*We've updated our statistics to use the case entry date, aligning better with our advanced bankruptcy report and case list data for subscribed BankruptcyWatch users.

Our Analysis of the Bankruptcy Statistics (Updated February 2nd, 2026)

Week 5 posted strong year-over-year gains, with consumer bankruptcies rising about 7% to 13,570 filings and business filings tripling to 399 cases compared with the same week last year. Chapter 7 filings, a lifeline for many struggling households, were up 12.00% year-over-year (7,925 in 2025 to 8,876 in 2026). Chapter 13 filings, allowing individuals to restructure their debt, were down 0.66% year-over-year (4,725 in 2025 to 4,694 in 2026). Chapter 11 filings, often used by businesses dealing with insolvency, were up 210.24% year-over-year (127 in 2025 to 394 in 2026).

Chapter 11 is the number worth watching. YoY filings through the first five (5) weeks of 2026 look like this: Week 1 (+40%), Week 2 (-19%), Week 3 (+129%), Week 4 (+81%), and now Week 5 (+210%). It is true that small changes in amounts can produce large swings in percentages, but the Week 5 number (394 filings versus 127 last year) is difficult to dismiss. The activity is concentrated in a handful of districts, notably Texas Southern, New Jersey, and Tennessee Middle. Using Chapter 11 as a proxy for business distress, these numbers suggest potential job losses in the weeks and months ahead, which would in turn feed additional Chapter 7 and Chapter 13 filings.

On the consumer side, the faster YTD growth in Chapter 7 (+15%) versus Chapter 13 (+11%) suggests more filers are choosing full liquidation over repayment plans. That shift is consistent with a housing market where substantial homeowner equity continues to keep foreclosures historically low, meaning non-mortgage debt (auto loans, credit cards, student loans) remains the primary driver of consumer filings. In short, with full year 2025 up 12% over 2024 and early 2026 running 15% ahead, U.S. consumer bankruptcies continue to move inside of their pre-pandemic highs and their pandemic lows, but the trajectory is clearly headed in one direction.

What We Are Reading

Want to know about the news articles that caught our eye this week? Start here.

• Where Inflation Has Hit the Hardest (2000–2025): Hospital services have risen 275% since 2000, with college tuition up 196% and housing up 111%, all outpacing overall U.S. inflation of 92%, putting growing strain on consumer budgets.
• JPMorgan Says 'Everything' on Table to Fight 10% Credit Card Cap (Bloomberg): JPMorgan warned Trump's proposed 10% rate cap would "significantly change" its card business and harm consumers, with CFO Jeremy Barnum saying "everything's on the table" to push back
• 15.3% of Americans Expect to Miss Debt Payments: The NY Fed's January 2026 survey shows 15.3% of Americans expect to miss a minimum debt payment, the highest since April 2020, with the hardest hit being those over 60, without college degrees, and households under $50K.
• Consumer Credit Signals Reset and Resilience: The mean probability of losing one's job rose to 15.2% in December (highest since March 2024), while revolving credit balances are declining, suggesting households are proactively adjusting behavior amid rising risk signals.

AI Analysis of this Week's Bankruptcy Statistics

We exported our dataset containing the daily filing numbers for every chapter and district to different AI models and asked for an analysis. Below are the exact results for each model.

Claude 4.5 Opus Extended Analysis of the Bankruptcy Statistics

1. Overview of This Week's National Filings The latest fully completed week (Week 5, 2026) recorded a national total of 13,969 bankruptcy filings across all chapters and districts. Chapter 7 liquidation filings dominated the week with 8,876 cases, representing 63.5% of all filings. Chapter 13 reorganization filings totaled 4,694 cases, accounting for 33.6% of the weekly total. Business-related Chapter 11 filings reached 394 cases this week, while Chapter 12 agricultural filings numbered just 5. This week's total represents a substantial 34.1% increase from the previous week's 10,413 filings, indicating significant volatility in weekly filing patterns.
2. An Interesting Fact About This Week's Filings This week's 394 Chapter 11 business filings represent the third-highest weekly total in the entire dataset spanning 213 weeks from 2022 through early 2026. Chapter 11 filings surged an extraordinary 141.7% compared to the prior week's 163 filings, suggesting a significant wave of business reorganizations. The year-to-date Chapter 11 total for 2026 has already reached 1,127 filings through just five weeks, compared to only 631 filings during the same period in 2025—a remarkable 78.6% increase. Since 2022, Chapter 11 filings for Week 5 have grown from just 47 cases to 394 cases, representing a staggering 738.3% increase over four years. This dramatic rise in business bankruptcies signals meaningful financial distress in the commercial sector that merits close attention.
3. An Overview of This Week's District-Level Filings The Central District of California (CAC) led all federal judicial districts with 792 filings this week, making it the busiest bankruptcy court in the nation. The Middle District of Florida (FLM) followed closely with 731 filings, while the Northern District of Illinois (ILN) recorded 675 cases. Other high-volume districts included the Eastern District of Michigan (MIE) with 448 filings, the Southern District of Florida (FLS) with 444 filings, and the Southern District of Texas (TXS) with 443 filings. The Northern District of Georgia (GAN) recorded 440 filings, and the Eastern District of California (CAE) posted 388 cases. New Jersey (NJ) rounded out the top tier with 355 filings, demonstrating continued high bankruptcy activity in densely populated coastal regions.
4. Geographic (District) Disparities in Filings The geographic distribution of bankruptcy filings reveals stark disparities between high-population and low-population judicial districts. The top-filing Central District of California processed 792 cases this week, while the Virgin Islands recorded just 1 filing—a 792-fold difference. Vermont reported only 6 filings this week, the District of Columbia had just 8, and Alaska recorded 10 filings, highlighting the minimal bankruptcy activity in smaller jurisdictions. In contrast, the top five districts alone (CAC, FLM, ILN, MIE, and FLS) accounted for approximately 3,110 filings, representing 22.3% of all national filings. These disparities reflect not only population differences but also regional economic conditions, employment patterns, and varying state exemption laws that influence where and when individuals choose to file.
5. Current Year Focus The year 2026 has begun with notably elevated bankruptcy activity, with 53,384 total filings accumulated through the first five weeks. This year-to-date figure represents a 14.6% increase compared to the 46,576 filings recorded during the same period in 2025. Chapter 7 filings have reached 32,303 cases year-to-date, while Chapter 13 filings total 19,929 cases through Week 5. Chapter 11 business filings have already accumulated 1,127 cases in just five weeks, nearly doubling the 631 Chapter 11 filings from the same period last year. If current trends persist, 2026 is on pace to become the highest-volume year for bankruptcy filings since the data began tracking in 2022.
6. Comparative Analysis with Previous Years Comparing Week 5 filings across all available years reveals a consistent upward trend in bankruptcy activity. Week 5 of 2022 recorded 6,845 national filings, which grew 25.8% to 8,608 filings in Week 5 of 2023. The following year saw continued growth with Week 5 of 2024 reaching 10,759 filings, representing a 25.0% year-over-year increase. Week 5 of 2025 posted 12,782 filings, up 18.8% from the prior year, and this week's 13,969 filings mark a 9.3% increase over 2025. The four-year growth from Week 5, 2022 to Week 5, 2026 totals 104.1%, meaning bankruptcy filings for this week have more than doubled since the dataset began.
7. Analyzing the Filings Per Capita On a per capita basis, Week 5 of 2026 produced approximately 4.16 bankruptcy filings per 100,000 U.S. residents based on an estimated population of 336 million. Nevada leads the nation with an exceptionally high per capita rate of 8.47 filings per 100,000 residents, more than double the national average. Illinois follows with 6.64 filings per 100,000, Georgia shows 6.38 per 100,000, and Florida records 5.51 per 100,000. California, despite having the highest raw filing numbers, shows a more moderate per capita rate of 3.99 per 100,000 due to its massive population base. Texas similarly records a relatively lower 3.68 filings per 100,000, demonstrating that population-adjusted metrics reveal different regional patterns than raw filing counts.
8. Analyzing the Changing Filings Per Capita The annualized per capita filing rate has shown consistent growth over the past four years, climbing from 112.6 filings per 100,000 residents in 2022 to 167.4 per 100,000 in 2025. If 2026 maintains its current trajectory, the projected annual per capita rate would reach approximately 191.9 filings per 100,000 residents, representing a 70.4% increase from 2022 levels. This trend indicates that bankruptcy filings are growing faster than population growth, suggesting genuine increases in financial distress among American households and businesses. The shift is particularly notable in Chapter 7 filings, which have grown from comprising 60.4% of filings in Week 5, 2022 to 63.5% in Week 5, 2026. Meanwhile, Chapter 13's share has declined from 38.9% to 33.6%, suggesting more individuals are choosing liquidation over debt reorganization plans.
9. Forecast the Expected Filing Numbers for the Rest of the Year Based on year-to-date performance and historical patterns, 2026 is projected to reach approximately 644,804 total bankruptcy filings by year end, representing a 14.6% increase over 2025's 562,573 filings. This projection extrapolates the current year-to-date growth rate of 14.6% observed through the first five weeks of the year. Weekly filings are expected to average approximately 12,400 cases per week for the remainder of 2026, with seasonal variations likely producing peaks in late autumn similar to prior years. Chapter 7 filings could reach approximately 380,000 to 400,000 cases by year end, while Chapter 13 filings may total between 230,000 and 250,000. Chapter 11 business filings are on pace for their highest annual total ever, potentially exceeding 11,000 cases if the current 78.6% year-over-year growth rate moderates to even half that pace.
10. Forecast the Trends of Increasing Filings After 2025 The average annual growth rate of 14.2% observed from 2023 through 2025 suggests continued increases in bankruptcy filings, though historical patterns indicate growth rates typically moderate as economic conditions stabilize. Assuming gradual deceleration, 2027 could see approximately 722,000 filings at a 12% growth rate, followed by roughly 794,000 filings in 2028 at 10% growth. By 2029, with an assumed 8% growth rate, annual filings could approach 858,000 cases, and by 2030, filings might reach 918,000 at a 7% growth rate. These projections would represent a 143% cumulative increase from 2022's 378,321 filings to the projected 2030 figure, reflecting sustained financial pressures on American households. However, these forecasts remain contingent on macroeconomic factors including interest rates, employment conditions, consumer debt levels, and potential legislative changes to bankruptcy law that could significantly alter filing patterns.

ChatGPT 4o Pro Analysis of this Week's Bankruptcy Statistics

1. In the most recent fully completed week ending February 2, 2026 (Week 5), there were a total of 13,969 bankruptcy filings across all chapters and districts. This includes contributions from Chapters 7, 11, 12, and 13 filings. Specifically, 8,876 cases were filed under Chapter 7, the most common form of individual bankruptcy. Chapter 13 followed with 4,694 cases, while Chapter 11 saw 394 cases and Chapter 12, which is for family farmers and fishermen, accounted for 5 cases. These numbers indicate a moderately high activity week in terms of total filings nationwide.
2. A particularly interesting highlight from this week's data is the continued dominance of Chapter 7 filings, which made up about 63.5% of the total national filings (8,876 out of 13,969). Despite ongoing economic recovery indicators, the steady volume under this chapter suggests persistent financial distress among individual filers. Moreover, the low count of Chapter 12 filings, remaining at just 5, continues the historical trend of minimal usage of this chapter. Notably, Chapter 13 filings also saw a strong presence at 4,694, indicating that many debtors are still seeking court-approved repayment plans rather than outright liquidation. This balance of filings highlights both acute and strategic financial pressures in the economy.
3. At the district level, there is considerable variation in filings this week. The Eastern District of California (CAE) recorded 677 Chapter 7 filings, one of the highest among all districts. The Southern District of Florida (FLS) also posted significant numbers, including 579 Chapter 13 filings. In contrast, smaller districts like Wyoming (WY) reported minimal activity, with just 4 Chapter 13 filings. This variation underscores the unequal distribution of bankruptcy activity across the United States.
4. Geographic disparities remain a key feature of bankruptcy data. For instance, California’s districts collectively account for hundreds of filings, indicating economic strain in the region, whereas Northern Mariana Islands (NMI) had negligible to zero filings in multiple chapters. Urbanized and populous states like Texas, California, and Florida consistently report higher numbers. In contrast, rural or low-population states such as North Dakota or Vermont maintain very low weekly filings. These disparities reflect differences in population density, local economies, and access to legal and financial services.
5. Focusing on the year 2026 so far, the five weeks reported show a consistently increasing trend in total filings week over week. The Week 5 total of 13,969 filings is the highest weekly figure recorded so far this year. Earlier weeks in 2026 averaged closer to 12,000 filings, signaling a noticeable uptick as the year progresses. Chapter 13 has grown proportionally more than Chapter 7 in this short period, rising from roughly 4,200 to 4,694 cases. This suggests a growing preference or necessity for structured repayment rather than liquidation.
6. When comparing Week 5 of 2026 to Week 5 of 2025, there is a notable increase in filings. In Week 5 of 2025, the total filings were around 12,312, which is 13.5% lower than the current year. Chapter 11 filings in particular jumped from 297 to 394, reflecting a possible rise in business bankruptcies or restructurings. Chapter 7 and Chapter 13 also grew by approximately 10% and 11%, respectively. This comparative growth signals a broader economic shift, potentially tied to inflation, interest rate pressures, or lingering pandemic-era debts.
7. Analyzing filings per capita provides another layer of insight. For example, California, which makes up roughly 12% of the U.S. population, consistently contributes over 15% of total national filings. In contrast, states like Vermont and North Dakota, each representing less than 0.5% of the population, contribute a proportionally lower share of cases. These ratios suggest that some states face more intense economic stress than their population size would predict. Such per capita discrepancies could be driven by cost-of-living differences, employment trends, or state-level policy factors.
8. Over time, the per capita trend shows an upward shift in filing intensity, especially in urban regions. States such as Georgia and Florida, already filing at high per capita rates, are seeing continued increases. For example, Southern District of Georgia (GAS) now contributes nearly 3 times the national average per capita. The Midwest, previously stable, is also showing signs of increased filings per capita in places like Michigan and Ohio. This suggests that financial stress is becoming more widely distributed, no longer confined to historically high-risk zones.
9. Forecasting the rest of 2026 based on current trends, we can expect a total of approximately 725,000–750,000 filings by year-end. Assuming an average weekly filing of 13,500, this would result in over 700,000 cases across 52 weeks. If the upward trend continues even slightly, the weekly average could rise to 14,000+, pushing annual totals higher. Chapters 7 and 13 are expected to remain the dominant categories, with Chapter 13 potentially gaining a larger share due to economic strain and housing concerns. These projections emphasize the importance of continued monitoring and economic interventions.
10. Looking beyond 2025, bankruptcy trends are likely to continue increasing, especially under the current economic indicators. Rising interest rates, credit card delinquencies, and housing instability may lead to a compound rise in Chapter 13 and Chapter 7 filings. Based on trajectory models, we might see weekly national filings averaging 15,000 or more by 2027, if unmitigated. Structural factors, such as healthcare costs and student loan pressures, also contribute to this expected growth. Thus, without significant policy or economic shifts, the post-2025 filing landscape will likely reflect elevated and increasingly normalized bankruptcy activity.

Claude 4.5 Sonnet Extended Analysis of the Bankruptcy Statistics

1. Overview of This Week's National Filings During the fifth week of 2026, the United States recorded 13,969 total bankruptcy filings across all districts and chapters nationwide. This weekly total represents a significant 34.1% increase from the previous week's 10,413 filings, marking one of the most substantial week-over-week jumps observed in recent data. Of the total filings, Chapter 7 bankruptcies accounted for 8,876 cases, representing 63.5% of all filings for the week. Chapter 13 bankruptcies comprised 4,694 cases or 33.6% of the total, while Chapter 11 filings numbered 394 cases at 2.8% of the week's total. The relatively small number of Chapter 12 filings stood at just 5 cases, consistent with the specialized agricultural nature of this bankruptcy chapter.
2. An Interesting Fact About This Week's Filings This week's filing data reveals a notable shift in the composition of bankruptcy types compared to the same week in 2025. Chapter 7 filings increased their share of total bankruptcies to 63.5% in Week 5 of 2026, up from 62.0% during Week 5 of 2025. Conversely, Chapter 13 filings decreased from 37.0% of total filings last year to 33.6% this year, suggesting a shift toward liquidation bankruptcies rather than reorganization plans. The 394 Chapter 11 business bankruptcies filed this week represent the highest count observed in any Week 5 across the four-year comparison period from 2022 to 2025. This surge in Chapter 11 filings may indicate growing financial distress among business entities as economic pressures mount in early 2026.
3. Overview of This Week's District-Level FilingsDistrict-level filing data for Week 5 of 2026 shows significant variation in bankruptcy activity across the nation's judicial districts. The Central District of California led all districts with 792 total filings, combining 677 Chapter 7 cases with 115 other chapter types. The Middle District of Florida followed closely with 731 filings, composed of 550 Chapter 7 and 177 Chapter 13 cases, demonstrating a more balanced mix between liquidation and reorganization. The Northern District of Illinois recorded 675 filings, with 403 Chapter 7 cases and 266 Chapter 13 cases, showing one of the higher Chapter 13 rates among major districts. The Eastern District of Michigan reported 448 total filings including 294 Chapter 7 cases, while the Southern District of Florida logged 444 total filings with 263 Chapter 7 and 178 Chapter 13 cases, rounding out the top five most active districts.
4. Geographic Disparities in Filings The geographic distribution of bankruptcy filings reveals stark disparities across different regions and districts in Week 5 of 2026. California's four federal districts collectively recorded 1,575 filings, making it the state with the highest bankruptcy volume, nearly 27% more than Florida's combined district total of 1,245 filings. Illinois districts accumulated 830 total filings, placing it as a distant third among states with multiple federal districts. At the opposite end of the spectrum, the District of the Virgin Islands recorded zero Chapter 7 filings this week, illustrating how some smaller territorial districts experience minimal bankruptcy activity. The range between the most active district (Central California with 792 filings) and many rural districts with fewer than 50 filings highlights the concentration of bankruptcy cases in urban and economically diverse regions.
5. Current Year Focus The first five weeks of 2026 have established concerning trends that signal accelerating financial distress across the United States. Through Week 5, the nation has recorded 53,384 total bankruptcy filings, averaging 10,676 filings per week compared to 10,818 per week across all of 2025. This year-to-date total represents a 14.6% increase over the 46,576 filings recorded during the same five-week period in 2025, indicating an acceleration of the upward trend observed in recent years. Week 5 alone produced 13,969 filings, the highest single-week total observed so far in 2026 and substantially above the year-to-date weekly average. If this elevated filing rate continues, 2026 could see dramatically higher annual totals than the gradual increases witnessed from 2022 through 2025.
6. Comparative Analysis with Previous Years Examining Week 5 across multiple years reveals a consistent and troubling pattern of growth in bankruptcy filings. Week 5 of 2022 recorded 6,845 filings, establishing a baseline that has been exceeded by increasingly larger margins in each subsequent year. By Week 5 of 2023, filings had climbed to 8,608, representing a 25.8% increase over 2022's comparable week. Week 5 of 2024 saw 10,759 filings, marking a 25.0% jump from 2023, while Week 5 of 2025 reached 12,782 filings, a 18.8% increase over 2024. The current year's Week 5 total of 13,969 filings represents a 9.3% increase over 2025's same week, continuing the upward trajectory albeit at a somewhat moderated rate of growth compared to previous year-over-year jumps.
7. Analyzing the Filings Per Capita When considering population-adjusted filing rates, the 13,969 bankruptcies filed in Week 5 of 2026 translate to approximately 4.2 filings per 100,000 U.S. residents, based on an estimated 2026 population of 337 million. This per capita rate has climbed steadily from the approximately 2.1 filings per 100,000 residents observed during Week 5 of 2022, effectively doubling over the four-year period. The geographic concentration in states like California, Florida, and Illinois means that per capita rates in these states far exceed the national average, with California's 1,575 filings representing roughly 4.0 filings per 100,000 California residents. Districts with the highest raw filing counts, such as Central California and Middle Florida, likely exceed 10 filings per 100,000 residents in their jurisdictions when accounting for local population density. These elevated per capita rates indicate that bankruptcy is becoming an increasingly common experience for American households and businesses, not merely a reflection of overall population growth.
8. Analyzing the Changing Filings Per Capita The trajectory of per capita bankruptcy filing rates shows an alarming acceleration that outpaces population growth by a substantial margin. From 2022 to 2023, full-year per capita filing rates increased by approximately 17.7% when comparing total annual filings to population, a growth rate far exceeding the nation's annual population increase of roughly 0.5%. The 2023 to 2024 period saw per capita rates climb another 13.2%, while 2024 to 2025 added 11.7% growth in per capita filings, demonstrating that while the rate of increase may be moderating slightly, it remains in double-digit territory. The current 2026 data, showing a 14.6% increase in filings through Week 5 compared to the same period in 2025, suggests per capita rates are re-accelerating after the slight moderation observed in 2024-2025. This persistent growth in per capita bankruptcy rates indicates deepening financial stress affecting a growing share of the American population, independent of demographic changes.
9. Forecast for Expected Filing Numbers for the Rest of the Year Based on the 10,676 average weekly filing rate observed in the first five weeks of 2026, the projected annual total for 2026 would reach approximately 555,193 filings if this average holds across all 52 weeks. However, this projection may prove conservative given that Week 5's 13,969 filings significantly exceeded the year-to-date average, suggesting an accelerating trend within 2026 itself. If the elevated Week 5 filing rate of 13,969 were to persist for the remaining 47 weeks, the annual total could reach as high as 710,127 filings, though such sustained elevation appears unlikely based on historical weekly variation. A more realistic middle-ground scenario, accounting for typical seasonal patterns and moderate continued growth, would project 2026's total between 570,000 and 600,000 filings, representing a 1-7% increase over 2025's 562,573 total. The actual outcome will depend heavily on economic conditions in the remaining months, including employment trends, interest rates, and consumer debt levels that drive bankruptcy decisions.
10. Forecast for Trends of Increasing Filings After 2025 The data from 2022 through early 2026 establishes a clear upward trajectory that is likely to persist beyond 2025, barring significant economic intervention or policy changes. Annual growth rates have averaged 14.2% from 2022 to 2025, and if this rate moderates to 8-10% annually, the nation could see 610,000 to 620,000 filings in 2027, potentially reaching 700,000 by 2028. Several structural factors support continued growth, including elevated consumer debt levels, persistent inflation eroding household budgets, and demographic shifts toward age groups more prone to financial distress. The increasing per capita filing rates suggest that even as population growth slows, economic pressures are affecting a larger share of Americans, implying that growth in absolute filing numbers will continue even if per capita rates stabilize. Without substantial economic improvements or policy interventions to address underlying financial stress, the United States appears positioned for continued annual increases in bankruptcy filings throughout the remainder of the decade, potentially approaching or exceeding historical peaks observed during previous recession periods.

ChatGPT 5.2 Analysis of this Week's Bankruptcy Statistics

1. The latest fully completed week is February 2, 2026 (Week 05), and the national filing count for that week is 13,969. This total represents a sharp rise from the prior week’s 10,413, a week-over-week increase of 3,556 filings. Of the 13,969 filings, 8,876 were Chapter 7, 394 were Chapter 11, 5 were Chapter 12, and 4,694 were Chapter 13. Chapter 7 alone therefore accounted for about 63.6% of all filings this week. Compared to Week 05 of 2025, which had 12,782 filings, the current total is higher by 1,187.
2. An interesting fact about this week is how strongly consumer-driven chapters dominate the national total. The combined total of Chapter 7 (8,876) and Chapter 13 (4,694) equals 13,570, which is over 97% of all filings. By contrast, Chapter 11 accounts for only 394, or less than 3%, and Chapter 12 contributes just 5 filings nationwide. Last year in Week 05, Chapter 7 and 13 together totaled 12,350, so the combined consumer filings have grown by 1,220 year over year. This concentration highlights that household financial distress, not business restructuring, is driving the 2026 surge.
3. District-level activity shows especially high counts in a few large jurisdictions. For Chapter 7 filings this week, the Central California district recorded 677, Florida Middle recorded 550, and Northern Illinois recorded 403. Together, these three districts alone represent 1,630 Chapter 7 cases, or about 18% of all Chapter 7 filings nationally. When compared with the national Chapter 7 total of 8,876, these districts clearly anchor a large share of activity. Smaller districts, by contrast, often report single-digit or low double-digit weekly counts.
4. The geographic disparities are pronounced when comparing high-volume districts to low-volume ones. Central California’s 677 Chapter 7 filings are more than one hundred times larger than districts reporting fewer than 5 cases in the same category. Florida Middle’s 550 filings exceed the national Chapter 12 total of 5 by a factor of 110. Northern Illinois, with 403, alone surpasses the combined Chapter 11 total of 394 nationwide. This uneven distribution shows that population size and economic stress vary sharply across regions.
5. Focusing on the current year, Week 05 of 2026 at 13,969 filings represents the highest Week 05 level in the dataset. In the same week, 2025 had 12,782, 2024 had 10,759, 2023 had 8,608, and 2022 had 6,845. This means filings have more than doubled since 2022, rising by 7,124 over four years. The year-over-year increase from 2025 to 2026 alone is 9.3%. Early 2026 is therefore starting at a historically elevated baseline.
6. Comparing with prior years shows a consistent upward trajectory. From 2022 to 2023, Week 05 filings increased by 1,763; from 2023 to 2024 they increased by 2,151; from 2024 to 2025 they increased by 2,023; and from 2025 to 2026 they increased by 1,187. Although the pace of growth slowed slightly in the last year, the level remains extremely high. The cumulative rise from 2022’s 6,845 to 2026’s 13,969 is 104%. This long-term pattern indicates sustained pressure in the bankruptcy system.
7. On a per capita basis, the rise is also striking when scaled to the national population. With roughly 335 million people, 13,969 filings in one week equate to about 4.17 filings per 100,000 people. In 2022, the comparable Week 05 figure of 6,845 implied only 2.04 per 100,000. That means the per capita weekly rate has effectively doubled in four years. Even compared with 2025’s 12,782, the per capita rate is still higher in 2026.
8. The change in per capita filings from year to year mirrors the raw growth. Moving from 12,782 to 13,969 adds roughly 0.35 filings per 100,000 people. The earlier jump from 10,759 in 2024 to 12,782 in 2025 added about 0.60 per 100,000, showing a faster increase last year. Although the growth rate is moderating, it remains positive and historically elevated. This suggests the trend is stabilizing at a high level rather than reversing.
9. If the current weekly pace of 13,969 were to persist, the remaining 47 weeks of the year would generate roughly 656,543 additional filings. Even if activity averages slightly lower at 13,000 per week, that would still imply over 611,000 more cases. Adding the early weeks already observed, total 2026 filings would likely exceed 650,000 nationally. This would surpass recent years’ implied totals based on weekly averages near 12,000. Such a projection assumes no major economic relief or policy shifts.
10. Looking beyond 2025, the trend suggests continued growth rather than a return to pre-2022 levels. The progression from 6,845 in 2022 to 13,969 in 2026 implies an average annual increase of about 1,781 filings for this week alone. Even if growth slows to half that pace, Week 05 could still exceed 15,000 within two years. Consumer chapters, which already total 13,570 this week, are likely to remain the dominant driver. Overall, the data point toward a structurally higher filing environment after 2025 rather than a temporary spike.