Household debt survey finds 62% of Thais in debt as living costs rise

Nantapong Chiralerspong, director-general of the Trade Policy and Strategy Office, disclosed the results of a February 2026 survey on the public’s debt burden and future trends, based on the opinions of 6,469 respondents.

The survey found that 62.44% of respondents had debts, up from 50.99% in the February 2025 survey.

The 2026 debt profile also pointed to a trend of greater financial caution among the public.

By occupation, government employees, farmers and self-employed workers were found to have the highest debt proportions, with formal debt accounting for the largest shares at 89.09%, 82.71% and 80.28%, respectively.

By income, the survey found that higher-income groups also had higher debt proportions.

The survey found that respondents earning more than THB50,000 had the highest proportion of debt, at 78.86%, followed by those earning between THB10,001 and THB50,000.

Nantapong said borrowing from financial institutions remained the largest category of debt at 23.23%, followed by credit cards, instalment purchases or loan applications through online platforms, and cooperative borrowing, at 19.90%, 12.90% and 12.87%, respectively.

By age, respondents under 29 had a significantly high proportion of debts from instalment purchases and loan applications through online platforms, a pattern that may increase in the future.

This was especially true among those aged 20-29, whose proportion of such debt reached 27.25%.

Among those aged 40 and over, borrowing from financial institutions accounted for the largest share of debt.

By occupation, students had the highest proportion of debt through online platforms at 31.55%, followed by loans from the Student Loan Fund.

For monthly debt instalments, the survey found that most respondents paid no more than THB5,000 a month, at 38.91%, followed by no more than THB10,000 a month at 34.59%, and THB10,000 to THB30,000 a month at 19.29%. By income group, higher income levels tended to be accompanied by higher monthly debt repayments, reflecting differences in capacity to carry and repay debt at each income level.

As for the causes of debt, rising daily living expenses were found to be the most important factor driving people to create debt burdens, accounting for 29.06%, followed by asset purchases such as homes and vehicles at 25.83%, and debt for investment at 13.45%.

By age, those below 20 and those over 60 had the highest proportions of debt arising from increased non-essential spending, at 37.88% and 24.88%, respectively.

Other age groups cited asset purchases and higher regular expenses as the main causes of debt.

By income, those earning below THB20,000 had the highest proportion of debt caused by higher regular expenses, while those earning THB20,001 and above had the highest proportion of debt caused by asset purchases.

For investment-related causes, the survey found that higher-income groups had higher proportions of debt from investment.

However, those earning below THB10,000 had a higher proportion of debt caused by emergency expenses and reduced income than other income groups, reflecting greater financial vulnerability and a higher risk of future debt creation.

On adjustment strategies, reducing non-essential spending and seeking additional income remained key approaches for the public, as in the 2025 survey, followed by expense planning and reducing regular expenses.

By age, older people had a higher proportion of demand for debt restructuring and consultation with financial experts than other age groups, while expense planning was more popular among those aged below 20 than among other age groups.

The 2026 debt trend showed that as many as 61.84% of respondents were likely not to incur additional debt in 2026.

Among those expected to incur debt in 2026, the reasons were likely increases in regular and necessary expenses at 15.52%, followed by taking on debt to repay existing debt at 4.86% and long-term investment at 4.48%.

Further analysis by occupation found that business owners were more likely to take on debt to sustain their businesses than to incur debt for investment in expanding their operations.

Farmers and self-employed workers had a significantly higher proportion of expectations that they would need to take on debt to repay old debts and cope with uncertain income than other groups, which may reflect views and concerns about business operations, forecasts for agricultural trends and future economic conditions.

Occupational groups with fixed incomes, such as government employees and private-sector employees, were more likely to take on debt to buy assets than other occupational groups.

By income, those earning between THB20,001 and THB30,000 were most likely to incur debt in 2026.

This was especially due to higher regular and necessary expenses and taking on debt to buy assets, which were higher than in other income groups.

Those earning below THB10,000 were more likely than other groups to take on debt in 2026 because of uncertain income, which may reflect income insecurity in that group.

By contrast, those earning more than THB40,001 tended not to create additional debt burdens in 2026.

Nantapong said in closing that people’s debt burdens remained one of the key factors affecting public well-being and the country’s economic momentum.

The survey results reflected debt levels that remained high, as well as financial vulnerability in several groups.

The Commerce Ministry would continue to monitor the situation closely, while carrying out relevant measures on goods and services prices, easing the cost-of-living burden, promoting the domestic consumption environment, and supporting business operators in expanding marketing channels and generating income continuously.

These steps may help reduce expense pressures on the public and strengthen overall capacity to manage debt burdens.