U.S. Federal Debt · Interest Paid
How much interest does the U.S. government pay?
In Aug 2026, accrued interest on U.S. Treasury debt held by the public came to $57.8B. Over the last twelve months the total was $795.9B, up from $679.5B in the twelve months before that.
Monthly interest expense on public issues
Accrued basis, Jan 2013 – Aug 2026. Hover the line for any month.
Download: interest-expense.csv · CSV · public domain
Where the interest goes, Aug 2026
Accrued interest by security type, for the month and for the fiscal year to date.
| Security type | This month | FY to date |
|---|---|---|
| Treasury Notes | $44.3B | $454.8B |
| Treasury Bonds | $15.7B | $162.9B |
| Treasury Floating Rate Notes (FRN) | $2.2B | $24.3B |
| Inflation Protected Securities (TIPS) | $2.2B | $22.2B |
| State & Local Government-C/I's, Notes & Bonds | $220.8M | $2.5B |
| Domestic Series - C/I's & Demand Deposits | $506268 | $17.1M |
| Int. Expense Inflation Compensation (TIPS) | $-6.8B | $70.1B |
By fiscal year
Federal fiscal years run October through September.
| Fiscal year | Interest expense | Coverage |
|---|---|---|
| FY2026 (partial) | $736.9B | 11 of 12 months |
| FY2025 | $689.2B | full year |
| FY2024 | $575.9B | full year |
| FY2023 | $467.4B | full year |
| FY2022 | $454.9B | full year |
| FY2021 | $376.2B | full year |
| FY2020 | $326.6B | full year |
| FY2019 | $330.6B | full year |
| FY2018 | $306.9B | full year |
| FY2017 | $269.5B | full year |
| FY2016 | $253.9B | full year |
| FY2015 | $237.3B | full year |
| FY2014 | $245.6B | full year |
| FY2013 | $172.3B | full year |
What this figure does and does not include
These numbers cover public issues — the Bills, Notes, Bonds, TIPS and Floating Rate Notes that investors actually hold. They are reported on an accrued basis, meaning interest is counted as it is earned rather than when the cheque clears.
Interest credited to federal trust funds (the Government Account Series, which holds Social Security and Medicare balances) is reported separately and is excluded here. That money is paid on a cash basis in large semi-annual lumps, so folding it into a monthly series would produce spikes that reflect the payment calendar rather than any change in borrowing costs.
A month with unusually high TIPS inflation compensation can also lift the total, since the principal adjustment on inflation-protected securities is booked as interest expense.