Student Loan Debt Relief Statistics 34% of student borrowers owe $10,000 or less in federal debt; 79% owe $40,000 or less.
More than a quarter of Americans with student debt owed $10,000 or less.
Among student borrowers, women take out an average of $31,276, while men borrow an average of $29,270, according to a 2021 data analysis by the American Association of University Women. Black women owe a disproportionate amount of student debt.
The average federal student loan debt is $37,338 per borrower. Private student loan debt averages $54,921 per borrower. The average student borrows over $30,000 to pursue a bachelor's degree. A total of 45.3 million borrowers have student loan debt; 92% of them have federal loan debt.
While the majority of students graduate with less than $20,000 in debt, a small portion of borrowers hold an outsize share of student debt. More than one-third of the total debt is held by the 7 percent of borrowers who owe more than $100,000.
43.6 million borrowers have federal student loan debt. The average federal student loan debt balance is $37,718, while the total average balance (including private loan debt) may be as high as $40,499.
Only a small percentage—about 6% of borrowers—owe $100,000 or more. Nationally, the average student loan balance per borrower is $39,032, so if you have $100,000 in student loan debt, you have about 2.5 times the national average balance. But your loan principal is just one part of the problem.
The average student borrower takes 20 years to pay off their student loan debt. Some professional graduates take over 45 years to repay student loans. 21% of borrowers see their total student loan debt balance increase in the first 5 years of their loan.
The average debt an American owes is $103,358 across mortgage loans, home equity lines of credit, auto loans, credit card debt, student loan debt, and other debts like personal loans. Data from Experian breaks down the average debt a consumer holds based on type, age, credit score, and state.
It would take the average bachelor's degree graduate about 10 years to pay off their student loan debt if they made debt payments of $300 a month. 18 million federal student loan borrowers are on a 10-year repayment plan. 2.9 million federal loan borrowers are on an extended repayment plan, which lasts up to 25 years.
The rise and fall of interest rates are also a logical factor. According to the Federal Reserve, 30-39 year-olds have an average student loan debt of $42,748. 40-49-year-olds possess an average student loan debt of $44,864. Borrowers 24 and younger owe an average of $14,563 in student loan debt.
Data Summary. The average federal student loan payment is about $302 for bachelor's and $208 for associate degree-completers. The average monthly repayment for master's degree-holders is about $688.
Around 23% of Americans are debt free, according to the most recent data available from the Federal Reserve. That figure factors in every type of debt, from credit card balances and student loans to mortgages, car loans and more.
If you want to attend college and are committed to doing the work and succeeding, then $10,000 total debt for four years is pretty trivial. Most such loans are subsidized federal direct (aka Stafford) loans, and you don't pay interest on those until six months after leaving school.
Some experts go even further, advising student loan payments remain at 10% or less of your gross income. In the above example, a salary of $29,100 would suggest that you should seek to pay just $243 a month or less. Of course, there's no guarantee you'll even land a job immediately.
Federal Student Loans by Age
However, people carry their education debt well into middle-age and beyond. Borrowers ages 35 to 49 owe more than $620 billion in student loans. This cohort has the highest number of borrowers who owe more than $100,000 in loans.
Statistics vary, but between 55 percent to 63 percent of Americans are likely living paycheck to paycheck.
If you have multiple credit cards and loans and feel overwhelmed by debt, you're not alone. Around 80% of Americans are in debt, and escaping it can be challenging. Moreover, Americans are accumulating debt due to factors like inflation and high credit card interest rates after saving more during the pandemic.
Financial setbacks made it difficult to achieve milestones
In addition to the plethora of financial challenges consumers faced this past year, 65% of Americans experienced financial setbacks in 2023.
This includes 21 percent of college attendees who still owed money on outstanding loans ("student loan borrowers") and 21 percent who borrowed but fully repaid their education debts.
On average, it takes about 10–20 years to pay off a student loan. But with the right strategy, you can pay off your loans way faster! (I'm about to blow your mind.)
A great way to pay off your $100,000 loan faster and save money on interest is to refinance your student loans. This involves taking out a new loan with lower interest rates and/or more favorable terms than the original loan. Refinancing could save you thousands of dollars over the life of your loan.
What is the monthly payment on a $70,000 student loan? The monthly payment on a $70,000 student loan ranges from $742 to $6,285, depending on the APR and how long the loan lasts. For example, if you take out a $70,000 student loan and pay it back in 10 years at an APR of 5%, your monthly payment will be $742.
One practical solution is Debt consolidation, which involves taking out a new loan at a lower interest rate to pay off multiple high-interest Debts. This can simplify your financial obligations and potentially reduce the amount you pay in interest.