united states
federal deficit coin
Debtrics
Putting the national debt & federal deficit into perspective
Everyday American Reality
The US adds enough debt every 8 minutes to buy a $5 coffee for every American adult.
The daily interest on the national debt equals 4.2 million average mortgage payments.
Without debt interest payments, federal income tax rates could be reduced by approximately 25% across all brackets.
Market & Economic Context
The national debt equals approximately 30 Apple companies at current market valuation.
The national debt could purchase the entire global cryptocurrency market approximately 25 times over.
The US has moved from 13th to 4th place in debt-to-GDP ratio among developed nations since 2000.
Generational Burden Transfer
When Boomers bought their first homes, the average price was 2× annual salary; today it's 7× annual salary.
Each child born in America today inherits approximately $102,000 in federal debt at birth.
The dollar has lost 97% of its purchasing power since 1913, with the steepest declines corresponding to debt expansion periods.
Government Financial Hypocrisy
Using the FICO algorithm, the US government would have a credit score of approximately 530 - considered 'Very Poor' and ineligible for most credit products.
The government violates at least 23 different consumer financial protection guidelines it enforces against private lenders.
Following Dave Ramsey's debt snowball method, it would take approximately 188 years to pay off the national debt.
Alternative Possibilities
One year of interest payments could rebuild every structurally deficient bridge in America and upgrade the entire electrical grid.
One year of interest payments equals 8× NASA's current budget, enough to establish permanent Moon bases and accelerate Mars missions.
Six months of interest payments could double the National Park system and fully address its maintenance backlog.