A growing number of Americans are falling behind on their credit card payments, pushing delinquency levels to their highest point since the years following the Great Recession and raising concerns about financial stress among a section of US consumers.
Data from the Federal Reserve Bank of New York shows that about 13% of the nation’s total credit card balance was at least 90 days overdue during the first quarter of 2026, reported The USA Today. That is the highest level recorded since 2011, when the United States was still recovering from the financial crisis that began in 2008.
The figures suggest that while many households remain financially stable, a smaller group of consumers is struggling with debt that has become increasingly difficult to manage. Economists say the problem does not necessarily involve large numbers of new borrowers missing payments. Instead, many people who already fell behind appear to be sinking deeper into debt.
“It points to increasing vulnerability among a subset of consumers,” said Grace Zwemmer, a US economist at Oxford Economics, told USA Today. “It’s not a matter of new consumers falling into delinquency, but rather consumers who are already in delinquency, falling deeper into delinquency,” Grace added.
America’s total credit card debt now stands at about $1.25 trillion, close to a record high, reported The USA Today.
Why are more Americans falling behind on credit card payments?
The recent rise in delinquencies traces back to the inflation surge that followed the pandemic. Prices for everyday goods and services climbed rapidly in 2022 and 2023, forcing many households to rely more heavily on credit cards to cover expenses, reported The USA Today.
At the same time, interest rates increased sharply. Credit card borrowing became much more expensive, making it harder for consumers to reduce outstanding balances.
The national credit card balance crossed $1 trillion in early 2023 and continued to rise. Delinquency rates followed a similar path, reported The USA Today. The share of balances that were at least 90 days overdue climbed from 8% in mid-2023 to 10.7% in early 2024, then to 12.3% in early 2025, before reaching 13% in the first quarter of 2026, reported The USA Today.
That figure now sits close to the Great Recession-era peak of 13.7%, recorded in early 2010. “There’s no question we are on a concerning trajectory,” said Odysseas Papadimitriou, founder and chief executive of personal finance website WalletHub.
According to WalletHub, the average American household carries about $11,169 in credit card debt. The burden of high interest rates remains a major challenge. Average credit card interest rates jumped from 14.6% in early 2022 to a peak of 21.8% in August 2024. Rates remain elevated and averaged about 21% in February 2026, reported The USA Today.
Many consumers who accumulated debt during periods of high inflation now face the additional pressure of expensive borrowing costs.
Is the situation similar to the 2008 financial crisis?
Many financial experts believe today’s challenges differ significantly from the conditions that led to the 2008 financial crisis. While delinquency rates have climbed, economists do not see the same widespread risks that existed during the housing market collapse. Mortgage delinquencies remain far below the levels recorded during the Great Recession.
Experts also point out that millions of Americans continue to manage their credit cards responsibly. Roughly half of all cardholders pay their balances in full each month and avoid interest charges altogether, reported The USA Today.
“There are a lot of people who pay on time, and there are a lot of people who are super-late,” said Ted Rossman, principal analyst at Bankrate. “It’s not big, evil, scary debt if you’re paying it off every month and getting the free miles,” Rossman told The USA Today.
Rossman believes many of the delinquency figures come from a relatively small group of consumers carrying large balances they can no longer easily repay. “You’re probably not going to be 90 days late over 100 bucks,” he said.
Data from the Federal Reserve Bank of Philadelphia suggests that while the amount of overdue debt has increased, the number of delinquent accounts has remained relatively stable, reported The USA Today. This indicates that many borrowers who fall behind are accumulating larger unpaid balances rather than a dramatic increase in the number of struggling consumers.
Credit cards are not the only source of concern. Auto loan delinquencies have also reached record levels. The share of auto loan balances that were at least 90 days overdue rose to 5.6% in early 2026, the highest level on record, reported The USA Today.
Rising vehicle prices and higher borrowing costs have forced many consumers to take out larger loans and extend repayment periods.
Despite these warning signs, economists say that the current environment differs from the conditions that triggered the Great Recession. “I don’t think the situation is even close to as dire as it was leading up to the Great Recession,” Papadimitriou told The USA Today.