Docs/APIs/National Debt

National Debt

US National Debt Tracker

OperationalCredits 2 per callp50 487msFinanceStar

Overview

National Debt sources data directly from the US Treasury Fiscal Data API, which is updated daily. Historical data is available back to 1993, enabling trend analysis and historical comparisons.

Live Test National Debt API →

Endpoint

One host, one path per API. The block below shows this call in four languages; every one of them is the same HTTP request. Making requests covers the timeouts, retries and parameter rules that apply to all of them. The SDKs wrap the same call in a typed client.

GEThttps://api.apiverve.com/v1/nationaldebt
curl "https://api.apiverve.com/v1/nationaldebt?date=2023-06-15" \
  -H "x-api-key: your_api_key_here"

Replace your_api_key_here with the key from your dashboard. When the inputs arrive as a list rather than one at a time, batch requests run up to 200 of them through this same API in a single call.

Authentication

Send your key in the x-api-key header. That is the only auth step — there is no token exchange and no per-endpoint scope to configure. Authentication covers creating, rotating and revoking keys.

401 is the only auth verdict

A 401 means the key is missing, invalid or expired. A 403 means the key is valid but not permitted here — blocked by a key restriction or an IP allow-list. Running out of credits is a 429.

Parameters

Sent in the query string. Premium parameters are accepted on every plan but only take effect on plans that include them.

ParameterTypeDescription
dateOptionalstringOptional date in YYYY-MM-DD format for historical lookup. Omit for current data.
date

Response

Every API returns the same three top-level keys, so one response handler covers your whole integration: status, error and data. Only data changes shape. Response format covers the envelope, the other output formats and how premium fields are withheld.

Sample response
{
  "status": "ok",
  "error": null,
  "data": {
    "date": "2026-09-14",
    "recordDate": "2026-09-14",
    "totalDebt": 40054421967786.91,
    "totalDebtFormatted": "$40.05 trillion",
    "publicDebt": 32358452350574.73,
    "publicDebtFormatted": "$32.36 trillion",
    "intragovernmentalDebt": 7695969617212.18,
    "intragovernmentalDebtFormatted": "$7.70 trillion",
    "perCapita": 119565,
    "perCapitaFormatted": "$119,565",
    "population": 335000000,
    "publicDebtRatio": 80.79,
    "perHousehold": 298913.6,
    "perHouseholdFormatted": "$298,914"
  }
}

Response fields

Paths are relative to data. Premium fields are absent rather than zeroed on plans that do not include them, so check for presence instead of comparing to 0.

FieldTypeExampleDescription
datestring"2026-09-14"Date of the national debt data (YYYY-MM-DD format)
recordDatestring"2026-09-14"Treasury record date the figures come from (YYYY-MM-DD); the nearest prior business day when the requested date has no record
totalDebtnumber40054421967786.91Total US national debt in dollars
totalDebtFormattedstring"$40.05 trillion"Total debt formatted as readable currency string
publicDebtnumber32358452350574.73US debt held by the public in dollars
publicDebtFormattedstring"$32.36 trillion"Public debt formatted as readable currency string
intragovernmentalDebtPremiumnumber7695969617212.18Intragovernmental debt holdings in dollars
intragovernmentalDebtFormattedPremiumstring"$7.70 trillion"Intragovernmental debt formatted as currency string
perCapitaPremiumnumber119565Estimated national debt per person in dollars
perCapitaFormattedPremiumstring"$119,565"Per capita debt formatted as currency string
populationnumber335000000US population used for per capita calculations
publicDebtRationumber80.79Public debt as percentage of total debt
perHouseholdPremiumnumber298913.6Estimated national debt per household in dollars
perHouseholdFormattedPremiumstring"$298,914"Per household debt formatted as currency string

Errors

Read the HTTP status first, then error for the specific reason. The body names the parameter that has to change. Error handling covers the full status list and which of them are worth retrying.

StatusMeaningWhat to do
400Input was rejectedRead error; it names the parameter.
401Key missing or invalidCheck the header name and the key value.
403Key valid, but not permittedA key restriction or IP allow-list; see key scoping.
429Rate limited, or out of creditsRead error to tell them apart; see rate limits.

Use cases

Financial Dashboards
Display real-time national debt figures on financial dashboards and economic monitoring tools
Economic Research
Analyze historical debt trends for economic research and policy analysis
Educational Tools
Build educational applications showing government debt and per-capita calculations
News Applications
Provide up-to-date debt figures for news and media applications

Other ways to use National Debt

Set up National Debt on APIVerve, or reach the same source a different way. Your APIVerve account and credits work on all of them — one key, one balance.

Give it to an AI agentConnect over MCP and your agent calls it as a native tool — Claude, Cursor, ChatGPT.VerveKit →Reference →
Google Sheets or ExcelA =VERVE() formula fills a column — no script, no export, recalculates in place.VerveSheets →Reference →
Ground an agent on itA cited, machine-checkable fact your model can't produce on its own.VerveContext →Reference →

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