how many americans have student loans

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How Many Americans Have Student Loans?

There’s an easy question to answer: almost everyone.

According to a recent study, about 70% of American students have taken out a loan for higher education. This number has risen steadily over the past decade, as more and more students opt for college or graduate school.

And while college is still considered a worthwhile investment by many experts and economists, the high cost of tuition is making it harder than ever for young Americans to afford higher education without taking out loans.

How Many Americans Have Student Loan Debt?

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About 42.9 million Americans have federal student loans, according to the most recent data from the U.S. Department of Education. That means about 1 in 8 (12.9%) people in the United States carry student loan debt, per an analysis of census data.

Total outstanding student loan debt is $1.59 trillion, according to second quarter of 2021 data from the federal government. Private student loan debt comprises around 7.89% of that total, or around $1.728 billion, according to 2021 data from MeasureOne, a higher education data and analytics firm.

Here are some key stats about the 43 million Americans with student debt:

Who is the typical student loan borrower?

A typical student loan borrower, statistically, has left school with nearly $30,000 in debt. The average among the class of 2019 was $28,950, according to the Institute for College Access and Success. About 25% went to graduate school, according to the Brookings Institution; the rest sought associate or bachelor’s degrees.

In general, women borrow more for college compared with men, and Black students borrow more compared with all other races and ethnicities.

Student debt is most common in the 25-to-34 age group, but the greatest amount of debt is owed by those 35 to 49 — more than $600 billion in undergraduate, graduate and parent loans, as well as payments stretched out by forbearance or income-driven repayment plans.

Student loan debt by age

The age group with the most federal student debt is 35- to 49-year-olds, with $601.7 billion. But the most borrowers are in the 25-to-34 age group. Here’s how student loan debt breaks down by age:

Age group	Millions of borrowers	Billions in debt
24 and younger	7.5	$113.7
25 to 34	14.9	$500.6
35 to 49	14.3	$613.0
50 to 61	6.3	$273.7
62 and older	2.4	$92.7
Source

Typical debt amounts by age group

Across all age groups, the typical amount of student debt for most borrowers is between $10,000 and $40,000. Those ages 35 to 49 are the group with the greatest amount of high debt ($200,000 and more). Here’s a more detailed picture of the typical amounts held by each group:

• Among those 24 and younger, most (2.11 million) have between $10,000 and $20,000 of student debt.
• Among 25- to 34-year-olds, most (3.56 million) have between $20,000 and $40,000 of student debt.
• Among 35- to 49-year-olds, most (2.87 million) have between $20,000 and $40,000 of student debt.
• Among 50- to 61-year-olds, most (1.16 million) have between $20,000 and $40,000 of student debt.
• Among those age 62 and older, most (490,000) have less than $5,000 of debt.

Source: Studentaid.gov, Federal Student Loan Portfolio by Age and Debt Size, March 31, 2021

Student loan debt by race and gender

Asian and Hispanic student loan borrowers have the lowest debt loads compared with all other races and ethnicities, while Black student loan borrowers tend to hold the greatest average debt, federal data shows.

The average debt disparity is exacerbated even further for Black women, who carry higher average debt than women across all races and ethnicities, according to the American Association of University Women.

Here’s what average student debt looks like for men and women across race and ethnicity:

Race/ethnicity	Women	Men
Asian	$25,252	$25,507
Black	$37,558	$35,665
Hispanic or Latinx	$27,029	$27,452
White	$31,346	$29,862
Source

Women hold two-thirds of all outstanding loan debt compared with men, according to an analysis of federal data by the AAUW. There’s little data available that includes gender-nonconforming student borrowers.

One of the primary reasons women hold more debt is because they earn the majority of degrees at all levels — from certificates to doctor’s degrees, according to federal data.

But carrying greater amounts of debt is a problem since women, by and large, tend to have less earning power than men: Women with bachelor’s degrees earn, on average, 74 cents on the dollar compared with men with that degree, according to the U.S. Census Bureau.

The largest average debt loads are held by women who attend for-profit four-year schools — about 44% more than women who attend public four-year institutions. Here’s what student debt totals for women look like across types of four-year institutions:

Type of institution	Mean debt borrowed by women
Public four-year	$29,611
Private nonprofit four-year	$32,086
For-profit four-year	$42,778
Source

Average student loan amounts by debt type

Debt type	Average debt
Bachelor’s degree debt	$28,950
Graduate school loan debt	$71,000
Parent PLUS loan debt	$28,778
Law school debt	$145,500
MBA student debt	$66,300
Medical school debt	$201,490
Dental school debt	$292,169
Pharmacy school loan debt	$179,514
Nursing school student debt	$19,928: Associate Degree Nursing (ADN) $23,711: Bachelor of Science in Nursing (BSN)$47,321: Master of Science in Nursing (MSN)
Veterinary school debt	$183,302
Sources

how many people have student loans

How Many People Have Student Loans?

Last Updated: May 25, 2022 Cite this WebpageBy Melanie HansonFact Checked

Report Highlights. The number of people with student loans outstanding is now 43.4 million, up 1.2% year-over-year (YoY).

• 92.8 million living Americans have had student loan debt at some point.
• Among borrowers with a federal student loan balance, 24.8 million have loans in forbearance, up 7.4% YoY.
• 6.1 million student loan borrowers are still in school, down 6.2% YoY.
• A minimum of 15.8 million indebted borrowers have loans from both undergraduate and postgraduate school.

For related research, read our reports on Student Loan Debt Statistics | How Do People Pay For College? | Number of College Graduates | Economic Effects of Student Loan Debt | Student Loan Refinancing 

How Many People Have Outstanding Student Loans?

The number of people with student loan debt has increased by an average of 827,273 per year over the last decade.

• 38.3 million people with student loan debt outstanding owe repayment for an undergraduate education.
• 17.9 million people with outstanding student debt owe for a postgraduate education.
• 34.3 million borrowers carry a balance on Stafford loans, up 2.4% YoY.
• 11.2 million indebted borrowers carry a balance on consolidated loans, down 2.6% YoY.
• 1.6 million student borrowers owe Grad PLUS loans; 1.5 million owe Perkins loans.
• A minimum of 15.8 million indebted borrowers have loans from both undergraduate and postgraduate school.
• 6.1 million people with outstanding student loans report they are behind on payments.
• 34.4 million report their payments are current.
• Among borrowers with a student loan balance, a minimum of 3.5 million took out loans on behalf of children or grandchildren.

Year	Total Borrowers	Estimated Change YoY
2021	43,400,000	500,000
2020	42,900,000	0
2019	42,900,000	0
2018	42,900,000	300,000
2017	42,600,000	300,000
2016	42,300,000	700,000
2015	41,600,000	900,000
2014	40,700,000	1,100,000
2013	39,600,000	1,300,000
2012	38,300,000	1,800,000
2011	36,500,000	2,200,000

How Many People Had Student Loans Qualify for CARES?

The federal government implemented the CARES Act between the second and third financial quarters of 2020. This legislation affected a minimum of 20 million borrowers, and federal student loan debt relief continues into 2022.

• 22.3 million borrowers had loans in forbearance in 2020’s third financial quarter, which is 18.5 million more than there were in the previous financial quarter (2020Q2).
• 300,000 borrowers had loans in repayment in 2020Q3, down 17.8 million from the previous quarter.
• 5.9 million indebted borrowers were in school in 2020Q3, which was 900,000 fewer than there were in the previous financial quarter.
• In 2022Q1, 6.1 million indebted borrowers were still in school, down 10.3% from 2020Q2.
• 2021Q3 had the lowest number of borrowers in school (5.6 million) in over a decade.
• 1.2 million borrowers had loans in a grace period in 2022Q1, which is 400,000 fewer than there were in the previous financial quarter.
• 2.9 million borrowers had loans in deferment, down 200,000 from the previous quarter.
• 5.0 million borrowers have loans in cumulative default, which is the lowest number of borrowers in default since 2018Q3.
• Zero borrowers have loans that are considered delinquent.

How Many People Have Student Loan Debt by Demographics?

Due to privacy and antidiscrimination laws, not all debt-related demographic information is recorded or publicized; the available data is usually expressed in terms of percentages within each particular group.

• An estimated 25.3 million indebted student borrowers are women; 18.1 million are men.
• 25.3 million indebted student borrowers attended public institutions.
• 200,000 borrowers attended foreign institutions.
• 13.7 million borrowers attended private institutions, and 12.4 million attended proprietary institutions.
• 10.1 million federal student loan recipients attended an other or undisclosed type of institution.
• 7.4 million student borrowers under the age of 25, down 3.9% YoY.
• 14.9 million borrowers are between the ages of 25 and 34, up 0.7% YoY.
• 14.4 million indebted borrowers are between the ages of 35 and 49, up 0.7% YoY.
• 6.4 million are aged 50 to 61 years, up 3.2% YoY.
• 2.5 million are ages 62 and older, up 8.7% YoY.
• Among indebted student borrowers, an estimated 24.0 million make less than $50,000 per year.
• 389 million federal loan borrowers are undergraduate certificate recipients.
• 581 million are associate’s degree recipients owe an average of $21,890 each in federal loans.
• 33.6 million are bachelor’s degree holders.
• 12.1 million are master’s degree holders.
• 2.1 million are doctoral degree recipients.
• 2.2 million are professional degree holders.

Location	Borrowers Under 25	Total Borrowers
Alabama	111,000	632,500
Alaska	8,900	67,500
Arizona	122,100	886,700
Arkansas	67,700	389,600
California	580,000	3,820,300
Colorado	116,700	773,700
Connecticut	114,200	497,500
Delaware	25,200	127,700
D.C.	13,600	117,900
Florida	349,100	2,621,500
Georgia	273,100	1,646,700
Hawaii	21,500	122,300
Idaho	34,600	218,000
Illinois	318,800	1,630,500
Indiana	159,700	906,200
Iowa	90,000	433,200
Kansas	71,900	383,500
Kentucky	100,000	600,800
Louisiana	126,700	651,000
Maine	36,900	187,000
Maryland	142,000	837,100
Massachusetts	225,900	901,300
Michigan	242,100	1,411,300
Minnesota	164,000	788,500
Mississippi	71,600	438,500
Missouri	135,800	832,800
Montana	20,700	126,600
Nebraska	52,400	247,500
Nevada	45,900	349,400
New Hampshire	43,000	190,600
New Jersey	281,000	1,198,200
New Mexico	26,800	228,000
New York	498,500	2,457,300
North Carolina	235,600	1,303,700
North Dakota	21,000	87,400
Ohio	312,300	1,793,400
Oklahoma	73,800	488,100
Oregon	69,600	542,800
Pennsylvania	398,000	1,821,400
Puerto Rico	47,700	327,600
Rhode Island	31,200	143,300
South Carolina	131,600	731,100
South Dakota	27,300	116,200
Tennessee	138,300	861,700
Texas	630,300	3,643,400
Utah	50,400	307,500
Vermont	16,700	77,200
Virginia	201,400	1,082,200
Washington	113,200	788,100
West Virginia	39,700	227,100
Wisconsin	151,300	727,300
Wyoming	8,400	54,400
Other	12,900	92,700
Not Reported	5,100	3,695,700

Sources

1. U.S. Census Bureau (Census), QuickFacts
2. Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System Report on the Economic Well-Being of U.S. Households in 2019-May 2020
3. The MeasureOne Private Student Loan Report
4. Census,Data Tables
5. United States Department of Education Office of Federal Student Aid Federal Student Loan Portfolio.
6. Morning Consult, National Tracking Poll #190963 Crosstabulation Results
7. Morning Consult, National Tracking Poll #210134: Respondent Demographics Summary