US Deficit

Extracted Attributes

• Opposite

  Budget surplus (revenue exceeds spending).

• Definition

  Occurs when federal government spending exceeds revenue in a defined period.

• Historical Trend

  Increases during wars and recessions, then declines.

• Drivers of Debt Growth

  Growing interest costs, mandatory spending outpacing revenue and economic growth, aging demographics, rising healthcare costs.

• Fiscal Year 2018 Deficit

  c.$782 billion.

• Fiscal Year 2020 Deficit

  $3.3 trillion or 16% of GDP.

• Components of National Debt

  Debt held by the public, Intragovernmental debt.

• Projected Debt to GDP (2034)

  116% of GDP.

• Projected Debt to GDP (2054)

  172% of GDP.

• Federal Interest Payments (2024)

  Surpassed spending on Medicare and national defense.

• Total Federal Debt (December 2023)

  $33.1 trillion ($26.5 trillion held by public, $12.1 trillion intragovernmental debt).

• Total Federal Debt (February 2022)

  Breached $30 trillion.

• Total Federal Debt (February 2024)

  $34.4 trillion.

• Total Federal Debt (March 6, 2025)

  $36.56 trillion.

• Debt Held by Public (December 2021)

  96.19% of GDP.

• Fiscal Year 2020 Deficit Significance

  Largest percentage of GDP since 1945.

• Fiscal Year 2018 Corporate Tax Decline

  $92 billion.

• Annualized Cost of Servicing Debt (July 2023)

  $726 billion (14% of total federal spending).

• Fiscal Year 2018 Deficit Increase from FY2017

  $116 billion.

• Foreign Ownership of Public Debt (December 2021)

  Approximately 33%.

Timeline

• Start of Fiscal Year 2018. (Source: web_search_results)

  2017-10-01

• End of Fiscal Year 2018. (Source: web_search_results)

  2018-09-30

• The Congressional Budget Office (CBO) reported the federal budget deficit for fiscal year 2018 was c.$782 billion. (Source: web_search_results)

  2018-10-05

• Estimated budget deficit for fiscal year 2020 increased to $3.3 trillion or 16% of GDP due to COVID-19 aid, the largest as a percentage of GDP since 1945. (Source: wikipedia)

  2020-09-30

• Debt held by the public was estimated at 96.19% of GDP, with approximately 33% of this public debt owned by foreigners. (Source: wikipedia)

  2021-12-31

• Total US federal government debt breached the $30 trillion mark for the first time in history. (Source: wikipedia)

  2022-02-28

• The annualized cost of servicing the national debt was $726 billion, accounting for 14% of total federal spending. (Source: wikipedia)

  2023-07-31

• Total federal debt was $33.1 trillion, with $26.5 trillion held by the public and $12.1 trillion in intragovernmental debt. (Source: wikipedia)

  2023-12-31

• Total federal government debt rose to $34.4 trillion. Federal interest payments on the national debt surpassed spending on both Medicare and national defense. (Source: wikipedia)

  2024-02-29

• The federal government debt stands at $36.56 trillion. (Source: Summary)

  2025-03-06

• Projected federal debt held by the public to rise to 116% of GDP if current laws generally remain unchanged. (Source: wikipedia)

  2034-12-31

• Projected federal debt held by the public to rise to 172% of GDP if current laws generally remained unchanged. (Source: wikipedia)

  2054-12-31

National debt of the United States

The "national debt of the United States" is the total national debt owed by the federal government of the United States to treasury security holders. The national debt at a given point in time is the face value of the then outstanding treasury securities that have been issued by the Treasury and other federal agencies. Related terms such as "national deficit" and "national surplus" most often refer to the federal government budget balance from year to year and not the cumulative amount of debt held. In a deficit year, the national debt increases as the government needs to borrow funds to finance the deficit. In a surplus year, the debt decreases as more money is received than spent, enabling the government to reduce the debt by buying back Treasury securities. Broadly, US government debt increases as a result of government spending and decreases from tax or other funding receipts, both of which fluctuate during a fiscal year. The aggregate, gross amount that Treasury can borrow is limited by the United States debt ceiling. There are two components of gross national debt: "Debt held by the public" – such as Treasury securities held by investors outside the federal government, including those held by individuals, corporations, the Federal Reserve, and foreign, state and local governments. "Debt held by government accounts" or "intragovernmental debt" – is non-marketable Treasury securities held in accounts of programs administered by the federal government, such as the Social Security Trust Fund. Debt held by government accounts represents the cumulative surpluses, including interest earnings, of various government programs that have been invested in Treasury securities. Historically, the U.S. public debt as a share of gross domestic product (GDP) increases during wars and recessions and then subsequently declines. For instance, most recently, during the COVID-19 pandemic, the federal government spent trillions in virus aid and economic relief. The Congressional Budget Office (CBO) estimated that the budget deficit for fiscal year 2020 would increase to $3.3 trillion or 16% GDP, more than triple that of 2019 and the largest as a percentage of GDP since 1945. In December 2021, debt held by the public was estimated at 96.19% of GDP, and approximately 33% of this public debt was owned by foreigners (government and private). The ratio of debt to GDP may decrease as a result of a government surplus or via growth of GDP and inflation. The CBO estimated in February 2024 that Federal debt held by the public is projected to rise from 99 percent of GDP in 2024 to 116 percent in 2034, and would continue to grow if current laws generally remained unchanged. Over that period, the growth of interest costs and mandatory spending outpaces the growth of revenues and the economy, driving up debt. If those factors persist beyond 2034, pushing federal debt higher still, to 172 percent of GDP in 2054. The United States has the largest external debt in the world. The total amount of U.S. Treasury securities held by foreign entities in December 2021 was $7.7 trillion, up from $7.1 trillion in December 2020. Total US federal government debt breached the $30 trillion mark for the first time in history in February 2022. As of December 2023, total federal debt was $33.1 trillion; $26.5 trillion held by the public and $12.1 trillion in intragovernmental debt. The annualized cost of servicing this debt was $726 billion in July 2023, which accounted for 14% of the total federal spending. Additionally, in recent decades, aging demographics and rising healthcare costs have led to concern about the long-term sustainability of the federal government's fiscal policies. In February 2024, the total federal government debt rose to $34.4 trillion, after increasing by approximately $1 trillion during each of two separate 100-day periods since the previous June. In 2024, federal interest payments on the national debt surpassed spending on both Medicare and national defense. As of March 6, 2025, the federal government debt is $36.56 trillion.

Web Search Results

• National debt of the United States - Wikipedia

  For the 2018–2027 period, CBO projects the sum of the annual deficits (i.e., debt increase) to be $11.7 trillion, an increase of $1.6 trillion (16%) over the previous baseline (June 2017) forecast of $10.1 trillion. The $1.6 trillion debt increase includes three main elements: 1. $1.7 trillion less in revenues due to the tax cuts; 2. $1.0 trillion more in spending; and [...] The budget deficit in fiscal 2018 (which runs from October 1, 2017, to September 30, 2018, the first fiscal year of President Trump's administration) is forecast to be $804 billion, an increase of $139 billion (21%) from the $665 billion in 2017 and up $242 billion (39%) over the previous baseline "Baseline (budgeting)") forecast (June 2017) of $580 billion for 2018. The June 2017 forecast was essentially the budget trajectory inherited from President Obama; it was prepared prior to the Tax [...] In their September 2018 monthly report published on October 5 and based on data from the Treasury Department's "Daily Treasury Statements" (DTS), the Congressional Budget Office (CBO) wrote that the federal budget deficit was c.$782 billion for the fiscal year 2018—which runs from October 2017 through September 2018. This is $116 billion more than in FY2017.[\[15\]]( 1  The Treasury statements as summarized by in the CBO report that corporate taxes for 2017 and 2018 declined by $92 billion

• National Deficit | U.S. Treasury Fiscal Data

  The opposite of a budget deficit is a budget surplus, which occurs when the federal government collects more money than it spends. The U.S. has experienced a fiscal year-end budget surplus four times in the last 50 years, most recently in 2001. When there is no deficit or surplus due to spending and revenue being equal, the budget is considered balanced. The terms “national deficit”, “federal deficit” and “U.S. deficit” have the same meaning and are used interchangeably by the U.S. Treasury. [...] A budget deficit occurs when money going out (spending) exceeds money coming in (revenue) during a defined period. In FY 0, the federal government spent $ trillion and collected $ trillion in revenue, resulting in a deficit. The amount by which spending exceeds revenue, $ trillion in 0, is referred to as deficit spending. [...] A deficit occurs when the federal government’s spending exceeds its revenues. The federal government has spent $ more than it has collected in fiscal year (FY), resulting in a national deficit. Fiscal year-to-date (since October ) total updated monthly using the Monthly Treasury Statement (MTS) dataset. Compared to the national deficit of $ for the same period last year (Oct -1 - Invalid Date ), our national deficit has by $. $0 M Image 8: double dash 0% Key Takeaways -------------

• Understanding the National Debt | U.S. Treasury Fiscal Data

  The national debt is the amount of money the federal government has borrowed to cover the outstanding balance of expenses incurred over time. In a given fiscal year (FY), when spending (ex. money for roadways) exceeds revenue (ex. money from federal income tax), a budget deficit results. To pay for this deficit, the federal government borrows money by selling marketable securities such as Treasury bonds, bills, notes,floating rate notes, and Treasury inflation-protected securities (TIPS). The [...] | | | | | | | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | | | Revenue | Spending | Deficit | | | Year 1 | $400 | $500 | -$100 | | | Year 2 | $600 | $800 | -$200 | | | | | | -$300 | Debt | | | | | Image 8 | Funding Programs & Services --------------------------- [...] The national debt ($36.21 T) is the total amount of outstanding borrowing by the U.S. Federal Government accumulated over the nation’s history. $ 1 0 0 1 1 0 0 1 , 0 0 0 0 0 0 , 0 0 0 0 0 0 , 0 0 0 0 0 0 , 0 0 0 0 0 0 $3 6,2 1 3,5 8 1,7 2 3,7 9 7 Updated daily from the Debt to the Penny dataset. Key Takeaways The National Debt Explained Funding Programs & Services The Growing National Debt Breaking Down the Debt The Debt Ceiling Tracking the Debt

• Debt to the Penny | U.S. Treasury Fiscal Data

  | 6/23/2025 | $28,890,044,591,558.48 | $7,323,763,835,441.08 | $36,213,808,426,999.56 | | 6/20/2025 | $28,900,785,723,043.42 | $7,315,087,705,792.44 | $36,215,873,428,835.86 | | 6/18/2025 | $28,905,136,181,836.44 | $7,309,570,954,397.39 | $36,214,707,136,233.83 | | 6/17/2025 | $28,884,822,109,662.55 | $7,330,575,632,185.21 | $36,215,397,741,847.76 | | 6/16/2025 | $28,907,522,231,455.10 | $7,307,147,612,603.45 | $36,214,669,844,058.55 | [...] | 6/13/2025 | $28,943,677,590,027.96 | $7,273,078,926,433.72 | $36,216,756,516,461.68 | | 6/12/2025 | $28,944,696,357,421.28 | $7,272,755,735,482.53 | $36,217,452,092,903.81 | [...] | Description (Short) | Total outstanding debt of the U.S. government reported daily. Includes a breakout of intragovernmental holdings (federal debt held by U.S. government) and debt held by the public (federal debt held by entities outside the U.S. government). | | Update Frequency | Daily | | Date Range | 04/01/1993 - 06/26/2025 | | Topics | Debt | | Publisher | Fiscal Accounting |

• United States Government Debt - Trading Economics

  ##### Members ##### # United States Government Debt ## Government Debt in the United States decreased to 36213557 USD Million in April from 36214310 USD Million in March of 2025. Government Debt in the United States averaged 5993447.14 USD Million from 1942 until 2025, reaching an all time high of 36220207.00 USD Million in January of 2025 and a record low of 60000.00 USD Million in January of 1942. source: U.S. Department of the Treasury ## [...] | | Actual | Previous | Highest | Lowest | Dates | Unit | Frequency | | | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | | | 36213557.00 | 36214310.00 | 36220207.00 | 60000.00 | 1942 - 2025 | USD Million | Monthly | Current prices, NSA | ## Markets ## GDP ## Labour ## Prices ## Money ## Trade ## Government ## Business ## Consumer ## Housing ## Taxes ## Energy ## Health ## Climate Android app on Google Play [...] | Government Debt to GDP | 124.30 | 122.30 | percent of GDP | Dec 2024 | | Government Revenues | 850169.00 | 367645.00 | USD Million | Apr 2025 | | Government Spending | 3989.20 | 3996.30 | USD Billion | Mar 2025 | | Government Spending to GDP | 34.38 | 36.16 | percent of GDP | Dec 2023 | | Holidays | | | | | | Military Expenditure | 997309.00 | 916014.70 | USD Million | Dec 2024 |