Average Debt By Age & Generation

Borrowing money, whether with a credit card or a personal loan, enables consumers to do all kinds of things, from making safe transactions with cards embedded with rewards to getting out of jams and purchasing cars, homes, electronics, and appliances.

Borrowing also helps people send their children to private schools and pursue higher education. For entrepreneurs, it enables them to launch, operate, and grow a business.

Of course, the downside is that borrowing can also lead to overwhelming debt and delinquencies.

Let’s break down the borrowing habits of each generation and how much they owe.

The Greatest Generation: Current Age 98 to 124

People in The Greatest Generation¹ were born between the years 1901 and 1927.

There isn’t a large amount of data describing this generation’s current debt load, that’s because members of The Greatest Generation generally exceed the age of 100, but the data ends at the age of 99.

Not much debt data exists on The Greatest Generation because its members were born between 1901 and 1927, meaning most are over 100 years old. The current data age range ends at 99.

People of this generation lived through the Roaring ’20s when money was fluid and borrowing was easy, and then through the Great Depression when 9,000 banks went belly up in the 1930s.

As consumer purchasing power declined and hardships intensified, people in The Greatest Generation lost so much trust in the banking system that the Emergency Banking Act of 1933² was passed to stabilize and restore confidence.

The Silent Generation: Current Age 80 to 97

People in the Silent Generation³ were born between the years 1928 and 1945. Much more information about their debt load is available:

• Total credit card debt: Overall, this generation carries an average of $3428 in total credit card debt per person, which is the lowest amount among five generations (Generation Z, Generation Y/Millennials, Generation X, Baby Boomers, and the Silent Generation), according to Experian⁴.
• Mortgage debt: The Silent Generation holds an average mortgage debt of $146,015, according to Experian.
• Total non-mortgage loan debt: They owe an average non-mortgage debt of $6851, according to Experian⁵.
  
  In this generation, the younger the consumer, the higher the credit card debt.

Increasing Debt Among The Silent Generation and Older

Although people of this generation are often on a fixed income, they seem to be taking on more obligations, with payments and interest eroding the money they saved to live on.

The share of people aged 75 or older who lead a household and carry debt jumped to 53.4% in 2022, from 51.4% in 2019, up from 41.3% in 2013 and 31.2% in 2007, according to an Employee Benefit Research Institute study published in 2024⁶.

Baby Boomers: Current Age 61 to 79

People who fit into the baby boomer generation⁷ were born between the years 1946 and 1964. More information about their debt load — including student loan and auto loan debt — is available for this generation.

• Total credit card debt: This generation carries an average of $6754 in total credit card debt per person, the second-highest amount among five generations, according to Experian.
• Mortgage debt: Baby boomers hold an average mortgage debt of $194,334, according to Experian.
• Total non-mortgage loan debt: They owe an average non-mortgage debt of $18,474, according to Experian.
• Student loan debt: The federal student loan average balance per borrower for people 62 and older (so baby boomers and older) is $43,172.41, according to the 2025 U.S. Department of Education’s Federal Student Aid report⁸. Forbes reports that this is likely due to Parents PLUS loans secured for their children.
• Auto loan debt: Baby boomers who carry an auto loan balance owe an average of $22,190, according to Experian.
  
  As is true with the Silent Generation, the average credit card debt for baby boomers lessens with age.

Increasing Debt Among Baby Boomers

This generation saw a slight decrease in borrowing. In the 65-to-74 age group, 64.8% carried debt, compared to 70% in 2019, 66.4% in 2013, and 65.2% in 2007, according to the Employee Benefit Research Institute.

Generation X: Current Age 45 to 60

People in Generation X were born between 1965 and 1980. Even more information about their debt load begins to emerge for this generation, including student loan and auto loan debt.

• Total credit card debt: This generation carries an average of $9,557 in total credit card debt per person, the highest among five generations, according to Experian.
• Mortgage debt: Generation X holds an average mortgage debt of $283,677, according to Experian.
• Total non-mortgage loan debt: They owe an average non-mortgage debt of $30,879, according to Experian.
• Student loan debt: The federal student loan average balance per borrower for people who are 50 to 61 (roughly late Gen Xers) is $46,555.56, according to the 2025 Q1 Federal Student Aid report.
• Auto loan debt: On average, people in Generation X who carry a car loan balance owe $27,602, according to Experian.
  

This is the generation during which credit card debt begins to shift and increases with age.

High Debt is Impacting Saving For Retirement

People who fit within this age group are typically those who aggressively set cash aside for their retirement years. 

However, a Schwab Retirement Plan Services⁹ survey of 401(k) plan participants discovered that 40% of Generation Xers are very confident they’ll reach their retirement goals, while 27% of them see credit card debt repayment as an obstacle to meeting their goals.

Millennials (Generation Y): Current Age 28 to 44

People who fit in the millennial generation¹⁰ (also called Generation Y) were born between the years 1981 and 1997.

• Total credit card debt: This generation carries an average of $6,932 in credit card debt per person, the second-highest amount among five generations, according to Experian.
• Mortgage debt: Millennials hold an average mortgage debt of $312,014, according to Experian.
• Total non-mortgage loan debt: They owe an average non-mortgage debt of $27,976, according to Experian.
• Student loan debt: The federal student loan average balance per borrower for people ages 35 to 49 (late millennials to early Gen Xers) is $44,244.90. People ages 25 to 34 (early to mid-millennials) owe an average of $33,041.10, according to the Federal Student Aid report.
• Auto loan debt: Millennials who carry a car loan balance owe an average of $24,942, according to Experian.
  
  Similar to Gen X, millennials’ average credit card debt increases with age.

College Debt Woes

Millennials are especially concerned about college costs because they’re burdened with the highest share of it, according to Education Data Initiative¹¹. The survey found that 42% of Americans in this age group chose not to pursue higher education to avoid debt.

Generation Z: Current Age 11 to 23

People who fit into Generation Z¹² were born between the years 1998 and 2010.

As expected, people who are under the age of 18 are not typically included in debt surveys and reports because, as minors, they cannot enter into contracts for credit cards and loans. However, there is data for this generation, typically starting when they reach adulthood in the eyes of the law.

• Total credit card debt: Generation Z carries an average of $3,456 in total credit card debt per person, the lowest among five generations, according to Shift Processing.
• Mortgage debt: Gen Z holds an average mortgage debt of $249,744, according to Experian.
• Total non-mortgage loan debt: They owe an average non-mortgage debt of $15,022, according to Experian.
• Student loan debt: The federal student loan average balance per borrower for people who are 24 and younger is $13,641.79, according to the Federal Student Aid report.
• Auto loan debt: Generation Z borrowers who carry a car loan balance owe an average of $20,657, according to Experian.
  

No debt information has been reported for people who are under the age of 20.

College Debt Changes

Changes are emerging for those in this age group who are planning for a college education.

According to the Education Data survey, 84% of Generation Z respondents said they had put off major investments due to their debt, and 72% have made employment decisions based on it.

Generation Alpha: Current Age 0 to 14

And now we come to the future: people born between the years 2011 and 2025, or Generation Alpha¹³. Of course, babies and children have no debt of their own, though their parents and grandparents — and perhaps even their great-grandparents — most likely do.

Will this generation have the same needs and desires to borrow money? At this stage, nobody knows.

Sources & Further Reading:

1. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Greatest_Generation ↩︎
2. https://ballotpedia.org/Emergency_Banking_Act ↩︎
3. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Silent_Generation ↩︎
4. https://www.experian.com/blogs/ask-experian/state-of-credit-cards/ ↩︎
5. https://www.experian.com/blogs/ask-experian/research/consumer-debt-study/ ↩︎
6. https://www.ebri.org/content/comparing-trends-in-debt-held-by-american-families-with-older-and-younger-family-heads ↩︎
7. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Baby_boomers ↩︎
8. https://studentaid.gov/data-center/student/portfolio ↩︎
9. https://content.schwab.com/web/retail/public/about-schwab/schwab_2024_401k_participant_survey_findings.pdf ↩︎
10. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Millennials ↩︎
11. https://educationdata.org/student-loan-debt-by-generation ↩︎
12. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Generation_Z ↩︎
13. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Generation_Alpha ↩︎