The Consumer Credit Report, Read for a Borrower

What the G.19 is and when it comes out

The G.19 is one of the Federal Reserve Board's statistical releases. It is generally issued on the fifth business day of each month, at 3:00 p.m. Eastern, and reports balances through the month two months earlier. The November 6, 2026 release covers September; the December 7 release will cover October.

The release has two parts. The first is the amount of consumer credit outstanding, by type and by holder, with growth rates. The second is a table of interest rates on new car loans, personal loans and credit cards. The balances move every month; the personal loan and new-car rates are surveyed once a quarter.

What it counts, and what it leaves out

Consumer credit in the G.19 covers most credit extended to individuals, excluding loans secured by real estate. Mortgages, home equity loans and HELOCs are not in it. The totals include loans that lenders have sold into securitized pools, so a loan does not disappear from the count when it leaves a lender's balance sheet.

Revolving credit is mostly credit card balances: you can borrow, repay and borrow again up to a limit. Nonrevolving credit is installment debt with a fixed schedule, such as auto loans, student loans and personal loans. Nonrevolving is almost three times as large, but revolving balances carry the higher rates. In September alone total consumer credit grew at a 6.4% annual rate, faster than the quarter's average; one month is noisy, so the quarterly rate is the better guide.

The rates table, and how it is sampled

A third line, the card rate across all accounts, was 21.19% in the third quarter. Each line is measured differently. The personal loan and new-car rates are simple unweighted averages of each surveyed bank's most common rate during the first calendar week of the middle month of each quarter, so the third-quarter figure reflects early August. The "all accounts" card rate is the stated APR averaged across all card accounts at reporting banks. The "accounts assessed interest" rate is total finance charges divided by average daily balances, annualized, for accounts that actually paid interest. The rates are stated as APRs under Regulation Z and are not seasonally adjusted, and the latest quarter is marked preliminary.

Why it is the bank average on our rate board

The rate board shows only published figures with a date and an official source. The G.19 personal loan rate is a national series of personal loan APRs that the Federal Reserve publishes on a fixed schedule, with its method stated, which is why it is the "24-month personal loan, bank average" line, and why the card line comes from the same table. More on what the average does and does not say is in average personal loan rates.

As a worked example, $10,000 over 24 months at the 11.90% bank average costs $470.27 a month and about $1,286 in interest. The same $10,000 carried on a card at 22.36% and paid off over the same 24 months costs $520.56 a month and about $2,493 in interest. The gap of roughly $1,200 is the reason a consolidation loan can make sense, if the APR you are offered is near the average and the card stays paid off. Run your own figures in the loan vs. card calculator.

What the G.19 cannot tell you

• It is a bank number. The rate table covers commercial banks. Online lenders and finance companies, which often lend to a wider range of credit scores, are not in it, and their APRs can be much higher.
• It is the most common rate, not your rate. An unweighted average of each bank's most common rate leaves out the spread between credit tiers, which is usually several points.
• It is one term. Only 24-month loans are reported; 36- and 60-month loans often price differently.
• It is a snapshot. The quarterly survey looks at one week, and the latest figure can be revised. A rate change in the Fed's target between surveys shows up only in the next quarter.
• Balances are not stress. Rising credit can mean confident spending or strained budgets. For signs of strain, read it with the bank lending standards survey and the jobs data.

Reading the December 7 release

1. 1 Look at the quarterly growth rates for revolving and nonrevolving credit, not the single month.
2. 2 Do not expect a new personal loan rate. The fourth-quarter survey is taken in the first week of November, so the December release, which covers October, is not where it will first appear.
3. 3 Compare card rates with the prime rate, 7.00% since September 2026. The gap shows how much of a card APR is margin and risk, not the Fed.
4. 4 Treat revisions as normal. Earlier months and quarters are often revised; quote figures with the release date.

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