About
About UK Debt Watch
UK debt in numbers, national and household, with tools that show what it means for you.
UK Debt Watch takes the official figures on UK debt, from the Office for National Statistics, the Office for Budget Responsibility, the Bank of England and others, and shows them as clearly as possible: a live estimate of the national debt, what it means per person, how it compares with other countries, and what it costs in interest.
Alongside the national figures are free tools that turn those numbers into something personal: a calculator for your share of the debt, and a debt payoff planner for your own debts. Everything you type into them stays in your browser. Nothing is sent to us or stored.
Who runs it
UK Debt Watch is an independent publisher based in London. It was started in 2026 to make the official debt figures easy to see and to check.
It is an independent site. It is not part of, or funded by, the government, the ONS, any political party, lender or debt-solutions firm.
How the figures are produced
- Official sources only. Every figure on the site comes from a named official or published source, and the source and date sit beside it or in a caption.
- The live counter is an estimate. It starts from the latest ONS figure for public sector net debt and adds the average rise per second over the past twelve months. The method is set out in the methodology on the homepage.
- Monthly updates. The site is updated after each ONS public sector finances release, usually around the 20th of the month.
- Fact-checked articles. Each article is checked against its sources before it is published, and lists them at the end.
Corrections
If you think a figure or statement is wrong, please email hello@ukdebtwatch.co.uk with a link to the page and, if you can, the source you are comparing it with. Corrections are made as soon as they are confirmed and, where a change is material, the page says what was corrected and when.
Money
UK Debt Watch carries no affiliate links and no paid placements. In future the site may show advertising, which will always be clearly separate from the content. Advertisers have no say over what is published.
Not advice
UK Debt Watch explains official figures. It does not give financial or debt advice, and nothing on the site recommends a particular product or debt solution. If you are struggling with debt, free and confidential advice is available from StepChange, National Debtline, Citizens Advice and MoneyHelper. Our help page explains where to start.
Our sources
- Office for National Statistics: public sector finances: national debt, borrowing and debt interest, monthly
- Office for Budget Responsibility: forecasts and the cost of debt interest
- UK Debt Management Office: gilts in issue and who holds them
- Bank of England: Bank Rate, household borrowing and credit cards
- HM Treasury: public spending by department
- International Monetary Fund: international comparisons
- UK Finance: mortgage arrears and possessions
- The Insolvency Service: personal insolvencies
Contact
Questions, corrections and press enquiries: hello@ukdebtwatch.co.uk, or see the contact page.