What the Fed balance sheet measures
The total assets of the Federal Reserve System, from its weekly H.4.1 statement, averaged for each month and shown in trillions of dollars. Most of the assets are Treasury securities and mortgage-backed securities bought in quantitative easing programs; the rest includes loans to banks and other holdings. The Fed pays for its purchases by creating bank reserves, so the balance sheet also shows how much central bank money is in the financial system.
How to read this chart
Before 2008 the balance sheet was under $1 trillion and grew only slowly. Each step up after that is a round of quantitative easing (QE): three rounds after the financial crisis took it to about $4.5 trillion, and pandemic purchases nearly doubled it to a peak near $9 trillion in 2022. The declines are quantitative tightening (QT), when the Fed lets bonds mature without replacing them. The brief spike in March 2023 reflects emergency loans to banks after Silicon Valley Bank failed.
The latest reading in context
- At $6.75T, the latest reading is below its 5-year average of $7.61T and above its 10-year average of $6.44T.
- Of all 286 monthly readings since January 2003, 79% were lower than today’s and 21% were higher.
- Direction: up 0.1% over the past month; up 0.8% over the past six months; up 2.4% over the past year.
- The highest value on record is $8.95T (April 2022, 4 years ago); the lowest is $0.72T (February 2003, 23 years ago).
- The full history spans 2 US recessions, shaded grey on the chart.
Why it matters
The balance sheet is the Fed’s second policy tool after interest rates. Buying long-term bonds pushes down long-term yields and mortgage rates and supports asset prices; shrinking holdings works in the opposite direction. The size of the balance sheet also determines the amount of bank reserves, and the Fed has to keep reserves ample enough for money markets to function smoothly.
What moves the Fed balance sheet
- Quantitative easing purchases of Treasury and mortgage-backed securities
- Quantitative tightening, when maturing securities are not reinvested
- Emergency lending to banks and other institutions in financial crises
- Purchases of Treasury bills to keep bank reserves at an ample level
Key moments in its history
- 2008More than doubled in a few months as the Fed rescued the financial system.
- 2014Reached about $4.5 trillion at the end of the third round of QE.
- 2020Grew by about $3 trillion in three months during the pandemic.
- Apr 2022Peaked near $9 trillion; quantitative tightening began in June.
- Dec 2025The Fed ended balance-sheet runoff and began buying Treasury bills to maintain reserves.
Fed Balance Sheet data tables
Average by decade
| Decade | Average | High | Low |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2020s (so far) | $7.46T | $8.95T | $4.16T |
| 2010s | $3.74T | $4.51T | $2.26T |
| 2000s | $1.04T | $2.22T | $0.72T |
Last 12 months
| Period | Value | Change |
|---|---|---|
| Oct 2026 | $6.75T | +0.1% |
| Sep 2026 | $6.74T | −0.0% |
| Aug 2026 | $6.75T | +0.1% |
| Jul 2026 | $6.74T | +0.2% |
| Jun 2026 | $6.73T | +0.2% |
| May 2026 | $6.71T | +0.3% |
| Apr 2026 | $6.70T | +0.7% |
| Mar 2026 | $6.65T | +0.5% |
| Feb 2026 | $6.61T | +0.5% |
| Jan 2026 | $6.58T | +0.2% |
| Dec 2025 | $6.57T | +0.1% |
| Nov 2025 | $6.57T | −0.4% |
Monthly values. Decade figures are averages of the monthly values in each decade. The complete history is available as a CSV file.
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Fed Balance Sheet: questions and answers
What is quantitative easing?
Large-scale purchases of government and mortgage bonds by the central bank, paid for with newly created reserves. QE is used when short-term rates are already near zero, to push down long-term interest rates.
Does the Fed print money when its balance sheet grows?
It creates bank reserves, which only banks and a few other institutions can hold. How much this adds to the money people spend depends on lending and on government borrowing, which is why the M2 money supply grew much faster in 2020 than after 2008.
How often is the Fed balance sheet updated?
Every Thursday afternoon in the H.4.1 release, showing Wednesday's figures. This chart averages the weekly values for each month.
Where does the data on this chart come from?
From the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System. ChartWidgets downloads the series (WALCL) from FRED, the Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis database, and checks for new releases every day. The last update was on November 1, 2026.