's credit card balance in the third quarter of 2021 was $5,221. The Ascent examined research on American credit card debt and found that Americans had $841 billion in credit card debt in 2022.

How much monthly debt does the average person have? ›

Generally, an acceptable debt-to-income ratio should sit at or below 36%. Some lenders, like mortgage lenders, generally require a debt ratio of 36% or less. In the example above, the debt ratio of 38% is a bit too high.

Someone is considered a millionaire when their net worth, or their assets minus their liabilities, totals $1 million or more.

35% or less: Looking Good - Relative to your income, your debt is at a manageable level. You most likely have money left over for saving or spending after you've paid your bills. Lenders generally view a lower DTI as favorable.

What percentage of America is debt-free? According to that same Experian study, less than 25% of American households are debt-free. This figure may be small for a variety of reasons, particularly because of the high number of home mortgages and auto loans many Americans have.

42% of Americans have less than $1,000 in savings as of 2022. The average American savings account balance is $4,500. Between 1959-2022, the average U.S. savings rate has been 8.96%. The average household savings rate in the U.S. was only 5.1% in the second half of 2022.