The national debt consists of public debt and intragovernmental debt.

This US Treasury page explains what the national debt is, how it accumulates from annual deficits, and why rising debt can affect interest costs, fiscal flexibility, and long-term economic stability.

Debt to the Penny is the total debt of the U.S. government and is reported daily. It is made up of intragovernmental holdings and debt held by the public.

Social Security operates through a trust fund built from payroll taxes. When costs outpace revenue, as they have since 2021, the program redeems Treasury bonds to cover the gap. To repay these bonds, the government often borrows more money, indirectly adding to the national debt and impacting fiscal policy.

The United States has a debt problem. In 1989, the national debt was almost $3T. As of 2023, that number had ballooned to more than $30T. This video explains why the national debt grew so quickly, and what America's options are going forward. It also explores why the problem is trapped in political gridlock. Watch it to find out more.

The US Treasury regularly publishes updated data on the federal budget, and this site hosts visualizations of that data. See reports on spending, revenues, deficits, and where the national debt stands.

The debt ceiling periodically takes center stage as Congress debates whether to increase or suspend this self-imposed limit on its borrowing authority. Learn the basics on this crucial feature of US fiscal policy with this Q&A.

Bonds are fixed-income investments allowing individuals to lend a specific amount of money to a large entity, like a government or corporation, for a set amount of time in return for interest paid out over the life of the loan. The bond market is widely considered a key economic barometer.

The US national debt is at its highest level ever. Learn how the national debt grew to that level and what it means for US economic growth with charts and simple explanations.

Each type has variations of its bond offerings with different interest rates, loan lengths, maturity dates, and terms. Each type also carries its own risks and rewards.

When a city needs to build a school, a road, or a water treatment plant, it usually issues a municipal bond—borrowing money from investors to be paid back over time. The market for these bonds now exceeds $4T.

Federal, state, and local governments share responsibility for funding public services. Education, roads, and social programs are funded through a complicated mix of taxes and intergovernmental transfers.

About 43 million Americans hold a cumulative $1.6T in federal student debt. That's more than the country's combined credit card balance, according to data from in the first quarter of the year 2024.

Treasury yields are the interest rates that the US government pays to borrow money for different lengths of time. Specifically, Treasury yields are interest rates on US government debt. They reflect economic outlooks and inflation expectations. Learn more about Treasury yields here.

Debt traps can be caused by unforeseen expenses or inadequate savings and can be a brutal cycle to break. At the end of 2025, total household debt in the US reached $18.8T, according to data from the Federal Reserve of New York.

A video created during the debt ceiling debates of 2021 outlining what would happen if the US failed to meet its debt obligations. Its lessons are applicable to today's debates.

After the US reached its debt ceiling in January 2023, the Treasury deployed "extraordinary measures" to keep paying obligations. This article explains the steps, how they work, and why they last only for a limited time.

Dalio frequently argues that debt cycles are inevitable and a tradition of every empire. However, he said in 2025 that the US was headed for a debt crisis. Dalio says that while Republicans and Democrats agree on the math of the debt crisis, all politicians make promises to neither increase taxes nor cut government benefits—which Dalio says can't close the deficit.

Global debt reached $226T by the end of 2020—the biggest one-year jump since World War II. This graphic compares the debt-to-GDP ratio of various countries.

The US government historically makes nearly half of its total revenue last year from individual income taxes. But the US makes also makes money from a variety of other sources, including Medicare taxes and corporate income taxes. However, the federal government has run a deficit since 2001—reaching a peak of $3.13T in 2020.

Student debt is no different than the big rent or car payment that comes out of someone’s paycheck every month: Its presence affects that household’s purchasing power. Multiply that household by the 43 million Americans who had outstanding federal loan debt in September 2023, and student debt’s impact becomes considerable.

Federal spending is split between mandatory programs, funded automatically by law, and discretionary programs, funded through annual appropriations. This video breaks down which major programs fall into each category and why the distinction matters.

Direct lending, the most common subtype of private credit, typically involves senior loans which are secured by a company's assets. "Junior capital," on the other hand, is a type of private credit that is not secured by a company's assets, making it generally riskier than direct lending.

This article breaks down the average household debt by category, including credit card debt ($6,523), personal loans ($11,274), and more.