WASHINGTON, DC – Today, the Joint Economic Committee released its Monthly Debt Update for May.

As of May 5, 2026, total gross national debt is $38.91 trillion. Relative to one year ago, total gross national debt is $2.70 trillion higher; relative to five years ago, it is $10.75 trillion higher. Over the past year, the rate of increase averaged $7.39 billion per day, $307.98 million per hour, $5.13 million per minute, or $85,550.14 per second.

The increase in gross national debt over the past year amounts to $7,889.92 per person or $20,015.65 per household. Total gross national debt amounts to $113,792 per person or $288,676 per household.

Assuming the average daily rate of growth over the past three years continues, the U.S. will reach $39 trillion by approximately May 18, 2026. At that rate, an increase of another trillion dollars would be reached in approximately 147 days.

As of April 2026, the average interest rate on the total marketable national debt is 3.373 percent. One year ago, it was 3.354 percent; five years ago, it was 1.491 percent. This means that, today, the U.S. is paying more just in interest payments than it was even one year ago, and significantly more than it was five years ago.

Interest rates have a significant impact in how much the U.S. pays on debt. The total amount of interest paid to trust funds over the past 12 months was $255.95 billion, an average of $21.33 billion per month. Net interest as a share of outlays is forecast by the Congressional Budget Office to be 13.95 percent in FY2026, 14.25 percent in FY2027, and 14.94 percent in FY2028.

Please see the full Monthly Debt Update for greater detail of the nation's debt profile.

Please see our Daily Debt Monitor for more information on the growing national debt.

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