Statistics to cite

U.S. national debt statistics

The federal debt was $40.2 trillion at the end of August 2026. At the end of fiscal 2026 it was 125% of a year's GDP, and the government spent $1.36 trillion on interest in fiscal 2026, on Treasury's figures.

15 key numbers from 11 charts. They update themselves when new data comes out; newest data as of October 28, 2026.

  1. U.S. national debt, end of August 2026

    $40.2 trillion

    Total federal debt, including what the government owes its own trust funds, in dollars of the day.

    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 (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.), data as of August 31, 2026. See the chart

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  2. National debt at the end of the fiscal year, fiscal 2026

    $40.2 trillion

    About 4 times the $10 trillion of 2008, not adjusted for inflation.

    Source: U.S. Treasury Fiscal Data, Historical Debt Outstanding (Public domain (U.S. government work)), data as of September 30, 2026. See the chart

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  3. Debt as a share of GDP, end of fiscal 2026

    125%

    Total debt divided by GDP over the same fiscal year.

    Source: U.S. Treasury Fiscal Data, Historical Debt Outstanding; GDP from the Bureau of Economic Analysis (NIPA Table 1.1.5) (Public domain (U.S. government work)), data as of September 30, 2026. See the chart

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  4. Debt per person, fiscal 2025

    $110,100

    Debt at the end of the fiscal year divided by the World Bank's mid-year population estimate.

    Source: U.S. Treasury Fiscal Data, Historical Debt Outstanding; population from the World Bank (SP.POP.TOTL) (Debt data public domain (U.S. government work); World Bank population data CC BY 4.0), data as of September 30, 2025. See the chart

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  5. Federal deficit, fiscal 2026

    $1.99 trillion

    Spending minus revenue, not adjusted for inflation.

    Source: U.S. Treasury Fiscal Data, Monthly Treasury Statement (Table 9) (Public domain (U.S. government work)), data as of September 30, 2026. See the chart

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  6. Interest paid on the debt, fiscal 2026

    $1.36 trillion

    Interest on all federal debt, including debt held by trust funds, so higher than the budget's "net interest".

    Source: U.S. Treasury Fiscal Data, Interest Expense on the Public Debt Outstanding (Public domain (U.S. government work)), data as of September 30, 2026. See the chart

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  7. Average interest rate on the debt, end of fiscal 2026

    3.53%

    Source: U.S. Treasury Fiscal Data, Average Interest Rates on U.S. Treasury Securities (Public domain (U.S. government work)), data as of September 30, 2026. See the chart

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  8. Share of the debt held by other U.S. investors, end of August 2026

    46%

    $18.5 trillion. Banks, mutual funds, pension funds, state and local governments and people: what's left after the other owners, so 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 (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.), data as of August 31, 2026. See the chart

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  9. Share of the debt held by federal trust funds, end of August 2026

    19%

    $7.76 trillion, in funds such as Social Security's.

    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 (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.), data as of August 31, 2026. See the chart

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  10. Share of the debt held by foreign investors, end of August 2026

    23%

    $9.33 trillion. Treasury's TIC estimate, partly at market value.

    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 (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.), data as of August 31, 2026. See the chart

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  11. Share of the debt held by the Federal Reserve, end of August 2026

    11%

    $4.55 trillion.

    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 (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.), data as of August 31, 2026. See the chart

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  12. Highest foreign holdings of Treasury securities since 2000, February 2026

    $9.49 trillion

    Governments and private buyers together, on Treasury's TIC estimates.

    Source: U.S. Treasury, Treasury International Capital (TIC) System, Major Foreign Holders of Treasury Securities (Public domain (U.S. government work)), data as of August 31, 2026. See the chart

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  13. Largest foreign holder of Treasury securities, August 2026

    $1.07 trillion

    Japan. Counted where the securities are kept, which may not be where their owner is.

    Source: U.S. Treasury, Treasury International Capital (TIC) System, Major Foreign Holders of Treasury Securities (Public domain (U.S. government work)), data as of August 31, 2026. See the chart

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  14. Treasury securities held in mainland China, August 2026

    $591 billion

    China may also hold Treasuries through other countries' custodians, which this count can't see.

    Source: U.S. Treasury, Treasury International Capital (TIC) System, Major Foreign Holders of Treasury Securities (Public domain (U.S. government work)), data as of August 31, 2026. See the chart

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  15. Treasury securities held by the Federal Reserve, October 28, 2026

    $4.58 trillion

    The last weekly figure of the month, including TIPS' inflation adjustment.

    Source: Federal Reserve Bank of New York, System Open Market Account (SOMA) Holdings (The SOMA Holdings data is subject to the Terms of Use posted at newyorkfed.org. The New York Fed is not responsible for publication.), data as of October 28, 2026. See the chart

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What these numbers can and can't tell you

Treasury's fiscal year ends on September 30. Debt figures are in dollars of the day, not adjusted for inflation.

The ownership split is approximate: foreign holdings are Treasury's TIC survey estimates, partly at market value, and the share held by other U.S. investors is what's left after the other owners.

Recent GDP figures are revised, which can change the debt's share of GDP.

More: the data as a free feed and all statistics pages.