Wealthy PotAverage Credit Card Interest Rate: 21.19% APR, and 22.36% If You Carry a Balance
The average credit card interest rate in the United States was 21.19% APR in August 2026, according to the Federal Reserve's G.19 Consumer Credit release of October 7, 2026. That is the stated APR averaged across every card account at the banks the Fed surveys. Cardholders who actually paid interest that month were charged an average of 22.36%, which is the better number to use if you carry a balance. Rates have sat above 20% since 2023, up from about 12% to 15% through the late 2010s. This page shows the history by year, why rates move with the Federal Reserve, how much of the rise came from issuers widening their margins, and what the average rate costs on a real balance.
Table of Contents
The Short Answer
- 21.19%: average APR on all credit card accounts at commercial banks, August 2026 (Federal Reserve G.19).
- 22.36%: average rate on accounts that were charged interest, the figure that applies if you revolve a balance.
- The highest reading in the Fed's series, which starts in late 1994, was August 2024: 21.76% on all accounts and 23.37% on accounts paying interest.
- Card rates are mostly variable and tied to the prime rate, which follows the Fed. The Fed raised its target range on September 16, 2026, to 3.75% to 4.00%, after the August survey was taken.
- The CFPB found that nearly half of the rise in average APR from 2013 to 2023 came from issuers widening their margin over prime, not from the Fed.
- At 22.36%, a $6,000 balance paid at a typical minimum would take about 21 years and cost about $10,100 in interest. Paying a flat $250 a month clears it in 33 months for about $2,000 (hypothetical; assumptions below).
Two Averages: All Accounts vs Accounts Paying Interest
The Federal Reserve surveys commercial banks once a quarter, in the middle month (February, May, August and November), and publishes two credit card rates. They measure different things:
- All accounts is the stated APR averaged across every credit card account at the reporting banks, including people who pay in full and never see the rate.
- Accounts assessed interest is total finance charges divided by the average daily balances they were charged on, annualized, counting only accounts that paid interest. It reflects what revolvers actually paid.
| Survey month | All accounts | Accounts assessed interest |
|---|---|---|
| August 2025 | 21.39% | 22.83% |
| November 2025 | 20.97% | 22.30% |
| February 2026 | 21.00% | 21.52% |
| May 2026 | 20.94% | 22.15% |
| August 2026 | 21.19% | 22.36% |
Both numbers are averages of existing accounts at banks. Rate surveys you see from card-comparison sites usually track the APRs advertised on new card offers, which tend to run higher, so a headline figure of 23% or 24% elsewhere is not necessarily in conflict with the Fed's. Your own rate is on your monthly statement and in your cardholder agreement. With about $1.35 trillion in revolving consumer credit outstanding in August 2026 (G.19, seasonally adjusted), the difference of a few points adds up across the country. For the balances behind that total, see average credit card debt.
Average Credit Card APR by Year, 2015 to 2026
| Year | All accounts | Accounts assessed interest | Fed target range at year end |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2015 | 12.09% | 13.66% | 0.25% to 0.50% |
| 2016 | 12.35% | 13.56% | 0.50% to 0.75% |
| 2017 | 12.89% | 14.44% | 1.25% to 1.50% |
| 2018 | 14.22% | 16.05% | 2.25% to 2.50% |
| 2019 | 15.05% | 16.98% | 1.50% to 1.75% |
| 2020 | 14.71% | 16.27% | 0% to 0.25% |
| 2021 | 14.60% | 16.45% | 0% to 0.25% |
| 2022 | 16.26% | 17.91% | 4.25% to 4.50% |
| 2023 | 20.90% | 22.15% | 5.25% to 5.50% |
| 2024 | 21.58% | 22.89% | 4.25% to 4.50% |
| 2025 | 21.22% | 22.32% | 3.50% to 3.75% |
| 2026 (Feb, May, Aug) | 21.04% | 22.01% | 3.75% to 4.00% (as of Oct 9) |
The table shows two eras. From 2015 to 2021 the average APR moved between about 12% and 15%. Then the Fed raised its target range from near zero to 5.25% to 5.50% between March 2022 and July 2023, and card rates jumped by about six points in two years. What did not happen is the reverse: the Fed cut by a full percentage point in late 2024 and another 0.75 point in late 2025, yet the average APR in 2025 was still above 21%.
Why Card Rates Follow the Federal Reserve
Most credit cards carry a variable APR written as an index plus a margin, and the index is usually the prime rate. Banks set the prime rate, and it moves when the Fed changes its federal funds target range. The prime rate stood at 7.00% in the Fed's H.15 release on October 8, 2026, with the effective federal funds rate at 3.88%. So a card priced at "prime plus 15" now charges 22%.
When the index rises, your rate rises with it, and federal rules do not require advance notice: Regulation Z exempts increases in a variable APR that follow a public index outside the issuer's control (12 CFR 1026.9(c)(2)(v)(C)). That is why rate hikes reach cardholders within a billing cycle or two.
The latest moves, from the Federal Open Market Committee's statements:
- December 10, 2025: cut by 0.25 point to 3.50% to 3.75%, the third cut of 2025.
- July 29, 2026: held at 3.50% to 3.75%.
- September 16, 2026: raised by 0.25 point to 3.75% to 4.00%, a 12 to 0 vote.
The Fed's August survey was taken before that September increase, so the next reading, for November 2026, is likely to reflect it. The next FOMC meeting is October 27 to 28, 2026.
The Other Half: Wider APR Margins
The Fed explains the swings, not the level. In a February 2024 analysis, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau measured the gap between the average APR and the prime rate, which it calls the APR margin, and found:
- The average APR on accounts assessed interest went from 12.9% in late 2013 to 22.8% in 2023.
- The APR margin on revolving accounts rose from 9.6% to 14.3% over the same decade, the highest in the period the CFPB examined.
- "Nearly half of the increase in average APR over the last 10 years has been driven by issuers raising their APR margin."
- Excess margin may have cost the average cardholder, with about a $5,300 balance, over $250 in 2023, and earned the largest issuers an estimated $25 billion in extra interest.
The CFPB has not updated those figures since, and the analysis now sits in its archive. As a rough check on where things stand, the Fed's August 2026 average of 22.36% is more than 15 points above today's 7.00% prime rate. That gap is set by the issuer and stays the same when the Fed cuts, which is why falling Fed rates have done little for card rates. It is also the part of your rate you can sometimes negotiate.
What 22% Costs on a $6,000 Balance
A hypothetical example. Assumptions: a $6,000 balance at the Fed's August 2026 average of 22.36%; interest charged at 1/12 of the APR each month (issuers actually use a daily rate, which comes out slightly higher); no new purchases and no fees. The "minimum payment" row uses a common issuer formula of 1% of the balance plus that month's interest, with a $25 floor. Your card's formula is in your agreement and may differ.
| Monthly payment | Time to pay off | Total interest |
|---|---|---|
| Minimum only (starts at $171.80 and shrinks) | 249 months (about 20 years 9 months) | $10,104.54 |
| Fixed $171.80 (the first minimum, kept flat) | 57 months | $3,789.47 |
| Fixed $250 | 33 months | $2,027.03 |
| Fixed $300 | 26 months | $1,577.40 |
| Fixed $500 | 14 months | $855.28 |
The first two rows start at the same payment. The only difference is that the minimum falls as the balance falls, and that one feature adds about 16 years and $6,300 in interest. Fixing the payment at the first month's minimum is the cheapest habit change most people can make.
The rate matters too. The same $250 a month would have cleared the balance in 29 months with $1,048 of interest at 2015's 13.66% average, and in 30 months with $1,484 at 2022's 17.91%. At today's 22.36% it costs $2,027. To test your own balances and rates, use the debt payoff calculator.
When Your Issuer Can Raise Your APR
The Credit CARD Act of 2009 limits rate increases, and the CFPB's Regulation Z sets out the details. The main rules:
- 45 days' notice. An issuer must give written notice at least 45 days before a significant change in terms, including a rate increase, and at least 45 days before a penalty rate takes effect (12 CFR 1026.9(c)(2) and (g)). Increases that follow a variable rate's public index are exempt.
- Right to reject. For many changes the notice must tell you that you can reject the change before it takes effect. If you do, the issuer cannot apply it, charge a fee or call the account in default solely for that reason, or demand faster repayment of the existing balance than the rules allow (1026.9(h)). The right does not apply once you are 60 days late.
- No increase in the first year. Outside the variable-rate, promotional and penalty exceptions, an issuer cannot raise your APR during the first year after the account is opened (1026.55(b)(3)(iii)).
- Existing balances are protected. A new, higher rate disclosed by notice cannot apply to purchases made before, or within 14 days after, the notice (1026.55(b)(3)(ii)).
- Promotional rates last at least six months, and the rate that follows must be disclosed in advance (1026.55(b)(1)).
- Penalty APR on old balances needs 60 days late. An issuer can apply a penalty rate to an existing balance only if it has not received the minimum payment within 60 days of the due date. After six consecutive on-time minimum payments, it must restore the earlier rate on those balances (1026.55(b)(4)).
- Six-month reviews. After raising a rate for risk or market reasons, the issuer must review the increase at least once every six months and reduce the rate when appropriate (1026.59).
How to Pay Less Than the Average
- Pay in full each month. A card's APR only applies to balances you carry; most cards give a grace period on purchases if the previous statement balance was paid in full.
- Ask for a lower rate. The margin over prime is the issuer's choice. A long on-time record and a better credit score than when you opened the card are your arguments; our guide to negotiating lower rates has scripts.
- Attack the highest rate first. If you have several balances, putting extra money on the highest APR saves the most interest. See debt avalanche vs snowball for the trade-off with paying small balances first.
- Consider a balance transfer or a lower-rate loan only after counting the transfer fee and the rate after any promotional period ends. Our step-by-step plan for paying off credit card debt covers when each option makes sense.
- Talk to the issuer early if you are struggling. Hardship and workout arrangements exist, and missing a payment by 60 days opens the door to a penalty rate. Our guide on negotiating with creditors explains how to ask.
Sources & Methodology
- Federal Reserve, G.19 Consumer Credit, release of October 7, 2026: credit card interest rates for August 2026, revolving credit outstanding, and the definitions of both rate measures.
- Federal Reserve, G.19 historical data, terms of credit: quarterly credit card rates from 1994 Q4 to 2026 Q3 (also on FRED as TERMCBCCALLNS and TERMCBCCINTNS).
- FOMC statement, September 16, 2026, with the July 29, 2026 and December 10, 2025 statements and the open market operations history.
- Federal Reserve, H.15 Selected Interest Rates, October 8, 2026: bank prime loan rate and effective federal funds rate.
- CFPB, "Credit card interest rate margins at all-time high," February 22, 2024: APR margin analysis, data through 2023.
- Regulation Z, 12 CFR part 1026: sections 1026.9 (notice and right to reject), 1026.55 (limits on rate increases) and 1026.59 (reevaluation of rate increases).
Method notes. "Average credit card interest rate" here means the Federal Reserve's commercial bank series, the only public, long-running measure of rates on existing accounts; credit unions and offer-based surveys are not included. The yearly figures average the Fed's quarterly readings, which match the Fed's own annual averages for 2021 to 2025. The 2024 record high is our scan of every quarter in the series. The payoff table is our calculation for a hypothetical balance, using monthly rather than daily interest. The comparison with today's prime rate mixes an August APR with an October prime rate and is only a rough guide; the CFPB's margin figures are the formal measure.
This article is for general information and is not financial or credit advice. Figures are from the Federal Reserve, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau and Regulation Z, checked against the primary sources on 2026-10-09. Payoff examples are hypothetical. Your own APR and minimum-payment formula are in your cardholder agreement and on your statement; consider speaking to a nonprofit credit counselor or other qualified professional before making major debt decisions.
FAQ
What is the average credit card interest rate right now?
21.19% APR across all credit card accounts at commercial banks in August 2026, the latest Federal Reserve reading. For accounts that were charged interest, the average was 22.36%.
What is a good APR for a credit card?
Anything below the Fed's average of about 21% to 22% is better than typical. If you pay your balance in full every month, the APR does not matter because no interest is charged on purchases. If you carry a balance, a lower rate matters more than rewards.
Why is my APR higher than the average?
The Fed's figure is an average of existing accounts at banks. New card offers, store cards and cards for people with lower credit scores often carry higher rates. A penalty APR after a 60-day late payment will also push yours above the average.
Will credit card rates go down when the Fed cuts rates?
Usually a little, and with a lag of a billing cycle or two, because most cards are variable and tied to the prime rate. But the Fed cut by 1.75 points between September 2024 and December 2025 and the average APR barely moved below 21%. The Fed then raised its range on September 16, 2026, to 3.75% to 4.00%.
What is the highest the average credit card rate has been?
In the Fed's series, which starts in late 1994, the peak was August 2024: 21.76% on all accounts and 23.37% on accounts assessed interest.
Can my credit card company raise my interest rate without telling me?
Only if the card has a variable rate and the increase follows its public index, such as the prime rate. For other increases, Regulation Z requires 45 days' written notice, generally bars increases in the first year, and protects balances you already had from the new rate.
How much interest will I pay on a $6,000 balance?
At 22.36% with a minimum of 1% of the balance plus interest, about $10,100 over nearly 21 years. Paying a fixed $250 a month cuts that to about $2,000 over 33 months. These are hypothetical figures; use the debt payoff calculator with your own numbers.
How often does the Federal Reserve update credit card rates?
Quarterly. The Fed surveys banks in February, May, August and November, and the readings appear in its monthly G.19 Consumer Credit release. The November 2026 reading will be the next one.
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"Average Credit Card Interest Rate: 21.19% APR, and 22.36% If You Carry a Balance." Wealthy Pot, 2026. https://wealthypot.com/average-credit-card-interest-rate/
