Federal debt as a percent of GDP

Federal debt measured against the size of the economy that has to carry it.

What it measures

Total public debt as a percentage of nominal GDP — the same debt as the dollar series, scaled so decades are comparable.

How it is measured

Treasury debt divided by BEA nominal GDP, quarterly, seasonally adjusted.

Reading it over a presidential term

The ratio falls when the economy grows faster than the debt, which can happen through growth, through inflation, or through a shrinking deficit. A term can cut this ratio without cutting a dollar of borrowing.

What it leaves out

It uses gross debt, including what the government owes its own trust funds; a ratio built on debt held by the public would be lower and would move differently. Both numerator and denominator are revised.

Which direction counts as better?

The same argument as the dollar level, with the same lack of an agreed threshold: economists dispute whether and when a rising ratio constrains anything.

Chart this series · See it by president · Download the data · The source at FRED