Average Student Loan Debt in 2025

Updated on February 11, 2025

Edited by

• Fact-checked by Marley Rose

The average federal student loan debt is $38,375. How does student debt compare across different schools or student groups? Explore more in our report.

Asian American female college student using her credit card to pay her student loan bill. She is looking at her mobile phone, looking shocked at the amount she has to pay.

Credit: Image Credit: MTStock Studio / E+ / Getty Images

Data Summary

42.7 million Americans have federal student loan debt.^{Note Reference [1]}
The total federal student debt balance is $1.64 trillion dollars, which has roughly tripled since 2007.^{Note Reference [1]}
Including private student loans, the total student debt balance is $1.77 trillion dollars.^{Note Reference [2]}
30% of all U.S. adults have taken out a student loan at some point in their lives. 40% of adults who pursued a postsecondary education have been in student loan debt.^{Note Reference [3]}
52% of federal student loan borrowers are over the age of 35; 20% are over 50.^{Note Reference [1]}
Georgia, Maryland, Mississippi, and Virginia have among the highest levels of student debt in terms of average student debt and student debt per capita.^{Note Reference [1]},^{Note Reference [4]}
On average, Black borrowers have higher student debt levels than borrowers of other races.^{Note Reference [3]},^{Note Reference [5]}
People who attended for-profit colleges are more likely to have gone into student debt than those who attended public or private, nonprofit schools.^{Note Reference [3]}

Earning a college degree may qualify you for more diverse and higher-paying jobs, but it could also land you in student debt.

According to the National Center for Education Statistics, 39% of first-time college students in 2021-2022 took on student loan debt to help pay for school.^{Note Reference [6]} That’s quite the dip from 10 years prior, when roughly half of students borrowed student loans. However, due to interest rates, the mountain of student debt in the U.S. keeps growing. Now, it’s in the trillions.

Knowing the numbers behind rising student loan debt can help you make informed decisions about funding your education. This report rounds up the most recent data about student loan debt in the U.S.

Average Student Loan Debt by Year

According to Federal Student Aid, an office of the Department of Education, borrowers’ average student loan debt was $38,375 at the end of 2024.

That’s about $1,000 more than the average student loan debt of 2023 and close to twice the average student debt of 2008.

According to the Federal Reserve, the median student loan debt is somewhat lower than the average. The median debt is between $20,000 and $24,999^{Note Reference [3]}, meaning half of borrowers owe more and half owe less.

Total Student Loan Debt by Year

At $1.64 trillion, the federal student loan balance has more than tripled since 2007, when it was $516 billion.

The number of student loan borrowers has grown slower than the student debt balance.

The number of federal student loan borrowers has hovered around 41-43 million for the past 10 years. In fact, the number has even decreased in recent years, as shown in the graph below.

So, the student debt balance — and the average student loan debt per borrower — isn’t growing due to new borrowers, but because due to other factors, such as compounding interest on old student debt and the increasing cost of college.

Federal Versus Private Student Loan Debt

Federal student loans account for roughly 92.4% of all student debt in the United States.^{Note Reference [1]},^{Note Reference [2]} The rest is held in private student loans — loans offered by banks and other lenders.

People in the U.S. hold about $134.3 billion of debt in private student loans.^{Note Reference [1]},^{Note Reference [2]}

Often, though not always, private loans carry higher student loan interest than federal loans. Some private student loans have variable interest rates — meaning the rate may change throughout the life of the loan — while federal student loan interest rates are generally fixed. Learn more about interest rates for federal and private student loans.

Average Student Loan Debt by Age

So, who holds the most student loan debt? You might guess recent college graduates, but that’s not necessarily true.

Borrowers ages 24-34 hold about one-third (33%) of all student loan debt. But so do older millennials and young Gen X-ers — folks ages 35-49. This age group holds 32% of all student loan debt.

Additionally, 1 in 5 student loan borrowers (20%) are over age 50.

Generally, millennials with degrees are more likely than Gen Z-ers with degrees to have acquired student loan debt.^{Note Reference [3]}

According to the Federal Reserve, in 2023, 58% of millennials with a bachelor’s degree and 57% of Gen Z-ers with a bachelor’s degree took on student loan debt for their education. Sixty-four percent of millennials with a graduate degree versus 59% of Gen Z-ers with a graduate degree borrowed student loans.

Average Student Loan Debt by State

Maryland, Georgia, and Virginia have the highest average student loan debt balances per borrower. In each of these states, the average student loan debt amount is over $40,000.^{Note Reference [1]}

In addition, Georgia, Maryland, and Mississippi have the highest average student loan debt per capita — that’s the state’s total student loan balance divided by its population.^{Note Reference [1]},^{Note Reference [4]}

In Georgia and Mississippi, 15.2% of people — including residents of all ages — currently hold student loan debt.

Federal Student Loan Debt Statistics by State

State⇅

Total Student Debt⇅

Number of Borrowers⇅

Average Student Debt⇅

Student Debt Per Capita⇅

Percentage of Population in Debt⇅

Alabama

$24.80

657.2

$37,740

$4,810

12.7%

Alaska

$2.40

67.4

$35,610

$3,240

9.1%

Arizona

$32.80

914.4

$35,870

$4,330

12.1%

Arkansas

$13.80

403.9

$34,170

$4,470

13.1%

California

$151.40

3,949.40

$38,330

$3,840

10.0%

Colorado

$29.30

781.7

$37,480

$4,920

13.1%

Connecticut

$19.10

517.2

$36,930

$5,200

14.1%

Delaware

$5.30

135.5

$39,110

$5,040

12.9%

District of Columbia

$6.40

117.5

$54,470

$9,110

16.7%

Florida

$107.50

2,719.20

$39,530

$4,600

11.6%

…

Find more detailed student loan debt information for each state in our report: Student Loan Debt by State.

Average Student Loan Debt by Race and Ethnicity

According to the Federal Reserve’s Survey of Consumer Finances, in 2022, the average student loan debt was:^{Note Reference [5]}

$53,430 for Black, non-Hispanic adults
$46,140 for white, non-Hispanic adults
$26,460 for Hispanic adults
$51,810 for adults of other races

Black adults were also more likely to have student loan debt. Thirty-six percent of Black, non-Hispanic adults held student loan debt compared to 20% of white, non-Hispanic adults; 15% of Hispanic adults; and 24% of adults of other races.^{Note Reference [5]}

Additionally, in 2023, 52% of Black student loan borrowers had debt balances over $25,000 versus 42% of all borrowers.^{Note Reference [3]}

Several factors impact the Black student debt crisis in America, including generational wealth and race-based income inequity. Explore more statistics about student loan debt and race in our report: Examining Student Loan Debt by Race.

School Type, Degree, and Student Loan Debt

Generally, students pursuing advanced degrees are more likely to take out student loans. Additionally, the type of school students attend — public, private nonprofit, or private for-profit — can impact how much debt they take on.

Student Loan Debt by Degree

Graduate students are more likely to take out a federal student loan than learners pursuing other degrees or non-degree certificates.

In 2023, among people between the ages of 18 and 29:^{Note Reference [3]}

60% of graduate degree-holders went into debt for their education.
57% of bachelor’s degree-holders incurred student debt.
39% of associate degree-holders incurred student debt.

In addition, 71% of borrowers with a graduate degree, 48% of borrowers with a bachelor’s degree, and 31% of borrowers with an associate degree had student debt balances of over $25,000.^{Note Reference [3]}

For-Profit Colleges Leave Student With More Debt Than Public or Private Nonprofit Schools

People who attended a private college are more likely to have borrowed loans for their education than people who attended public colleges. People who attended a private for-profit college are the most likely to have borrowed student loan debt.

According to the Federal Reserve, in 2023:3

40% of people who attended a public college took on student loan debt.
57% of people who attended a private nonprofit college took on debt for their education.
63% of people who attended a private for-profit college took on debt for their education.

Public colleges tend to be less expensive than private colleges. And while private nonprofit tuition is often more expensive than private for-profit tuition, nonprofit schools are more likely to offer students free financial aid. Learn more about the price tag of a college education in our report: Exploring College Costs.