Delinquent student-loan borrowers now carry more non-education debt than before the pandemic and they are increasingly falling behind on those balances, new data shows. The trend points to mounting financial strain as overall student-loan delinquencies rise from Covid-era lows.
In August 2025, nearly 16% of student-loan borrowers — about 6 million Americans — were at least 60 days past due or in default, roughly the same share as in 2019. But that return to so-called normal fails to capture how borrowers’ other debt loads have changed. Among those behind on their student loans, 38% also had an auto loan in 2025, up from ...