Student Loan Debt by Income Level

Report Highlights. Borrowers with higher degrees are more likely to owe larger student loan debt balances compared to their household income; the average indebted borrower with a professional doctorate borrows the equivalent of 131.4% of the average income among doctorate degree holders.

  • Borrowers from households in the middle-class income bracket owe on average $46,016 in student loan debt.
  • Americans with income higher than the national average owe an estimated 63% of the nation’s outstanding student loan debt.
  • Graduate degree holders make up only 14% of the population over 25 years old, yet they contribute to 56% of the outstanding educational debt. 
  • Loan amounts among financially independent students increased 26% in 20 years.

Related reports include Federal vs. Private Student Loans | Total Student Loan Debt | Average Student Loan Debt | Average Student Loan Payment | Student Loan Debt Statistics | Student Loan Debt by Race

Income Bracket and Student Debt Comparison
Income Bracket Annual Income Average Student Debt
Lowest quartile $0-$41,116 $29,532
Second quartile $41,117 – $78,604 $35,476
Third quartile $78,605 – $145,115 $39,588
Fourth quartile $145,116+ $50,179

Student Loan Debt by Household Income

The total student loan debt is $1.7 trillion, and federal debt alone exceeds $1.6 trillion; households in higher income brackets are more likely to hold high amounts of debt.

  • Households in the highest income quintile (81st percentile and higher) owe 26% of student loan debt.
  • Households with income in the 61st to 80th percentile hold 32% of student loan debt.
  • 20th to 40th percentile households owe 22% of all outstanding student debt.
  • The lowest income quintile (20th percentile and lower) owes 5% of all student loan debt.
  • Households between the 11th and 20th percentile hold 14% of all student debt.
Income and Debt by Degree Status
Degree Median Annual Income** Average Borrowed†
Some College, No Degree $51,584 $18,557
Associate’s Degree $55,016 $22,392
Bachelor’s Degree $77,636 $36,097
Master’s Degree $90,324 $81,828
Research Doctorate $109,668 $85,876
Professional Doctorate $114,712 $211,614

*Among workers aged 25 years and over; based on average weekly earnings of full-time wage and salary workers.
Cumulative student loans only (no Parent PLUS); data collected between 2019 and 2020, currency inflated to 2023Q2 values to match income data collection period; amount borrowed is not equivalent to current debt.

Student Debt vs Income by Age Groups

Among the age groups, adults between the ages of 18 and 29 are the most likely to have student loan debt. Meanwhile, adults between the ages of 35 and 49 years old on average owe the most student loan debt.

  • 34% of adults between the ages of 18 and 29 owe student loan debt.
  • 22% of adults between the ages of 30 and 44 owe student debt.
  • 7% of those between the ages of 45 and 59 owe student debt.
  • Finally, 1% of adults age 60 or older owe student loan debt.
  • The average adult aged 24 and younger has a median annual income of $38,168.
  • The average student loan debt among borrowers 15-23 years old is $14,758 or roughly 39% of their annual income.
  • Employees aged 25 to 34 years make an annual median income of $56,610.
  • Student borrowers aged 24 to 29 years owe an average of $14,039 or roughly 25% of their annual income.
  • Workers aged 35 to 44 make a median annual income of $67,756.
  • Employees aged 45 to 54 make a median annual income of $66,300.
  • The average student loan borrower over 30 owes $13,368 or roughly 20% of their annual income.
  • Employed adults aged 55 to 64 make a median annual income of $64,688.
  • Employees aged 65 years and older make a median annual income of $54,860.

Dependent vs. Independent Students & Loans

Dependent students are 13.6% more likely than independent students to use student loans. Part-time students borrow in roughly equal rates and dollar amounts.

  • 38.3% of dependent and 33.7% of independent students use student loans.
  • Among dependent students, 95.3% use federal loans and 19.8% use private loans (15.1% use both federal and private student loans).
  • Financially independent students increased their acceptance of student loans 48.7% between the 1999-2000 and 2015-2016 academic years.
  • Students who are dependent on their families and whose families have an annual income between $40,000 and $59,000 have the highest student loan acceptance rate at 43.1%.
  • Part-time, independent students who use loans borrow 0.27% less funding than part-time students who are dependent on their families for financial support.
  • Among students attending postsecondary school part-time, independent students are 0.34% more likely to use student loans than dependent students.

Income vs Student Debt by State

The median annual income in the United States is $81,537. As this amount corresponds with the middle-income bracket, Americans on average hold $37,853 in student debt.

  • Mississippi is the state with the lowest median annual income at $56,820.
  • Mississippi has an average student debt of $36,904
  • Mississippi’s average student debt is closest to the median.
  • Maryland is the state with the highest median annual income at $107,627.
  • Maryland has an average student debt of $43,298.
  • Maryland is the state with the highest average debt per student.
Income vs Student Debt State Table
State Median Annual Income Average Student Debt
Alabama $64,190 $37,390
Alaska $93,636 $35,346
Arizona $77,000 $35,511
Arkansas $60,741 $33,624
California $99,812 $37,810
Colorado $95,701 $37,113
Connecticut $97,818 $36,481
Delaware $87,076 $38,031
Washington D.C. $114,486 $54,146
Florida $73,490 $38,857
Georgia $76,906 $41,652
Hawaii $103,115 $38,118
Idaho $75,689 $33,167
Illinois $85,849 $38,645
Indiana $71,475 $32,914
Iowa $76,548 $30,719
Kansas $77,039 $32,838
Kentucky $64,889 $33,410
Louisiana $63,372 $34,570
Maine $73,114 $33,845
Maryland $107,627 $43,298
Massachusetts $106,516 $35,329
Michigan $73,933 $36,567
Minnesota $92,557 $34,053
Mississippi $56,820 $36,904
Missouri $71,234 $35,452
Montana $70,917 $33,437
Nebraska $78,456 $32,310
Nevada $78,514 $34,407
New Hampshire $96,701 $34,932
New Jersey $106,402 $36,899
New Mexico $64,454 $34,136
New York $89,473 $38,410
North Carolina $71,150 $38,439
North Dakota $80,129 $29,312
Ohio $72,764 $34,767
Oklahoma $67,562 $31,809
Oregon $83,207 $37,507
Pennsylvania $78,746 $36,010
Rhode Island $88,308 $31,111
South Carolina $69,768 $32,908
South Dakota $73,870 $38,326
Tennessee $69,574 $31,356
Texas $79,455 $36,683
Utah $94,030 $33,456
Vermont $78,173 $33,438
Virginia $94,868 $37,662
Washington $97,637 $39,843
West Virginia $60,614 $36,292
Wisconsin $79,621 $32,018
Wyoming $80,657 $32,432

Sources

  1. U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Education Pays: Earnings and Unemployment Rates by Educational Attainment 
  2. Brookings Institution, Who Owes the Most in Student Loans – New Data from the Fed 
  3. Urban Institute, Which Households Hold the Most Student Debt? 
  4. Pew Research Center, 5 facts about student loans 
  5. United States Census Bureau, 2019 Median Household Income in the United States 
  6. Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System, Consumer Credit: G.19 
  7. U.S. Department of Education Office of Federal Student Aid, Federal Student Loan Portfolio
  8. U.S. Department of Education National Center of Education Statistics, Digest of Education Statistics: Current Data Tables
  9. BLS, The Economics Daily: Median Weekly Earnings by Age and Sex
  10. BLS, Consumer Price Index Inflation Calculator
  11. U.S. Census Bureau, PINC-03
  12. Enterval Analytical, Private Student Loan Report
  13. Federal Reserve Board, Survey of Consumer Finances