What is meant by credit card debt?
William Jenkins
Updated on February 14, 2026
Generally, credit card debt refers to the accumulated outstanding balances that many borrowers carry over from month to month. Credit card debt can be useful for borrowers seeking to make purchases with deferred payments over time. This type of debt does carry some of the industry’s highest interest rates.
How do I know my total credit card debt?
How to Figure Out Your Total Debt Balance
- Obtain a free copy of your credit report at AnnualCreditReport.com.
- Make a list of all of the active accounts on your credit report.
- Call the creditors or sign into your online accounts to find out your current balance.
- Add up the total amount you owe on each loan.
What is the total credit card debt in the United States?
Total U.S. credit card debt Total credit card balances in the United States are $893 billion as of the first quarter of 2020, according to the New York Federal Reserve. This has increased considerably over the past few years, but declined a bit in early 2020 as the COVID-19 pandemic hit.
Is credit card balance a debt?
Credit card debt is a type of revolving debt. You can keep borrowing month after month as long as you repay enough that you never owe more than your credit limit. Credit card accounts can be used indefinitely, unlike installment loan accounts that are closed once the balance is paid off.
What balance do credit card companies report?
The only way to accomplish this is to pay the balance in full and not use your credit card for the following month. At the end of the next month, your credit card company will report the zero balance to the credit bureaus, and your credit report will reflect your account’s paid-off status.
What is the total amount of credit card debt in the US?
Of the more than $1 trillion worth of revolving debt balances Americans are carrying in 2018, the vast majority is credit card debt. The total amount of debt carried as credit card balances hit $830 billion at the end of 2017.
What should my credit card debt ratio be?
Credit card debt ratio = Total monthly credit card payments / total net monthly income In general, you never want your minimum credit card payments to exceed 10 percent of your net income. Net income is the amount of income you take home after taxes and other deductions.
What was the US credit card debt in 2019?
Credit card debt hit a record high of $930 billion for Americans in the final quarter of 2019, according to the latest data from the Federal Reserve Bank of New York released on Feb. 11. That’s a $46 billion increase in credit card balances from the prior quarter and up an alarming $57 billion over the same period in 2018.
How is income related to credit card debt?
Credit Card Debt: Income & Employment. The correlations between income and credit card debt seem to show that money doesn’t necessarily buy debt freedom. In fact, average credit card debt appears to increase with annual income, and those with the largest income have the highest credit card balances.
