🇯🇵 Japan National Debt Clock
Live tracker for Japan government debt. The national debt currently stands at approximately $10.25 trillion, growing at $4K every second based on IMF fiscal deficit projections. Debt-to-GDP: 230%. Per-citizen share: $82,632.
Japan's Debt Trajectory (2015–2026)
Japan's ratio has declined from its peak of 262% (2021) to roughly 230% today.
About Japan's National Debt
Japan has the highest debt-to-GDP ratio of any major developed economy — the legacy of decades of fiscal stimulus aimed at reviving growth after its 1990s asset-bubble collapse, layered on top of the costs of one of the world's oldest populations. Crucially, the great majority of Japanese government bonds are held domestically and the Bank of Japan owns a large share, which, alongside years of near-zero interest rates, has kept the debt sustainable despite its size.
Japan's debt-to-GDP ratio of 230% is in the critical range, well above IMF concern thresholds, where debt-service costs consume a large share of revenue and crowd out public services and investment. By total government debt, Japan ranks 3rd of the 138 governments tracked here.
At the current borrowing rate of $4K per second, Japan adds about $0.4 billion to its national debt every day — roughly $132 billion per year. Each of Japan's 124 million citizens carries an individual share of approximately $82,632. That is above the world average of roughly $12,600 in government debt per person.
Figures are computed by Global Debt Clock using linear extrapolation from IMF general government gross debt baselines (Fiscal Monitor / WEO April 2026) and national treasury data. Actual debt changes through discrete bond issuances — these counters illustrate the approximate scale and pace of sovereign borrowing.
Japan National Debt — Frequently Asked Questions
What is Japan's national debt right now?
Japan's national debt is approximately $10.25 trillion as of July 29, 2026, growing at $4K per second. Its debt-to-GDP ratio is 230% and each citizen's share is about $82,632.
How fast is Japan's debt growing?
Japan's government debt grows at approximately $4K per second — about $0.4 billion per day — derived from IMF fiscal-deficit projections anchored to the April 2026 baseline.
What is Japan's debt per capita?
Each of Japan's 124 million citizens carries a notional share of approximately $82,632 of the national debt.
What is Japan's debt-to-GDP ratio?
Japan's debt-to-GDP ratio is 230%. This sits above the IMF's 90% threshold associated with potential growth drag.
Why is Japan's government debt at this level?
Japan has the highest debt-to-GDP ratio of any major developed economy — the legacy of decades of fiscal stimulus aimed at reviving growth after its 1990s asset-bubble collapse, layered on top of the costs of one of the world's oldest populations. Crucially, the great majority of Japanese government bonds are held domestically and the Bank of Japan owns a large share, which, alongside years of near-zero interest rates, has kept the debt sustainable despite its size.
Compare Japan vs another country
Live side-by-side debt comparisons — shareable cards for journalists and social.
Further reading
Other Asia-Pacific countries
Data & Citation
Source: IMF World Economic Outlook · World Bank International Debt Statistics · baseline anchored .
Methodology: debt = 10,203,000,000,000 + 4200 × seconds_since(2026-04-01)
Machine-readable data: /api/debt?c=jp (live JSON) · /data/debt.json (full dataset)
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