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Student loan default rates surge, 1 in 5 borrowers now in default

Student loan defaults are up to a record high, with 9.5 million borrowers in default, meaning they are more than 270 days behind on loan payments, according to data from the Office of Federal Student Aid. The near-10 million borrowers in default represent a record-high and nearly double the number in default at the nadir of a pandemic-prompted moratorium on student loan payments enacted by former President Joe Biden. In March 2025, months after a default-halting payment pause that Biden signed at the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic ended, the U.S. had 5.3 million borrowers in default. The Biden...