Interest payments in United States of America
United States of America: Interest payments was 20.3% in 2024. ▬ Flat
Interest payments in United States of America, 1972–2024
Source: Government Finance Statistics Yearbook and data files, International Monetary Fund (IMF). Measured in % of revenue.
Analysis
The most recent figure for interest payments in United States of America is 20.3%, measured in 2024. That is the highest value across all 53 years on record.
The figure is up 12.6% on the previous year and up 115.6% over ten years.
Over the whole period, interest payments in United States of America peaked at 20.3% in 2024 and was at its lowest, 6.4%, in 1973.
That places United States of America 17th out of 155 countries with data for 2024, putting it in the top quarter.
Interest payments in United States of America, year by year
| Year | % of revenue | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1972 | 6.9% | — |
| 1973 | 6.4% | -7.2% |
| 1974 | 8.3% | +28.9% |
| 1975 | 8.4% | +1.6% |
| 1976 | 9.2% | +9.6% |
| 1977 | 9.0% | -2.4% |
| 1978 | 8.2% | -8.6% |
| 1979 | 9.6% | +17.1% |
| 1980 | 11.2% | +16.6% |
| 1981 | 12.3% | +9.2% |
| 1982 | 14.7% | +19.7% |
| 1983 | 16.4% | +11.5% |
| 1984 | 17.2% | +5.1% |
| 1985 | 19.2% | +11.8% |
| 1986 | 18.8% | -2.3% |
| 1987 | 17.2% | -8.6% |
| 1988 | 17.5% | +1.8% |
| 1989 | 17.3% | -1.2% |
| 1990 | 18.1% | +4.7% |
| 1991 | 18.9% | +4.4% |
| 1992 | 18.7% | -0.7% |
| 1993 | 17.0% | -9.0% |
| 1994 | 16.1% | -5.5% |
| 1995 | 16.3% | +1.3% |
| 1996 | 16.5% | +1.0% |
| 1997 | 15.3% | -7.4% |
| 1998 | 14.1% | -7.8% |
| 1999 | 12.7% | -10.2% |
| 2000 | 11.2% | -11.4% |
| 2001 | 12.5% | +11.7% |
| 2002 | 12.0% | -4.3% |
| 2003 | 11.1% | -7.7% |
| 2004 | 10.7% | -3.0% |
| 2005 | 11.0% | +2.6% |
| 2006 | 10.9% | -1.0% |
| 2007 | 11.6% | +6.6% |
| 2008 | 11.2% | -3.5% |
| 2009 | 11.2% | -0.4% |
| 2010 | 11.4% | +1.9% |
| 2011 | 12.5% | +10.1% |
| 2012 | 11.7% | -6.8% |
| 2013 | 9.3% | -20.1% |
| 2014 | 9.4% | +1.0% |
| 2015 | 8.8% | -6.4% |
| 2016 | 9.9% | +12.5% |
| 2017 | 9.8% | -1.2% |
| 2018 | 12.3% | +25.2% |
| 2019 | 12.8% | +4.3% |
| 2020 | 10.9% | -14.8% |
| 2021 | 11.4% | +4.4% |
| 2022 | 13.4% | +17.9% |
| 2023 | 18.0% | +34.3% |
| 2024 | 20.3% | +12.6% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1970s | 8.3% | 6.4% | 9.6% | 8 |
| 1980s | 16.2% | 11.2% | 19.2% | 10 |
| 1990s | 16.4% | 12.7% | 18.9% | 10 |
| 2000s | 11.3% | 10.7% | 12.5% | 10 |
| 2010s | 10.8% | 8.8% | 12.8% | 10 |
| 2020s | 14.8% | 10.9% | 20.3% | 5 |
Countries ranked near United States of America
- 14 Uganda 21.0% compare
- 15 Guinea-Bissau 21.0% compare
- 16 Bangladesh 20.8% compare
- 18 Mexico 20.0% compare
- 19 Bahamas 20.0% compare
- 20 Dominican Republic 19.3% compare
More public sector data for United States of America
- 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 of America?
- Interest payments in United States of America was 20.3% in 2024, according to Government Finance Statistics Yearbook and data files, International Monetary Fund (IMF).
- What is the highest interest payments recorded in United States of America?
- The highest recorded value was 20.3% in 2024.
- What is the lowest interest payments recorded in United States of America?
- The lowest recorded value was 6.4% in 1973.
- How does United States of America rank for interest payments?
- United States of America ranks 17th out of 155 countries with data for 2024.
- Is interest payments rising or falling in United States of America?
- Over the last ten years it is up 115.6%. The long-run trend across the full record is flat.
- Where does this United States of America 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 revenue). 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 a percentage of revenue which includes all transactions that add to the amount of economic value of a unit or sector.