OAKLAND, Calif., Sept. 24, 2026 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Today, Spinwheel published the results of its latest survey of more than 600 U.S. consumers, revealing a striking contradiction in how consumers understand and manage their debt. While 61% say they feel in control of their debt, the same percentage have discovered they owed significantly more money than they expected. Among Gen Z, this rises to 80% that say they have discovered they owed significantly more than expected, with 49% of Gen Z saying it has happened multiple times.
Other key findings include:
Consumers Feel Confident About Debt — But the Details Tell a Different Story
Consumers express strong confidence in their ability to manage debt. Yet when asked about the specifics of what they owe and how they behave, a more complicated picture emerges.
- Feel in Control: 61% agree they feel in control of their debt.
- Know the Cost: 66% say they are very or extremely confident they understand how much their debt costs them. Another 26% are somewhat confident.
- Want to Reduce Interest: 69% say they regularly look for ways to reduce or limit the amount of interest they pay on their debt. Gen Z leads the way at 73%.
- Ready to Sacrifice: 77% say they are willing to make sacrifices today to become debt-free sooner.
But, this doesn’t always carry over into consumer behaviors:
- Only 31% say they know the exact amount of their debt.
- If given an extra $1,000, only 18% would put it toward their highest-interest debt.
- 28% agree they’d rather spend money on things they want than pay off debt – rising to 41% of Gen Z.
- Nearly 3 in 10 consumers (29%) agree they avoid looking at how much debt they have. That rises to 40% among both Millennials and Gen Z.
- More than 1 in 4 (22%) agree they don't know how to get out of debt, including 31% of Millennials and 30% of Gen Z.
Consumers Are Taking Financial Risks to Get Ahead
Consumers are making meaningful financial tradeoffs in pursuit of short-term rewards or the possibility of getting ahead faster.
- 31% have gone shopping when they didn't have money to spend.
- 31% have participated in sports betting, gambling, or the lottery.
- 12% have participated in prediction markets — rising to 28% of Gen Z.
- 11% have borrowed money to invest or trade.
- 10% have invested money they couldn't comfortably afford to lose.
- 8% have used borrowed money to buy cryptocurrency.
- 7% have used borrowed money to participate in prediction markets — doubling to 14% among Gen Z.
These behaviors are generally more common among younger consumers, particularly Millennials and Gen Z.
Consumers Are Increasingly Willing to Let AI Manage Their Finances
AI is also becoming part of the consumer financial toolkit. 46% of consumers say they have used an AI tool such as ChatGPT, Gemini, or Claude to help manage their personal finances.
Consumers are turning to AI for a range of financial tasks. The top 5 use cases are:
- Finding ways to save money: 37%
- Answering general financial questions: 36%
- Paying bills: 30%
- Tracking spending: 28%
- Calculating loan or credit card payments: 27%
Consumers are increasingly comfortable with AI moving from informing decisions to recommending what to do to taking action.
- 64% say they trust AI at least somewhat to give them accurate information about their finances.
- 64% also trust AI to make recommendations about their finances.
- Nearly 7 in 10 consumers (69%) say they would trust AI to take some kind of financial action on their behalf. Only 31% say they would not trust AI to take any financial action.
Access the full report at: https://spinwheel.io/blog/inside-the-contradictory-reality-of-consumer-debt
About Spinwheel
Spinwheel, a real-time consumer credit data and payments company, is revolutionizing the consumer credit ecosystem. The company partners with lenders, marketplaces and personal financial management platforms to provide real-time, verified consumer credit data to process payments as part of their clients' existing workflow and operations via APIs and its agentic AI platform. Founded in 2019, Spinwheel has grown to more than 15 million users and 165 million accounts, facilitating $1.5 trillion in connected debt across its network. The company is backed by F-Prime, QED Investors, Foundation Capital, Core Innovation Capital, Fika Ventures and Citi Ventures. To learn more, please visit spinwheel.io.
Contact:
Jessica Kendall
Email: jessica@spinwheel.io
