Men have 20% more personal loan debt than women. Men have 16.3% more auto loan debt than women. Men have 9.7% more mortgage debt than women. Women have 2.7% more student loan debt than men.
Women hold 66% of all student loan debt. 41% of women undergraduates take out student loans, compared to 35% of male undergraduates. Women take an additional two years on average to pay off student loans. Black women have the highest average amount of debt.
Approximately three-quarters of Black- and White-headed families have debt, but the median debt-to-asset ratio is 50% higher among Black than White families (Copeland, 2020), with Black borrowers less likely to fully repay loans (Brevoort et al., 2021).
As of the third quarter of 2022, the average American held $101,915 in debt, according to Experian. Keep in mind that while this number might seem staggering, it's an average — some consumers carry more or less than this amount of debt.
Between April and June 2023, Gen Z, people born between 1997 and 2012, had an average credit card balance of $3,328, a 4.23% increase from January to March 2023, where their average balance was $3,193, according to Credit Karma.
By generation, Gen Xers have the most nonmortgage debt
Comparatively, the generation with the least debt — Gen Zers (ages 18 to 26) — owes less than half as much, with an average balance of $21,665.
Gen Zers face greater obstacles to financial success
Not only are their wages lower than their parents' earnings when they were in their 20s and 30s, but they are also carrying larger student loan balances.
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. The exact definition of debt free can vary, though, depending on whom you ask.
Nearly one in four (22 percent) U.S. adults said they have no emergency savings. Despite economic challenges, the percentage remains relatively unchanged year-over-year. In 2022, 23 percent of Americans had no emergency savings.
Statistics vary, but between 55 percent to 63 percent of Americans are likely living paycheck to paycheck.
In 2022, the typical White household had about six times as much wealth as the typical Black household and five times as much as the typical Hispanic household.
United States. The United States boasts both the world's biggest national debt in terms of dollar amount and its largest economy, which resolves to a debt-to GDP ratio of approximately 128.13%.
At the top is Japan, whose national debt has remained above 100% of its GDP for two decades, reaching 255% in 2023.
According to Capital One Shopping Research, women spend nearly $35 trillion globally on consumer goods, equivalent to 50% of worldwide consumer spending. American women tend to shop more than men, with 39.4% of women shopping on any given day, compared to 33.7% of men.
Black women owe a disproportionate amount of student debt. They hold 43% more undergraduate debt and nearly 99% more graduate school debt than their white woman counterparts 12 months after graduation, according to an April 2022 study by the nonprofit organization The Education Trust.
Most American households have at least $1,000 in checking or savings accounts. But only about 12% have more than $100,000 in checking and savings.
There's no one-size-fits-all number in your bank or investment account that means you've achieved this stability, but $100,000 is a good amount to aim for. For most people, it's not anywhere near enough to retire on, but accumulating that much cash is usually a sign that something's going right with your finances.
The 50-30-20 rule recommends putting 50% of your money toward needs, 30% toward wants, and 20% toward savings. The savings category also includes money you will need to realize your future goals. Let's take a closer look at each category.
Myth 1: Being debt-free means being rich.
A common misconception is equating a lack of debt with wealth. Having debt simply means that you owe money to creditors. Being debt-free often indicates sound financial management, not necessarily an overflowing bank account.
$5,000 in credit card debt can be quite costly in the long run. That's especially the case if you only make minimum payments each month. However, you don't have to accept decades of credit card debt. There are a few things you can do to pay your debt off faster - potentially saving thousands of dollars in the process.
Over the past year, nearly three out of four (73%) Gen Zers say they've changed their spending habits due to increased prices. Their lifestyle changes have included cooking at home more frequently (43%) rather than dining out, spending less on clothes (40%) and limiting grocery purchases to the essentials (33%).
Generation Z is the youngest working generation, and many Gen Zers have still not reached working age. According to a recent report by the TransAmerica Center for Retirement studies, members of this generation have a median of $33,000 across all of their retirement savings accounts.
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.