US Student Loan Debt Declines for First Time

(Arkansas Business)

Student loan debt in the United States posted its first-ever decline in 2023, falling to $1.73 trillion compared with $1.76 trillion in 2022, according to the Education Data Initiative, a nonprofit provider of education statistics.

The outstanding federal loan balance is $1.6 trillion, which accounts for 92.8% of all student loan debt, and the number of borrowers with student loan debt totals 43.2 million.

“The average federal student loan debt balance is $37,088, while the total average balance (including private loan debt) may be as high as $39,981,” the Education Data Initiative says. “The average public university student borrows $32,637 to attain a bachelor’s degree.”