Visualizing U.S. Household Debt, by Generation

Visualizing U.S. Household Debt, by Generation

Published 59 mins ago 

on July 16, 2021

By Aran Ali

The Briefing

• Generation X is the most indebted generation on average, with $140,643 of household debt
• Younger generations are witnessing their debts growing at a greater pace relative to older Americans

Visualizing U.S. Household Debt, by Generation

The year 2020 could be categorized as one where debt grew across the board. In the U.S., every generation except the Silent Generation saw their debts rise in the last year.

But how much debt does each generational household owe?

Generation20192020Growth (%)

Generation Z (18-24)	$9,593	$16,043	67.2%
Millennials (25-40)	$78,396	$87,448	11.5%
Generation X (41-56)	$135,841	$140,643	3.5%
Baby Boomers (57-75)	$96,984	$97,290	0.3%
Silent Generation (76+)	$43,255	$41,281	-4.6%

Gen X are the most indebted Americans followed by the Baby Boomers. The breakdown of debt by age group suggests the typical American’s debts grow with adulthood to a certain age, at which point it begins to taper off.

Download the Generational Power Report (.pdf)

Digging Deeper

The types of debt vary in significance for each generation. For instance, the leading source of debt for Gen Z and Millennials are student loans (20%) and credit card bills (25%), respectively. Mortgages on the other hand, are the leading source of debt for Gen X (30%) and Baby Boomers (28%).

Collectively, American households have a debt pile of $14.5 trillion, with mortgages representing the majority, at 70%.

Here’s how home mortgages by generation breaks down.

GenerationPortion of Mortgage Debt

Silent Generation	4.8%
Baby Boomers	29.0%
Generation X	42.0%
Millennials	24.2%
Generation Z	-

Given mortgages represent the largest slice and that Gen X is the most indebted household, it stands to reason that at 42%, Gen X carries the most mortgage debt out of any generation.

Editor’s note: It should be mentioned that the Federal Reserve is yet to include Gen Z in some of their data.

Zooming Out

Though debts are rising for most U.S. households, they still pale in comparison to other countries. Here’s how household U.S. debt ranks on the international stage.

Country / TerritoryHousehold Debt to GDP (September 2020)

Switzerland	131%
Australia	122%
Norway	112%
Denmark	112%
Canada	110%
Netherlands	104%
South Korea	101%
New Zealand	95%
Sweden	93%
United Kingdom	89%
Hong Kong SAR	88%
U.S.	78%

The U.S. ranks 12th in global household debt to GDP rankings.

In addition to being the largest economy by GDP, America’s GDP per capita remains one of the highest out of major countries, suggesting these high debts by generation are in part offset by high incomes.

Looking Ahead

Increasing debts have been manageable due to a low interest rate environment. This has persisted for well over a decade, and is expected to remain the case for the near future.

Whether this can hold steady in the long run is still largely unknown.

Where does this data come from?

Source: Federal Reserve, Experian
Notes: Household debt to GDP data is as of September 2020

Visualizing U.S. Household Debt, by Generation (visualcapitalist.com)

Visualizing U.S. Household Debt, by Generation