How Much Debt Does Each Generation Have?
There are currently five generations that include adults, Gen Z to the silent generation. While we can identify some patterns in the way debt flows from one generation to the next, each has a very different debt profile.
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After all, it’s not just age that affects how much of each type of debt each generation has. There are also cultural, economic and policy factors that affect how much debt each age group takes on. In general, though, the average amount of debt looks like a bell curve: Debt levels increase as you move into older generations with Gen X being the most indebted. Then, the two generations older than Gen X have decreasing levels of debt.
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In this gallery, we’ll take a look at the debt breakdown for each generation in 2020. This will cover major categories like mortgages, auto loans and student loans. As we do, keep an eye on how the total debt amount changes across generations as well as which items are driving increasing debt amounts. Read on to see how each generation is doing in terms of debt.
Last updated: Sept. 17, 2021
Gen Z (18-23)
Average debt: $16,043
2019-2020 % change in debt: 67.2%
Average credit card balance: $1,963
Average mortgage balance: $169,470
Average auto loan balance: $15,724
Average personal loan balance: $6,004
Average student loan balance: $17,338
Average HELOC balance: $36,107
The youngest generation on this report, Gen Z, has the smallest amount of debt. However, it also had by far the biggest change in debt from 2019-2020.
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Millennials (24-39)
Average debt: $87,448
2019-2020 % change in debt: 11.5%
Average credit card balance: $4,322
Average mortgage balance: $237,349
Average auto loan balance: $19,011
Average personal loan balance: $12,306
Average student loan balance: $38,877
Average HELOC balance: $40,496
Millennials sit right in the middle of Gen Z and Gen X in terms of total average debt. But millennials are buying homes at the highest rates, which may help explain why their average mortgage balance is almost as high as that of Gen X.
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Gen X (40-55)
Average debt: $140,643
2019-2020 % change in debt: 3.5%
Average credit card balance: $7,155
Average mortgage balance: $247,564
Average auto loan balance: $22,307
Average personal loan balance: $17,733
Average student loan balance: $45,095
Average HELOC balance: $46,660
The only type of debt Gen X doesn’t have the most of is personal loans; they have slightly less than baby boomers. Their change in debt from 2019-2020 remained positive, though it continues the downward trend compared to younger generations.
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Baby Boomers (56-74)
Average debt: $97,290
2019-2020 % change in debt:0.3%
Average credit card balance: $6,043
Average mortgage balance: $178,688
Average auto loan balance: $19,306
Average personal loan balance: $19,700
Average student loan balance: $40,512
Average HELOC balance: $41,498
Baby boomers had only a slight increase in total average debt from 2019-2020. Despite the increase, their total average debt was quite a bit less than that of Gen X in 2020.
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Silent Generation (75+)
Average debt: $41,281
2019-2020 % change in debt: -4.6%
Average credit card balance: $3,177
Average mortgage balance: $133,827
Average auto loan balance: $14,750
Average personal loan balance: $17,123
Average student loan balance: $28,052
Average HELOC balance: $35,929
The silent generation had over $40,000 of debt in 2020, but it is the only generation on the report to have decreased its total debt from 2019-2020. That helped them have the second-lowest amount of debt overall, after Gen Z.
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United States Averages
Average debt: $92,727
2019-2020 % change in debt: 0.3%
Average credit card balance: $5,315
Average mortgage balance: $208,185
Average auto loan balance: $19,703
Average personal loan balance: $16,458
Average student loan balance: $38,792
Average HELOC balance: $41,954
Taking a look at the entire United States, we can see that total average debt only increased slightly, in line with the change for baby boomers. The total average was $92,727 in 2020 with student loans and auto loans making up the bulk of that number.
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Methodology: GOBankingRates used data from Experian's 2020 Consumer Debt Study to find how much debt Americans have at every age. Experian's data breaks down debt along generational lines with age ranges as follows: Gen Z 18-23, Millenials 24-39, Gen X 40-55, Baby boomers 56-74, and the Silent generation 75+. For each generation, GOBankingRates found (1) the average total debt balance, (2) the percent change in average total debt balance from 2019-2020, (3) the average credit card balance, (4) the average mortgage balance, (5) the average auto loan balance, (6) the average personal loan balance, (7) the average student loan balance, and (8) the average home equity line of credit (HELOC) balance from Experian. All data was collected on and up to date as of Sept. 7, 2021.
This article originally appeared on GOBankingRates.com: How Much Debt Does Each Generation Have?
