Interest payments in United States
United States: Interest payments was 12.9% in 2023. ▼ Falling
Interest payments in United States, 1972–2023
Source: Government Finance Statistics Yearbook and data files, International Monetary Fund (IMF). Measured in % of expense.
Analysis
In 2023, interest payments in United States stood at 12.9%.
Compared with earlier readings it is up 19.0% on the previous year and up 68.9% over ten years.
Over the whole period, interest payments in United States peaked at 15.8% in 1985 and was at its lowest, 6.1%, in 2020.
United States ranks 38th of 152 countries on this measure, in the top quarter.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 52 years of available data.
Interest payments in United States, year by year
| Year | % of expense | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1972 | 6.5% | — |
| 1973 | 6.1% | -5.6% |
| 1974 | 8.3% | +35.4% |
| 1975 | 7.5% | -10.1% |
| 1976 | 7.8% | +3.7% |
| 1977 | 8.2% | +5.5% |
| 1978 | 7.6% | -7.0% |
| 1979 | 9.5% | +24.2% |
| 1980 | 10.4% | +10.3% |
| 1981 | 11.6% | +11.5% |
| 1982 | 12.9% | +10.7% |
| 1983 | 12.9% | +0.1% |
| 1984 | 14.3% | +10.4% |
| 1985 | 15.8% | +11.0% |
| 1986 | 15.2% | -3.9% |
| 1987 | 15.1% | -0.9% |
| 1988 | 15.3% | +1.5% |
| 1989 | 15.4% | +0.6% |
| 1990 | 15.3% | -0.6% |
| 1991 | 15.5% | +1.7% |
| 1992 | 15.2% | -2.0% |
| 1993 | 14.4% | -5.6% |
| 1994 | 14.2% | -1.2% |
| 1995 | 14.9% | +5.2% |
| 1996 | 15.6% | +4.7% |
| 1997 | 15.3% | -2.1% |
| 1998 | 14.9% | -2.5% |
| 1999 | 13.8% | -7.4% |
| 2000 | 12.9% | -7.0% |
| 2001 | 12.5% | -2.6% |
| 2002 | 10.4% | -17.2% |
| 2003 | 9.0% | -13.4% |
| 2004 | 8.8% | -1.6% |
| 2005 | 9.5% | +7.7% |
| 2006 | 9.9% | +3.6% |
| 2007 | 10.4% | +5.3% |
| 2008 | 8.7% | -16.1% |
| 2009 | 6.8% | -21.5% |
| 2010 | 7.2% | +4.7% |
| 2011 | 8.2% | +14.7% |
| 2012 | 8.2% | -0.5% |
| 2013 | 7.6% | -6.6% |
| 2014 | 7.9% | +2.8% |
| 2015 | 7.5% | -4.7% |
| 2016 | 8.2% | +9.6% |
| 2017 | 8.5% | +3.6% |
| 2018 | 9.7% | +13.8% |
| 2019 | 9.8% | +1.6% |
| 2020 | 6.1% | -38.3% |
| 2021 | 6.8% | +12.9% |
| 2022 | 10.8% | +58.2% |
| 2023 | 12.9% | +19.0% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1970s | 7.7% | 6.1% | 9.5% | 8 |
| 1980s | 13.9% | 10.4% | 15.8% | 10 |
| 1990s | 14.9% | 13.8% | 15.6% | 10 |
| 2000s | 9.9% | 6.8% | 12.9% | 10 |
| 2010s | 8.3% | 7.2% | 9.8% | 10 |
| 2020s | 9.2% | 6.1% | 12.9% | 4 |
Countries ranked near United States
More public sector data for United States
- Arms imports 1.21 billion SIPRI trend indicator values (2024)
- Arms imports (SIPRI trend indicator values), per capita 3.56 SIPRI trend indicator values per person (2024)
- Arms imports (SIPRI trend indicator values), per unit of GDP 0 SIPRI trend indicator values per US$ of GDP (2024)
- Arms imports (SIPRI trend indicator values), annual growth rate 52.65 % change on previous year (2024)
- Arms imports (SIPRI trend indicator values), gaps filled 1.21 billion SIPRI trend indicator values (2024)
- Military expenditure (current USD), per capita 2,933 current USD per person (2024)
- Military expenditure (current USD), per unit of GDP 0.034 current USD per US$ of GDP (2024)
- Military expenditure (current USD), annual growth rate 8.87 % change on previous year (2024)
- Military expenditure (current USD), gaps filled 997.31 billion current USD (2024)
- Arms imports (SIPRI trend indicator values), per square kilometre 86.58 SIPRI trend indicator values per square kilometre (2023)
Frequently asked questions
- What is interest payments in United States?
- Interest payments in United States was 12.9% in 2023, according to Government Finance Statistics Yearbook and data files, International Monetary Fund (IMF).
- What is the highest interest payments recorded in United States?
- The highest recorded value was 15.8% in 1985.
- What is the lowest interest payments recorded in United States?
- The lowest recorded value was 6.1% in 2020.
- How does United States rank for interest payments?
- United States ranks 38th out of 152 countries with data for 2023.
- Is interest payments rising or falling in United States?
- Over the last ten years it is up 68.9%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this United States data come from?
- The figures come from Government Finance Statistics Yearbook and data files, International Monetary Fund (IMF), published as part of Interest payments (% of expense). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
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About this data
Interest payments include interest payments on government debt (including long-term bonds, long-term loans, and other debt instruments) to domestic and foreign residents. This indicator is expressed as percentage of total expenses which is any decrease in net worth resulting from a transaction.