In the US, debt payments absorbed 52 cents of every dollar of income growth — CNBC

In the United States, debt payments are increasingly reducing the real income gains of households. According to estimates by researchers at The Century Foundation and Protect Borrowers, in a household with one worker, 52 cents of every dollar of income growth in recent years went toward higher monthly debt payments, CNBC reports.

Payments rose faster than incomes

The analysis shows that from the end of 2022 to the beginning of 2026, the real monthly salary of a typical American family, adjusted for inflation, increased by $109. At the same time, a worker's monthly debt payments rose by $57.

For households with two workers, all of the growth in real income and even more may be directed toward debt servicing, researchers forecast. Adjusted for inflation, debt payments increased by nearly 15% over about three years, roughly eight times faster than household incomes, which rose by less than 2%.

Which debts were included in the study

The authors of the analysis examined the credit records of millions of Americans aged 25 to 64, as well as U.S. Census Bureau income data. They included payments on credit cards, auto loans and leases, student loans, and home equity lines of credit.

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The study did not cover mortgages, some buy now, pay later schemes, medical payment plans, and other loans. Angela Hanks, director of policy programs at The Century Foundation, said that because of this, the actual financial pressure on households may be higher than the estimates cited.

Federal Reserve data

A separate survey by the U.S. Federal Reserve showed that in 2025, 8.6% of families spent more than 40% of their income on debt payments. In 2022, the figure was 6.5%; according to the survey, such a level had not been recorded since the 2013 survey.

Matt Schulz, chief consumer finance analyst at LendingTree, advises people to make a budget before taking on new debt, determine a list of necessary purchases, compare prices, and assess the total cost of credit, repayment terms, and whether they have savings for unexpected expenses.