Wealthy PotAverage American Debt: Totals, Medians and Debt by Age
American households owed $18.77 trillion at the end of June 2026, according to the Federal Reserve Bank of New York's Household Debt and Credit Report for the second quarter of 2026. Spread across everyone with a credit report, that is $63,455 per person. Mortgages are about 70% of the total. The average hides a wide spread: in the Federal Reserve's Survey of Consumer Finances, 77.4% of families had some debt, and the median family with debt owed $80,200, against a mean of $163,800. Debt peaks in the 40s and falls with age, yet more than half of families headed by someone 75 or older still carry some. This page breaks the numbers down by type, age, delinquency and state.
Table of Contents
The Short Answer
- Total household debt was $18.77 trillion in Q2 2026, down $13 billion from Q1 but up about $383 billion from a year earlier (New York Fed).
- That works out to $63,455 per person with a credit report (New York Fed) and roughly $139,000 per household if you divide by all 134.8 million households (our calculation).
- The typical family with debt owes far less than the mean: a median of $80,200 versus a mean of $163,800 (Survey of Consumer Finances, 2022).
- 22.6% of families had no debt at all in 2022. Among families headed by someone 75 or older, 46.6% were debt-free.
- Mortgages are $13.12 trillion, about 70% of all household debt. Credit cards are $1.26 trillion; student loans $1.65 trillion; auto loans $1.71 trillion.
- 4.7% of all household debt was delinquent in June 2026. Credit cards (12.9%) and student loans (10.6%) had the highest shares 90 or more days late.
Total US Household Debt by Type
The New York Fed's figures come from its Consumer Credit Panel, a nationally representative, anonymized sample of Equifax credit reports. They count every loan that appears on a credit report. The report for the second quarter of 2026 was released on August 11, 2026; the third-quarter report is due in early November.
| Type of debt | Balance, Q2 2026 | Share of total | Change vs Q2 2025 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Mortgages | $13.12 trillion | 69.9% | +$182 billion (+1.4%) |
| Auto loans | $1.71 trillion | 9.1% | +$58 billion (+3.5%) |
| Student loans | $1.65 trillion | 8.8% | +$13 billion (+0.8%) |
| Credit cards | $1.26 trillion | 6.7% | +$54 billion (+4.5%) |
| Other (retail cards, consumer finance loans) | $568 billion | 3.0% | +$28 billion (+5.2%) |
| Home equity lines of credit (HELOC) | $459 billion | 2.4% | +$47.5 billion (+11.6%) |
| Total | $18.77 trillion | 100% | +$383 billion (+2.1%) |
Total debt actually dipped in the second quarter, by $13 billion. The New York Fed says the drop came from a $74 billion fall in mortgage balances that was "mostly due to a servicer transfer gap in the reporting of mortgages," so it reflects how loans were reported more than a real paydown. Every other category except student loans grew. HELOC balances rose for the 17th straight quarter and are now $142 billion above their early-2022 low. Our guide to whether a HELOC is a good idea covers that trade-off. Since the end of 2019, total household debt has risen by $4.6 trillion.
Average Debt per Person and per Household
"Average debt" depends on what you divide by. Four common answers, and what each one means:
| Measure | Amount | Who is counted |
|---|---|---|
| Per person with a credit report (Q2 2026) | $63,455 | Everyone with a credit file, including people who owe nothing |
| Per household, all households (our calculation) | about $139,000 | $18.77 trillion divided by 134.8 million households, debt-free ones included |
| Mean, families with any debt (2022) | $163,800 | Only the 77.4% of families that owe something |
| Median, families with any debt (2022) | $80,200 | The family in the middle of all debtors |
The median is the most useful benchmark for most readers. A small number of families with large mortgages and business or investment loans pull the mean up to about twice the median. Experian, which uses its own credit-file data, reports an average total debt of $105,444 per consumer in September 2025; that figure falls between the SCF median and mean, but Experian does not publish the underlying data, so we cannot check it. Debt on its own also says little about financial health without the other side of the balance sheet; see average net worth by age for assets and debts together.
Typical Balances by Type of Debt
The Survey of Consumer Finances is the Federal Reserve's household wealth survey, conducted every three years. The 2022 survey is the most recent with published results; results from the 2025 survey have not been released yet. The amounts below are for families that hold that type of debt.
| Type of debt | Families holding it | Median balance (holders) | Mean balance (holders) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Mortgage or HELOC on primary home | 42.2% | $155,600 | $212,400 |
| Credit card balance carried | 45.2% | $2,700 | $6,100 |
| Vehicle loan | 34.7% | $15,400 | $21,200 |
| Education loan | 21.8% | $24,500 | $46,600 |
| Other installment loan | 18.5% | $2,300 | $10,300 |
| Debt on other residential property | 4.4% | $122,000 | $242,500 |
| Any debt | 77.4% | $80,200 | $163,800 |
We cover each of these in more depth elsewhere: average credit card debt (balances, APRs and how many people carry a balance), average student loan debt, the average car payment and the average mortgage payment. Across all debts, the median family with debt spent 13.4% of its income on debt payments in 2022, the lowest level the survey has recorded.
Debt by Age
The Survey of Consumer Finances gives the household view: how many families in each age group owe money, and how much the typical one owes.
| Age of family head | Families with any debt | Median debt (families with debt) | Mean debt (families with debt) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Under 35 | 86.1% | $42,800 | $121,300 |
| 35 to 44 | 87.3% | $138,700 | $203,100 |
| 45 to 54 | 86.9% | $140,300 | $218,300 |
| 55 to 64 | 77.2% | $90,100 | $171,500 |
| 65 to 74 | 64.8% | $45,000 | $135,600 |
| 75 and older | 53.4% | $35,600 | $94,900 |
| All families | 77.4% | $80,200 | $163,800 |
The New York Fed adds a current view of where the $18.77 trillion sits by age, based on individual borrowers rather than families:
| Age | Total debt, Q2 2026 | Mortgage | Auto | Credit card | Student loan |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 18 to 29 | $1.10 trillion | $476 billion | $205 billion | $81 billion | $306 billion |
| 30 to 39 | $3.99 trillion | $2.73 trillion | $381 billion | $222 billion | $523 billion |
| 40 to 49 | $4.93 trillion | $3.60 trillion | $409 billion | $295 billion | $383 billion |
| 50 to 59 | $4.13 trillion | $2.98 trillion | $351 billion | $280 billion | $260 billion |
| 60 to 69 | $2.78 trillion | $2.00 trillion | $228 billion | $217 billion | $129 billion |
| 70 and older | $1.82 trillion | $1.32 trillion | $136 billion | $167 billion | $43 billion |
Borrowers in their 40s hold the most debt, $4.93 trillion, mostly mortgages. Student loans are the second-largest debt for people under 30 (about 28% of their total, our arithmetic). Housing debt dominates every group from 30 on.
Debt at 65 to 74 and 75 and Older
Debt falls in retirement, but it does not disappear. Americans aged 60 and older owe $4.59 trillion, about 24% of all household debt (our arithmetic from the New York Fed age table). In the 2022 Survey of Consumer Finances:
- 65 to 74: 64.8% of families had debt, with a median of $45,000. 32.2% still had a mortgage or home equity loan on their home (median $110,000), and 33.9% carried a credit card balance (median $3,500).
- 75 and older: 53.4% had debt, with a median of $35,600. 27.6% had debt secured by their home (median $90,000), and 29.8% carried a credit card balance (median $1,700).
Two newer patterns show up in the New York Fed data. People 70 and older owe $76 billion on HELOCs and $43 billion in student loans, and the 60 to 69 group owes $129 billion in student loans. And older borrowers are the least likely to fall behind (see the next section). Carrying a mortgage into retirement can be a deliberate choice when the rate is low; the question is whether the payment still fits once paychecks stop. Our look at paying off the mortgage versus investing and the retirement withdrawal calculator can help you test it.
How Much Debt Is Behind on Payments
At the end of June 2026, 4.7% of outstanding household debt was in some stage of delinquency, 0.1 percentage point lower than the quarter before. The share 90 or more days late varies widely by type:
| Type of debt | Balance 90+ days late, Q2 2026 | Q2 2025 |
|---|---|---|
| Credit cards | 12.9% | 12.3% |
| Student loans | 10.6% | 10.2% |
| Other | 9.6% | 9.6% |
| Auto loans | 5.5% | 5.0% |
| Mortgages | 1.0% | 0.8% |
| HELOC | 1.0% | 0.9% |
| All debt | 3.3% | 3.0% |
By age, the share of balances that moved into serious delinquency over the past year was highest for borrowers aged 18 to 29 (4.0%) and lowest for those 60 to 69 (1.7%) and 70 and older (1.8%), against 2.5% for all borrowers. In the second quarter, about 137,000 people had a new bankruptcy on their credit reports and about 55,000 a new foreclosure, and 4.9% of consumers had a third-party collection account. If a balance is already hard to manage, compare the avalanche and snowball payoff methods or model a plan with the debt payoff calculator.
Debt per Person by State
The New York Fed publishes per-person debt for 11 large states. Home prices drive most of the difference.
| State | Debt per person, Q2 2026 |
|---|---|
| California | $87,040 |
| Arizona | $72,690 |
| Nevada | $72,060 |
| New Jersey | $68,200 |
| Florida | $62,800 |
| Texas | $60,110 |
| New York | $57,680 |
| Illinois | $54,770 |
| Pennsylvania | $50,490 |
| Michigan | $48,730 |
| Ohio | $46,370 |
| United States | $63,455 |
Sources & Methodology
- Federal Reserve Bank of New York, Quarterly Report on Household Debt and Credit, 2026 Q2: the report PDF, the underlying data workbook (pages 3, 11, 12, 17, 18, 20, 21, 24 and 32) and the August 11, 2026 release.
- Federal Reserve Bulletin, Changes in U.S. Family Finances from 2019 to 2022 (October 2023), Table 4 and the debt-burden text.
- Federal Reserve, 2022 Survey of Consumer Finances, historical tables, Table 13 (family holdings of debt by age).
- U.S. Census Bureau, Historical Households Tables, Table HH-1: 134,790,000 households in the 2025 Current Population Survey.
- Experian, consumer debt study: average debt per consumer from Experian's own credit files, cited for comparison only.
Method notes. New York Fed figures are balances on individual credit reports, nationally representative, for the quarter ending June 30, 2026; per-person figures divide by people with a credit report, not by all US residents. Survey of Consumer Finances figures are per family, collected in 2022 and stated in 2022 dollars; "median" and "mean" are among families that hold that debt. The two sources measure different units (people versus families) at different dates, so their figures should not be combined. Shares, year-over-year changes, the 60-and-older total and the per-household figure are our arithmetic from the published numbers. The per-household figure divides the New York Fed total by the Census household count and is an illustration, not an official statistic.
This article is for general information and is not financial, credit or legal advice. Figures are from the Federal Reserve Bank of New York, the Federal Reserve Board and the Census Bureau, checked against the primary sources on 2026-10-08. Averages describe groups, not any one household. If debt payments are straining your budget, consider speaking to a qualified professional, such as a nonprofit credit counselor, before acting.
FAQ
How much debt does the average American have?
$63,455 per person with a credit report in the second quarter of 2026, by the New York Fed's count. That includes people with no debt. Among families that owe something, the median was $80,200 in the Federal Reserve's 2022 Survey of Consumer Finances.
What is the average household debt in the US?
Dividing total household debt of $18.77 trillion by 134.8 million households gives about $139,000 per household, our calculation. The typical household with debt owes much less: the 2022 median was $80,200, and 22.6% of families had no debt.
How much total debt do Americans have?
$18.77 trillion at the end of June 2026: $13.12 trillion in mortgages, $1.71 trillion in auto loans, $1.65 trillion in student loans, $1.26 trillion on credit cards, $568 billion in other debt and $459 billion in HELOCs.
What is the average debt for someone 65 or older?
In 2022, 64.8% of families headed by someone 65 to 74 had debt, with a median of $45,000. For 75 and older, 53.4% had debt, with a median of $35,600. Mortgages make up most of it.
At what age do people have the most debt?
In the 40s. Borrowers aged 40 to 49 owe $4.93 trillion, more than any other group, and families headed by someone 45 to 54 had the highest median debt in 2022, $140,300.
What percentage of Americans are debt-free?
22.6% of families had no debt in the 2022 Survey of Consumer Finances. The share rises with age, to 35.2% for 65 to 74 and 46.6% for 75 and older.
Which type of debt is most often late?
Credit cards. In June 2026, 12.9% of credit card balances were 90 or more days late, followed by student loans at 10.6%. Only about 1% of mortgage balances were that far behind.
Is US household debt going up?
Over a year, yes: total debt rose about $383 billion (2.1%) from mid-2025 to mid-2026. It fell $13 billion in the second quarter of 2026, which the New York Fed attributes mostly to a gap in mortgage reporting.
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"Average American Debt: Totals, Medians and Debt by Age." Wealthy Pot, 2026. https://wealthypot.com/average-american-debt/
