FY2021 Bankruptcy Filings
413,616 total filings nationwide (-24.0% from FY2020)
Statistical information only, not legal advice. Consult a bankruptcy attorney for guidance on your specific situation.
413,616
Total
100.0% of total
297,540
Chapter 7
71.9% of total
108,316
Chapter 13
26.2% of total
4,817
Chapter 11
1.2% of total
1,001
Chapter 12
0.2% of total
13,898
Business
3.4% of total
States by Total Filings, FY2021
| Rank | State | Total Filings |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | California | 53,898 |
| 2 | Texas | 33,595 |
| 3 | Florida | 33,479 |
| 4 | Georgia | 29,675 |
| 5 | New York | 22,516 |
| 6 | Illinois | 18,614 |
| 7 | Tennessee | 18,614 |
| 8 | Ohio | 18,255 |
| 9 | Pennsylvania | 15,699 |
| 10 | Michigan | 14,846 |
| 11 | Alabama | 14,353 |
| 12 | North Carolina | 14,335 |
| 13 | New Jersey | 13,994 |
| 14 | Arizona | 12,632 |
| 15 | Virginia | 11,438 |
| 16 | Indiana | 11,284 |
| 17 | Louisiana | 9,733 |
| 18 | Missouri | 9,733 |
| 19 | Washington | 9,733 |
| 20 | Maryland | 8,728 |
| 21 | Nevada | 8,387 |
| 22 | Oklahoma | 8,029 |
| 23 | South Carolina | 8,029 |
| 24 | Colorado | 7,875 |
| 25 | Kentucky | 7,603 |
| 26 | Minnesota | 7,177 |
| 27 | Wisconsin | 7,177 |
| 28 | Mississippi | 7,091 |
| 29 | Massachusetts | 6,665 |
| 30 | Oregon | 6,665 |
| 31 | Utah | 6,324 |
| 32 | Arkansas | 4,978 |
| 33 | Kansas | 4,790 |
| 34 | Iowa | 4,109 |
| 35 | Connecticut | 3,274 |
| 36 | New Mexico | 3,273 |
| 37 | Nebraska | 2,915 |
| 38 | West Virginia | 2,762 |
| 39 | Idaho | 2,506 |
| 40 | Hawaii | 2,421 |
| 41 | Delaware | 1,612 |
| 42 | Maine | 1,612 |
| 43 | New Hampshire | 1,552 |
| 44 | Montana | 1,211 |
| 45 | Rhode Island | 1,211 |
| 46 | Alaska | 1,059 |
| 47 | Vermont | 785 |
| 48 | Wyoming | 785 |
| 49 | North Dakota | 700 |
| 50 | South Dakota | 700 |
| 51 | District of Columbia | 632 |
What the FY2021 National Data Shows
Federal bankruptcy courts recorded 413,616 total filings across all chapters in FY2021 - a decrease of 24.0% from the 544,463 cases filed in FY2020. Chapter 7 liquidation remained the dominant filing type at 71.9% of the national caseload (297,540 cases), followed by Chapter 13 wage-earner repayment plans at 26.2% (108,316 cases). Chapter 11 reorganizations accounted for 1.16% (4,817 cases), and Chapter 12 family-farmer/fisherman filings totaled 1,001.
Business filings represented 3.4% of FY2021 activity (13,898 cases), leaving 399,718 consumer (non-business) filings. Geographic concentration matters: the top 51 states by volume, led by California with 53,898 cases, drive most of the caseload, and the top three states alone account for roughly 29.2% of national filings. National totals also reflect major macro-policy shifts: pandemic-era relief programs (moratoria, stimulus, student-loan pauses) pushed filings to multi-decade lows in FY2020–FY2022, while subsequent rate hikes and the unwinding of those programs have brought volumes back up.
These figures describe aggregate court activity; they are not an indicator of whether any individual should or should not file bankruptcy. Chapter choice, means-test eligibility, exemptions, and likely outcomes depend on a debtor's state of residence, income, asset mix, and the specific district's local rules and trustee practices. This page is statistical information only and is not legal advice; a licensed bankruptcy attorney is the appropriate source of guidance for a personal filing decision.
Read our methodology - how this data is sourced, computed, and verified.
Related
Every figure on PlainBankruptcy is rendered directly from federal court source data, no number is typed in by an editor. This page draws directly on federal court source data, no figure is typed in by an editor. See our editorial standards & corrections policy, the methodology behind these numbers, or report a data error.