Your question
How big is the national debt?
How big is the US national debt? At the end of fiscal year 2026 the debt was $40.2 trillion, about 4 times the $10 trillion of 2008.
From 3 charts
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Federal budget
How big is the US national debt?
At the end of fiscal year 2026 the debt was $40.2 trillion, about 4 times the $10 trillion of 2008. In 1835 it had been paid down to about $34,000. Each point is the debt on the last day of that fiscal year (since 1977, September 30), in dollars of the day, not adjusted for inflation.
Source: U.S. Treasury Fiscal Data, Historical Debt Outstanding · Data as of September 30, 2026 · Public domain (U.S. government work)
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Federal budget
Who owns the US national debt?
At the end of August 2026 the federal debt was $40.2 trillion. Other U.S. investors (banks, mutual funds, pension funds, state and local governments and people) held $18.5 trillion, 46%. Foreign investors held $9.33 trillion (23%), federal trust funds such as Social Security's held $7.76 trillion (19%), and the Federal Reserve $4.55 trillion (11%). Foreign holdings are Treasury's TIC estimate, partly at market value, and the U.S. share is what's left after the others, so the split is approximate.
Source: U.S. Treasury Fiscal Data, Debt to the Penny; U.S. Treasury, TIC Major Foreign Holders of Treasury Securities; Federal Reserve Bank of New York, SOMA Holdings · Data as of August 31, 2026 · Treasury data public domain (U.S. government work). The SOMA Holdings data is subject to the Terms of Use posted at newyorkfed.org; the New York Fed is not responsible for publication.
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College
How big is student debt compared with pay, by major?
Graduates in the 20 most common bachelor's majors borrow similar amounts in federal student loans at the typical college, but their pay differs widely. For teacher education graduates, that debt equaled 51% of a year's earnings four years after graduating; for computer science graduates, 21%. Debt is the median of colleges' median federal loan debt for graduates who borrowed (private and parent loans not counted). Earnings cover only graduates who received federal aid and were working.
Source: U.S. Department of Education, College Scorecard · Data as of December 31, 2023 · Public domain (U.S. government work)
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