A periodic rate is a rate of interest charged on a loan or realized on an investment over a specific amount of time. We can calculate a periodic rate by dividing the Annual Percentage Rate (APR – annual rate charged for borrowing or earned through an investment) by the number of billing periods in the year. For instance, a monthly periodic rate is calculated based on the APR divided by the number of months in a year—12.
Average 2017 revolving credit use in the US1
The 2017 State of Credit data report shows that American consumers overall had an average revolving use rate of 30% in 2016. An in-depth look at the generation data shows that Gen X, those born between 1967–1981, and Gen Z, those born since 1996 had the highest revolving use rates, 37% each.
Millennials or Gen Y, those born between 1982–1995, had the next highest rate at 36%, followed by Baby Boomers, those born between 1947–1966, at 28%. The Silent Generation, those born before 1946, had the lowest revolving utilization rate of all, 15% for 2017. Usage rates declined 1% in 2017 versus 2016 for both Boomers and the Silent Generation.
1Tatham M. (2018, January 22). Which Generation Really Revolves Around Credit? [Blog post].
