Total US federal debt outstanding reached $40.46 trillion on Oct. 23, including debt held by the public and intragovernmental holdings, the Department of the Treasury said.
The total increased by $389.59 billion, or 1%, from Sept. 23. It was $2.46 trillion, or 6.5%, above the level recorded on Oct. 23, 2025.
Debt held by the public accounted for $32.61 trillion of the outstanding balance. Intragovernmental holdings, debt held within the federal government, accounted for the remaining $7.85 trillion.
The public portion was the larger of the two components. Both components were included in the total outstanding debt recorded on Oct. 23.
Accrued interest expense, interest recorded as an expense rather than necessarily paid immediately, totaled $63.09 billion in September, the Treasury said. The fiscal year-to-date total reached $799.98 billion for fiscal 2026.
The interest figures covered a different period from the outstanding debt figures. The latest interest month ended Sept. 30, while the debt balance was recorded in October.
Treasury notes accounted for the largest interest expense category in both September and the fiscal year to date. Interest on those securities totaled $43.51 billion for the month and $498.31 billion for fiscal 2026.
Treasury bonds were the second-largest category over both periods. Their accrued interest expense totaled $15.34 billion in September, bringing the fiscal year-to-date amount to $178.22 billion.
Notes and bonds each accounted for more interest expense than any of the other listed categories, both for the latest month and for the fiscal year to date.
Inflation compensation on Treasury Inflation-Protected Securities had a negative interest expense of $452 million in September. Its fiscal year-to-date expense was positive at $69.67 billion, the third-largest annual amount among the listed categories.
That inflation compensation entry was separate from the interest category for the inflation-protected securities themselves. The latter recorded $2.14 billion in September and $24.38 billion for the fiscal year to date.
Treasury floating rate notes recorded accrued interest expense of $2.33 billion for September. Their fiscal year-to-date expense totaled $26.66 billion, exceeding the separate interest category for inflation-protected securities over both periods.
The category covering state and local government certificates of indebtedness, notes and bonds recorded $218.9 million in September. Its fiscal year-to-date interest expense totaled $2.72 billion.
Among the listed categories, state and local government securities had the smallest positive monthly expense and the smallest fiscal year-to-date expense. Inflation compensation was the only listed category with a negative September amount.
