*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 9th, 2026)

Week 6 showed strong year-over-year increases, with consumer bankruptcies rising about 15% to 9,546 filings and business filings surging roughly 149% to 424 cases compared with the same week last year. Chapter 7 filings, a lifeline for many struggling households, were up 17.14% year-over-year (4,750 in 2025 to 5,564 in 2026). Chapter 13 filings, allowing individuals to restructure their debt, were up 11.29% year-over-year (3,578 in 2025 to 3,982 in 2026). Chapter 11 filings, often used by businesses dealing with insolvency, were up 156.44% year-over-year (163 in 2025 to 418 in 2026).

Chapter 11 remains the number worth watching. YoY filings through the first six (6) weeks of 2026 look like this: Week 1 (+40%), Week 2 (-19%), Week 3 (+129%), Week 4 (+81%), Week 5 (+210%), and now Week 6 (+156%). It is true that small changes in amounts can produce large swings in percentages, but the Week 6 number (418 filings versus 163 last year) continues a pattern that is difficult to dismiss. 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 YoY growth in Chapter 7 (+17%) 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 continuing to run ahead, U.S. consumer bankruptcies remain between their pre-pandemic highs and 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 of 2026 (Week 6, covering February 2–8) recorded a national total of 9,970 bankruptcy filings across all chapters and districts. Chapter 7 liquidations led the way with 5,564 filings, comprising roughly 55.8% of all cases. Chapter 13 reorganizations followed with 3,982 filings, accounting for 39.9% of the weekly total. Chapter 11 filings reached 418, representing 4.2% of the total, while Chapter 12 filings were minimal at just 6 cases. Compared to the prior week's unusually elevated count of 14,156, this week's 9,970 represents a 29.6% decrease, returning closer to the 2026 weekly average of approximately 10,590 filings.
2. An Interesting Fact About This Week's Filings. One of the most striking aspects of this week's data is the dramatic surge in Chapter 11 filings, which reached 418 compared to just 163 during the same week in 2025 — a 156% year-over-year increase. To put this in perspective, Week 6 of 2022 saw only 62 Chapter 11 cases, meaning filings in this category have grown nearly sevenfold in four years. This spike suggests a growing number of businesses are pursuing reorganization rather than outright liquidation, reflecting broader economic stress among commercial entities. Meanwhile, Chapter 12 farm-and-fishery bankruptcies remain rare at 6 filings, consistent with their historically low single-digit weekly totals. The Chapter 11 trend deserves close monitoring, as sustained growth in business reorganizations often signals deeper economic headwinds ahead.
3. Overview of This Week's District-Level Filings. At the district level, the Central District of California led all 94 districts with 501 total filings in Week 6, followed closely by the Northern District of Georgia at 496 and the Northern District of Texas at 463. The Middle District of Florida contributed 427 filings, while the Northern District of Illinois added 405, rounding out the top five busiest jurisdictions. Other notably active districts included the Eastern District of Michigan (318), Maryland (270), New Jersey (259), the Southern District of Texas (258), and the Northern District of Ohio (243). The Eastern District of Virginia (237), Southern District of Florida (224), and Northern District of Alabama (218) also posted substantial numbers. Of the 94 districts tracked, only 2 reported zero filings, indicating that financial distress is remarkably widespread across the entire federal court system.
4. Geographic Disparities in Filings. The gap between the busiest and quietest districts is staggering: the Central District of California's 501 filings dwarfs the Virgin Islands' single filing by a factor of 500 to 1. Low-filing jurisdictions include Maine (2), Alaska and Vermont (6 each), the District of Columbia (10), South Dakota and Wyoming (11 each), and the Northern District of West Virginia (9). In contrast, populous Sun Belt and industrial districts dominate the top of the rankings, with the Northern District of Georgia (496), Middle District of Florida (427), and the Western District of Tennessee (167) reflecting regional economic pressures. Southern and southeastern districts collectively account for a disproportionate share of national filings, with Northern Alabama alone posting 218 cases despite its relatively modest population. These disparities underscore that bankruptcy activity is driven not just by population size but by local economic conditions, housing costs, and regional industry health.
5. Current Year Focus. Through the first six weeks of 2026, cumulative national filings stand at 63,541, reflecting a robust 15.4% increase over the 55,074 filings recorded in the same period of 2025. The weekly average for 2026 so far sits at approximately 10,590 filings, compared to the 2025 full-year weekly average of 10,819, suggesting the current pace is broadly in line with last year's rhythm. Chapter 7 filings have been the primary engine of growth, with Week 6 alone showing 5,564 cases versus 4,750 in the same week of 2025 — a 17.1% jump. Chapter 13 filings have also risen meaningfully, from 3,578 in Week 6 of 2025 to 3,982 in 2026, an 11.3% increase. With six weeks of data in hand, early 2026 is on pace to extend the unbroken upward trajectory that has characterized national bankruptcy filings since 2022.
6. Comparative Analysis with Previous Years. Week 6 of 2026 at 9,970 filings represents a 17.3% increase over Week 6 of 2025 (8,498), a 20.0% increase over 2024 (8,306), a 30.6% rise over 2023 (7,632), and a 58.9% surge over 2022 (6,276). On a year-to-date basis, the cumulative growth is equally consistent: 2023's first six weeks (42,862) exceeded 2022's (36,769) by 16.6%, 2024 (48,141) topped 2023 by 12.3%, 2025 (55,074) exceeded 2024 by 14.4%, and 2026 (63,541) has surpassed 2025 by 15.4%. Annual totals have risen from 378,322 in 2022 to 445,174 in 2023, then 503,750 in 2024, and 562,583 in 2025, reflecting a compound annual growth rate of approximately 14.1%. Chapter 7 filings during Week 6 have climbed steadily from 3,820 in 2022 to 5,564 in 2026, while Chapter 13 filings rose from 2,394 to 3,982 over the same span. Every chapter and nearly every district shows a consistent multi-year escalation, leaving little doubt that the post-pandemic normalization of filings has evolved into a sustained structural increase.
7. Analyzing the Filings Per Capita. Using an estimated U.S. population of approximately 335 million, the annualized filing rate implied by Week 6 of 2026 translates to roughly 154.8 filings per 100,000 people. This compares to an annualized rate of 131.9 per 100,000 for the same week in 2025, 128.9 in 2024, 118.5 in 2023, and 97.4 in 2022. The full-year 2025 rate stood at approximately 167.9 per 100,000, while 2024 finished at 150.4 and 2023 at 132.9. At the district level, per-capita disparities are even more pronounced: the Northern District of Georgia's 496 filings serve a district population of roughly 6 million, implying a far higher local filing intensity than the Central District of California's 501 filings across a population base nearly three times larger. These per-capita figures confirm that the financial burden of bankruptcy is not distributed evenly and that certain regions face materially higher rates of household and business financial distress.
8. Analyzing the Changing Filings Per Capita. The annualized per-capita filing rate has risen from 97.4 per 100,000 people in Week 6 of 2022 to 154.8 per 100,000 in Week 6 of 2026, representing a cumulative increase of approximately 59% over four years. Year over year, the rate jumped from 131.9 to 154.8 per 100,000 between 2025 and 2026, one of the largest single-year accelerations in the dataset. The full-year per-capita rate climbed from 112.9 in 2022 to 132.9 in 2023, then to 150.4 in 2024, and 167.9 in 2025, showing no sign of plateauing. This persistent escalation outpaces population growth, meaning a rising share of Americans is turning to bankruptcy protection each year. If this trajectory holds, the 2026 full-year rate could approach or exceed 175 per 100,000, a level not seen since the aftermath of the 2005 bankruptcy law changes.
9. Forecast of Expected Filing Numbers for the Rest of the Year. Applying the year-to-date growth rate of 15.4% to the 2025 full-year total of 562,583 yields a projected 2026 total of approximately 649,000 filings. Alternatively, simply extrapolating the current six-week average of 10,590 filings across a full 52-week year produces a more conservative estimate of roughly 550,700 filings. The divergence between these two estimates reflects typical early-year seasonality: filings often accelerate in the spring and summer months, pushing annual totals above what early-week averages would suggest. Given the consistent 14–16% year-over-year growth rates observed over the past four years and the elevated Chapter 11 activity, a full-year total in the range of 600,000 to 650,000 filings appears most likely. This would mark the first time since the post-2005 reform era that annual filings surpassed the 600,000 threshold, underscoring the severity of the current financial stress cycle.
10. Forecast of Filing Trends Beyond 2025. The data reveals a remarkably stable compound annual growth rate of roughly 14.1% from 2022 through 2025, with annual totals rising from 378,322 to 562,583 over that span. If even a moderated growth rate of 10–12% continues, national filings could reach 650,000–700,000 by the end of 2027 and potentially approach 800,000 by 2028. Several structural factors support continued increases: elevated consumer debt levels, higher interest rates persisting longer than anticipated, and the surge in Chapter 11 business reorganizations (up 156% year-over-year in Week 6) all point to sustained upward pressure. However, a meaningful economic recovery, rate cuts, or improved labor conditions could dampen the trajectory and bring growth closer to 5–8% annually. The key inflection point to watch is whether the Chapter 11 surge proves temporary or signals a broader wave of corporate distress that would amplify total filings well beyond current trend lines.

ChatGPT 5.1 Thinking Pro Analysis of this Week's Bankruptcy Statistics

1. In the most recent fully completed week of 2026, which is week 6, there were 9,970 total bankruptcy filings nationwide. Of these, 5,564 were under chapter 7, 418 under chapter 11, 6 under chapter 12, and 3,982 under chapter 13, and together they exactly match the national weekly total of 9,970. This week's total is slightly below the average of 10,590 filings per week seen over the first six weeks of 2026, which together sum to 63,541 filings. Compared with week 5 of 2026, when there were 14,156 filings, week 6 therefore represents a short term pullback of 4,186 cases. Even with that pullback, week 6 remains higher than week 1 of 2026, which started the year with 9,009 filings.
2. An interesting feature of this week is how sharply chapter 11 activity has risen compared with earlier years. In week 6 of 2026 there were 418 chapter 11 filings, which is more than double the 163 recorded in week 6 of 2025 and almost seven times the 62 recorded in week 6 of 2022. Over the same sequence of week 6 observations, chapter 7 filings climbed from 3,820 in 2022 to 4,750 in 2025 and then to 5,564 in 2026, an increase of 1,744 cases over four years. By contrast, chapter 13 filings in week 6 have risen more modestly, moving from 2,394 in 2022 to 3,578 in 2025 and 3,982 in 2026, a net increase of 1,588 cases across that period. The fact that this week's total of 9,970 filings comes with such a large contribution from 418 chapter 11 cases suggests a notable shift toward more complex business restructurings.
3. Looking at districts in the latest week, the highest filing count is in the Central California district with 501 total cases across all chapters. Northern Georgia follows very closely with 496 filings, while Northern Texas records 463, the Middle district of Florida records 427, and Northern Illinois records 405. Together these top five districts account for 2,292 filings, which is about 23 percent of the national weekly total of 9,970. Mid sized districts such as Eastern Michigan with 318 cases and Maryland with 270 cases also contribute significantly to the nationwide volume. At the same time, several districts sit much closer to the overall median of 76 filings per district for this week, indicating a long middle of moderate activity.
4. Geographic disparities are pronounced when we compare districts with very high and very low weekly counts. In the latest week, district totals range from a maximum of 501 filings in Central California to 0 filings in Guam and the Northern Mariana Islands. The average district recorded about 106 filings this week, but the median district recorded only 76, which shows that a small number of large districts pull the mean upward. Very small districts such as the Virgin Islands with 1 filing, Maine with 2 filings, and Alaska and Vermont with 6 filings each sit at the extreme low end of the spectrum. By contrast, heavily populated regions like Central California with 501 filings and Northern Georgia with 496 filings contribute many times more cases than these small jurisdictions within the same week.
5. Focusing on the current year, the first six weeks of 2026 together account for 63,541 filings, which averages 10,590 cases per week. Weekly totals step up from 9,009 in week 1 to 9,413 in week 2, then to 10,580 in week 3 and 10,413 in week 4, showing a steady early year climb. Week 5 jumps sharply to 14,156 filings, which is the highest weekly count so far in 2026 and stands 3,566 cases above the 2026 six week average. Week 6 then eases back to 9,970 filings, still 961 cases above the year opening week 1 tally. This pattern suggests that while there is volatility week to week, 2026 has quickly settled into a band where typical weekly filings lie between roughly 9,000 and 11,000 cases, with occasional spikes like the 14,156 seen in week 5.
6. When we compare the first six weeks of each recent year, the upward trend in weekly filings is clear. Total filings for weeks 1 through 6 were 36,769 in 2022, 42,862 in 2023, 48,141 in 2024, 55,074 in 2025, and 63,541 in 2026. On a weekly basis, those sums correspond to average weekly volumes of 6,128 in 2022, 7,144 in 2023, 8,024 in 2024, 9,179 in 2025, and 10,590 in 2026. Looking specifically at week 6 each year, total filings rise from 6,276 in 2022 to 7,632 in 2023, 8,306 in 2024, 8,498 in 2025, and then 9,970 in 2026. The consistent year over year increase in both cumulative six week totals and single week snapshots suggests that the recent rise is not just a one off spike but part of a multi year trend.
7. To put this week's national total in population terms, it helps to view filings per 100,000 residents instead of just raw counts. Using an official estimate of about 341.8 million residents in 2025, a weekly national volume of 9,970 filings corresponds to roughly 2.9 cases per 100,000 people. In the same week of 2022 there were 6,276 filings, and using an estimated 2022 population of about 334.0 million, that week equated to roughly 1.9 cases per 100,000 people. If we hold population roughly constant between 2025 and the first weeks of 2026 for this simple comparison, this means the per person filing rate for week 6 has climbed by about 1.0 case per 100,000 residents over just four filing seasons. That perspective underscores that the increase from 6,276 to 9,970 weekly filings between 2022 and 2026 represents not just more people, but also a higher propensity to file.
8. Looking across the week 6 observations, we can trace how filings per 100,000 residents have changed over time. Based on the combination of weekly filing counts and national population estimates, week 6 corresponds to roughly 1.9 cases per 100,000 residents in 2022, 2.3 in 2023, 2.4 in 2024, 2.5 in 2025, and about 2.9 in 2026. In other words, the per person weekly filing rate for this specific week has risen by about 50 percent over four years, while the population itself increased by only around 7.8 million between 2022 and 2025. National weekly totals for week 6 grew from 6,276 filings in 2022 to 7,632, 8,306, 8,498, and finally 9,970 in 2026, so almost all of the per capita increase comes from more filings rather than demographic growth. This pattern suggests that underlying economic or financial stressors are intensifying enough to lift the filing rate itself, not just the number of potential filers.
9. To gauge what the rest of 2026 might look like, we can extrapolate from both recent history and the first six weeks of this year. In 2025, weeks 7 through 52 produced 507,509 filings, averaging about 11,033 cases per week over those 46 weeks. If we scale that 2025 pattern by the ratio between the 2026 and 2025 average weekly filings in the first six weeks, which is about 10,590 divided by 9,179 or roughly 1.15, we obtain a projected 585,533 filings for weeks 7 through 52 of 2026. Adding the actual 63,541 filings already recorded in weeks 1 through 6 yields a forecast of around 649,000 filings for all of 2026. Under that scenario, typical weekly volumes over the remaining 46 weeks would be on the order of 12,700 filings, modestly above the 11,033 average seen in the same stretch of 2025.
10. Finally, we can use the recent run up in yearly totals to sketch how filings might evolve after 2025 if current patterns persist. Total annual filings rose from 378,322 in 2022 to 445,174 in 2023, 503,750 in 2024, and 562,583 in 2025, increases of roughly 67,000, 58,000, and 59,000 per year respectively. If we apply an increment of about 60,000 additional filings per year to the 562,583 recorded in 2025, we arrive at a rough trajectory of around 620,000 filings in 2026, 680,000 in 2027, and 740,000 in 2028, which is broadly consistent with the 649,000 weekly based forecast for 2026. Translating those yearly totals back into weekly terms implies average weekly filings rising from about 10,819 in 2025 to something in the 12,000 to 14,000 range in the late 2020s, assuming around 52 filing weeks per year. These projections are inherently uncertain, but the combination of a rising week 6 total from 6,276 in 2022 to 9,970 in 2026 and steadily growing annual sums strongly suggests a continuing upward trend in filings beyond 2025.

Claude 4.6 Sonnet Extended Analysis of the Bankruptcy Statistics

1. Overview of This Week's National Filings The latest completed week recorded a national total of 9,970 bankruptcy filings across all chapters and all districts in the United States. Of those filings, Chapter 7 liquidation cases were the dominant form, accounting for 5,564 — or approximately 55.8% of all filings for the week. Chapter 13 wage-earner reorganization plans contributed the next largest share at 3,982 filings, representing roughly 39.9% of the national total. Chapter 11 business reorganizations came in at 418 filings, a notably elevated figure reflecting continued corporate financial stress, while Chapter 12 family-farmer cases added a modest 6. Together, these numbers place Week 6 of 2026 well above comparable weeks in prior years, underscoring a clear and sustained upward trend in national bankruptcy activity.
2. An Interesting Fact About This Week's Filings One of the most striking features of this week's data is the dramatic swing from the prior week: Week 5 of 2026 posted the highest single-week national total so far this year at 14,156 filings, meaning Week 6's 9,970 represents a sharp decline of 4,186 cases, or approximately 29.6%, in just one week. Despite this week-over-week drop, the Week 6 total of 9,970 is still 17.3% higher than the 8,498 recorded in the same week of 2025, making it the highest Week 6 total across the entire 2022–2026 period in this dataset. Chapter 11 filings, at 418 this week, are more than 2.5 times the 163 reported in Week 6 of 2025, suggesting a notable surge in business reorganization activity in early 2026. The six-week cumulative total for 2026 stands at 63,541, which is already 15.4% above the 55,074 recorded over the same six-week period in 2025. This combination of a post-spike correction and still-elevated baseline activity makes Week 6 of 2026 a particularly informative data point for understanding where the broader trend is headed.
3. An Overview of This Week's District-Level Filings Across the country's bankruptcy districts, filings in Week 6 of 2026 were led by the Central District of California (CAC) with 501 cases, closely followed by the Northern District of Georgia (GAN) at 496 and the Northern District of Texas (TXN) at 463. The Middle District of Florida (FLM) recorded 427 cases, and the Northern District of Illinois (ILN) contributed 405, rounding out the top five most active districts for the week. Further down the list, the Eastern District of Michigan (MIE) saw 318 filings, the District of Maryland (MD) had 270, New Jersey (NJ) posted 259, the Southern District of Texas (TXS) tallied 258, and the Northern District of Ohio (OHN) recorded 243. At the lower end of the spectrum, Vermont (VT) reported just 6 filings, Maine (ME) registered 2, and the Virgin Islands (VI) had only 1, while Guam (GU) and the Northern Mariana Islands (NMI) reported zero filings for the week. These district-level figures reveal that a relatively small number of large, urban districts are responsible for the overwhelming share of national filing volume.
4. Geographic Disparities in Filings The geographic concentration of bankruptcy filings in Week 6 of 2026 is striking: just the top five districts — CAC (501), GAN (496), TXN (463), FLM (427), and ILN (405) — together account for 2,292 filings, or roughly 23% of the national total of 9,970. This means nearly a quarter of all U.S. filings for the week originated in five districts spanning California, Georgia, Texas, Florida, and Illinois — states with large populations and historically high financial stress levels. By contrast, smaller and more rural jurisdictions such as Vermont (6), Maine (2), and the Virgin Islands (1) contribute an almost negligible share of weekly volume, reflecting the deep structural divide between high-density urban courts and low-population jurisdictions. Texas alone, with its Northern (463), Southern (258), and other districts combined, represents a formidable share of total filings, affirming its status as one of the most active bankruptcy states in the nation. These disparities are not new but appear to be widening as activity surges in already-high-volume districts in 2026, intensifying the geographic skew observed in prior years.
5. Current Year Focus Through Week 6 of 2026, the cumulative national filing total stands at 63,541 — a pace that, if sustained at the six-week average of 10,590 cases per week, would project to roughly 550,700 filings for the full calendar year. The six-week stretch has not been uniform: weekly totals ranged from a low of 9,009 in Week 1 to the anomalous spike of 14,156 in Week 5, before settling back to 9,970 in the latest completed week. Chapter 7 filings have maintained their dominance across all six weeks, while Chapter 11 cases have been notably elevated, with Week 5 recording 422 and Week 6 sustaining that high level at 418, compared to a 2025 weekly average that rarely exceeded 200. The early-year filing surge in 2026 suggests that financial stress carried over from the end of 2025 is continuing to drive consumers and businesses into court. Whether the Week 5 spike was a structural inflection point or a data artifact will be an important question to watch as Weeks 7 and 8 data become available.
6. Comparative Analysis With Previous Years Looking at Week 6 across all years in the dataset, national totals have followed a consistent upward trajectory: 6,276 in 2022, 7,632 in 2023, 8,306 in 2024, 8,498 in 2025, and now 9,970 in 2026. The year-over-year growth rate for Week 6 accelerated sharply in 2026 at 17.3%, compared to just 2.3% in 2025 and 8.8% in 2024, suggesting that the pace of increase has re-energized after a brief plateau. Looking at full-year context, total filings grew from 378,322 in 2022 to 445,174 in 2023, 503,750 in 2024, and 562,583 in 2025 — consistent annual gains of roughly 12–13% — and the 2026 trajectory is tracking ahead of all those prior baselines. The six-week cumulative total of 63,541 in 2026 compares to 48,141 over the same period in 2024, meaning filing volume through early February has grown by more than 32% in just two years. This multi-year comparison makes clear that the rise in bankruptcies is not a one-year anomaly but a durable, compounding trend rooted in persistent economic headwinds.
7. Analyzing the Filings Per Capita Using an estimated U.S. resident population of approximately 335 million in early 2026, the 9,970 filings recorded in Week 6 translate to roughly 29.8 filings per million residents for that single week. Applying the same population base, Week 6 of 2025 produced approximately 25.4 filings per million, and Week 6 of 2024 yielded about 24.8 per million, confirming that the per-capita rate is rising meaningfully year over year. At the six-week cumulative level, the 63,541 filings through Week 6 of 2026 represent approximately 189.7 filings per million Americans — up from roughly 164.4 per million over the same period in 2025. On an annualized basis, if the current weekly rate of roughly 10,590 filings holds, the U.S. would see approximately 1,644 filings per million people in 2026, compared to approximately 1,679 per million for all of 2025 (562,583 filings over 52 weeks). The per-capita data confirm that bankruptcies are not simply a product of population growth but reflect a genuine increase in financial distress relative to the size of the population.
8. Analyzing the Changing Filings Per Capita The change in the per-capita filing rate over time reveals an accelerating trend that goes beyond what raw totals alone suggest. From Week 6 of 2024 to Week 6 of 2025, the per-capita rate rose from approximately 24.8 to 25.4 per million — a modest increase of about 2.4%, consistent with the slow growth observed in the raw data. From Week 6 of 2025 to Week 6 of 2026, the per-capita rate jumped from 25.4 to 29.8 per million — an increase of approximately 17.3%, marking a significant acceleration. This widening rate of change suggests that the factors driving bankruptcy filings — whether rising interest rates, consumer debt loads, or business insolvencies — are intensifying rather than stabilizing as 2026 begins. The elevated Chapter 11 count of 418 in Week 6 of 2026, compared to just 62 in Week 6 of 2022, is particularly notable on a per-capita basis and points to growing corporate financial fragility alongside consumer distress. If the per-capita trajectory continues at its current pace, the rate could push well past 30 filings per million per week by mid-2026, levels not seen in this dataset for any comparable week.
9. Forecast of Expected Filing Numbers for the Rest of 2026 Based on the six-week average of 10,590 filings per week in 2026, and with 46 weeks remaining in the calendar year after Week 6, the projected additional filings for the rest of 2026 would total approximately 487,140 cases. Combined with the 63,541 already recorded through Week 6, this yields a full-year 2026 projection of approximately 550,681 filings — which, if realized, would represent a slight decline from 2025's 562,583, primarily because the 2026 average is being pulled lower by the relatively modest Weeks 1 and 6 compared to the extreme Week 5 spike. However, if the elevated pace seen in Weeks 3 through 5 — averaging around 11,716 per week — is more representative of underlying demand, then the full-year projection rises to approximately 606,741, which would be a new multi-year high and roughly 7.9% above 2025. Chapter 11 filings are the most uncertain variable: at 418 in Week 6 and averaging 295 per week across all six weeks of 2026, they are running far ahead of 2025's weekly average, and their trajectory will be a critical bellwether for corporate health through the rest of the year. Given the historical pattern of filings peaking in late winter and early spring, Weeks 7 through 15 will be especially important in establishing whether 2026's early surge reflects a structural shift or a seasonal front-loading effect.
10. Forecast of the Trends of Increasing Filings After 2025 The multi-year trajectory from 2022 through early 2026 points strongly toward continued growth in U.S. bankruptcy filings well beyond 2025, with the full-year totals growing by an average of approximately 61,420 filings annually over the 2022–2025 period. If even a modest version of this growth rate persists, total annual filings could approach 620,000 by 2027 and potentially surpass 680,000 by 2028, although those projections carry increasing uncertainty as macro conditions evolve. The sharp acceleration in the year-over-year growth rate for Week 6 — from just 2.3% in 2025 to 17.3% in 2026 — suggests that post-pandemic financial stress, elevated interest rate environments, and rising consumer debt are creating conditions more akin to the 2022–2023 surge than the modest 2024–2025 plateau. Chapter 11 filings are a particularly important leading indicator: their more than doubling from 62 in Week 6 of 2022 to 418 in Week 6 of 2026 implies that corporate bankruptcies could become an increasingly significant driver of national totals in the coming years, potentially pushing overall figures higher than consumer filings alone would suggest. The historical record in this dataset — from 378,322 in 2022 to 562,583 in 2025, a 48.7% increase in three years — makes a strong case that barring a significant economic reversal or policy intervention, the upward trend in U.S. bankruptcy filings will remain intact through 2026 and likely accelerate into 2027 and beyond.

ChatGPT 5.2 Analysis of this Week's Bankruptcy Statistics

1. In the most recently completed week in your cutoff (week 6 of 2026, ending Feb 9, 2026), the national total was 9,970 filings. That total is composed of 5,564 Chapter 7 filings, 418 Chapter 11 filings, 6 Chapter 12 filings, and 3,982 Chapter 13 filings. Compared with the prior week (week 5 of 2026), the national total fell from 14,156 to 9,970, a drop of 4,186 filings. Even with that week-to-week dip, week 6 of 2026 still ran above the same week last year, rising from 8,498 (week 6 of 2025) to 9,970. Chapters 7 and 13 together accounted for 9,546 of 9,970 filings this week, showing that consumer-driven cases remained the dominant driver.
2. The standout feature this week is how unusually large the Chapter 11 count is relative to recent history. Week 6 of 2026 recorded 418 Chapter 11 filings, versus 163 in week 6 of 2025 and 138 in week 6 of 2024. That means Chapter 11 is up 255 year-over-year versus the same week last year (from 163 to 418), even while the overall national total increased by 1,472 (from 8,498 to 9,970). Put differently, a sizable share of the year-over-year gain in the weekly total is explained by Chapter 11’s jump rather than only consumer chapters. At the same time, Chapter 7 this week was 5,564 (down from 8,941 last week), which shows the national drop from 14,156 to 9,970 was mainly a Chapter 7 swing rather than a collapse in Chapter 11.
3. District activity was concentrated, with several districts contributing several hundred filings each to the 9,970 national total. The highest-filing district this week was CAC with 501 total filings, closely followed by GAN with 496 and TXN with 463. Next were FLM with 427 and ILN with 405, each individually contributing roughly four hundred cases in the week. In the next tier, MIE posted 318, MD 270, and NJ 259, showing meaningful volume beyond the very top group. These district totals are not single-category counts—each is the sum across chapters for that district in the week, and together they roll up to the national 9,970.
4. The gap between high- and low-volume districts was extreme in this week’s data. At the top, CAC’s 501 filings were about 500 times the VI’s 1 filing, illustrating how unevenly cases are distributed geographically. Several very small districts were in single digits or low teens, including ME with 2, AK with 6, VT with 6, and WVN with 9. Even compared to modest districts like ND with 14 or WY with 11, the leading districts (like GAN at 496 and TXN at 463) were an order of magnitude larger. The top five districts (501, 496, 463, 427, 405) together summed to 2,292 filings, which is a substantial portion of the 9,970 national total. These disparities matter because week-to-week national movement (like 14,156 down to 9,970) can be heavily influenced by what happens in a handful of very large districts.
5. Looking at the current year so far, filings are running higher than last year on a year-to-date weekly basis through week 6. Through the first six completed weeks of 2026, the national total sums to 63,541 filings, compared with 55,074 through the first six weeks of 2025, a difference of 8,467. The current-year mix through week 6 is 37,943 Chapter 7 filings, 1,571 Chapter 11 filings, 31 Chapter 12 filings, and 23,996 Chapter 13 filings. That compares with 32,741 Chapter 7 and 794 Chapter 11 year-to-date at the same point last year, meaning Chapter 11 is up 777 cases year-to-date while Chapter 7 is up 5,202. Even though week 6 alone was 9,970, the year-to-date pace reflects the combined effect of earlier weeks like 10,580 (week 3) and 14,156 (week 5).
6. On a same-week comparison across years, this week’s 9,970 is the highest among the week-6 values shown in the dataset. Week 6 totals were 6,276 (2022), 7,632 (2023), 8,306 (2024), 8,498 (2025), and now 9,970 (2026), which is a steady stair-step upward pattern. The year-over-year change from 2025 to 2026 for week 6 is +1,472, while the jump from 2024 to 2025 for week 6 was only +192 (from 8,306 to 8,498). Chapter composition also shifted: week 6 Chapter 11 rose from 163 (2025) to 418 (2026), while Chapter 13 rose from 3,578 (2025) to 3,982 (2026). Even with that strong same-week improvement, the immediate prior week comparison reminds you volatility is real: week 5 of 2026 was 14,156, far above the 9,970 recorded in week 6.
7. Using a national population estimate of 341,784,857 (U.S. population estimate for July 1, 2025) , week 6 of 2026’s 9,970 filings translate to about 2.92 filings per 100,000 people. That rate is driven mostly by Chapter 7 at 5,564 (about 1.63 per 100,000) and Chapter 13 at 3,982 (about 1.17 per 100,000), with Chapter 11 at 418 (about 0.12 per 100,000) and Chapter 12 at 6 (near zero per 100,000). Put another way, about 55.8% of this week’s filings are Chapter 7 (5,564 of 9,970) and about 39.9% are Chapter 13 (3,982 of 9,970). This per-person framing helps interpret why a district like CAC with 501 matters nationally: a handful of large districts can materially shift the national per-capita rate even when many districts are in the teens (like ND with 14). Because the population denominator changes slowly relative to weekly swings, most week-to-week per-capita movement is being driven by changes like 14,156 down to 9,970, not by population.
8. The per-capita rate changed sharply from last week, mirroring the raw-count drop. Week 5 of 2026 had 14,156 filings, which is roughly 4.14 per 100,000 people using the same 341,784,857 population estimate , compared with 2.92 per 100,000 in week 6 with 9,970 filings. Year-over-year, week 6 of 2025 had 8,498 filings, or about 2.50 per 100,000 using the 340,110,988 July 1, 2024 population estimate , so week 6 of 2026 is higher by about 0.42 per 100,000. The per-capita increase year-over-year aligns with the raw gain of +1,472 filings (from 8,498 to 9,970) and is amplified by Chapter 11’s jump from 163 to 418. Meanwhile, the week-to-week per-capita drop is consistent with Chapter 7 falling from 8,941 last week to 5,564 this week, which is the main reason the national rate eased so much.
9. A simple projection from the year-to-date weekly pace suggests 2026 could land near the mid–five-hundreds in total filings, but uncertainty is high because weeks like 14,156 can skew averages. Through week 6, 2026 totals 63,541 filings, which averages about 10,590 per week across the six completed weeks. Extending that average across 52 weeks implies roughly 550,689 filings for 2026 (10,590 × 52), with the remaining 46 weeks contributing about 487,148 filings at that pace. For context, the full-year total in 2025 was 562,583, so this straight-line projection would be about 11,894 lower than last year despite week 6 being higher (9,970 vs 8,498). If the rest of 2026 looks more like the higher weeks already observed (such as 10,580 in week 3 and 14,156 in week 5) than like the lower weeks (such as 9,009 in week 1), the year-end number could easily exceed 550,689.
10. The multi-year pattern in the weekly data supports a continued upward trend beyond 2025, even if the exact path is bumpy week to week. Full-year totals rose from 378,322 (2022) to 445,174 (2023) to 503,750 (2024) to 562,583 (2025), which shows persistent growth in annual filings. On that trajectory, a reasonable “trendline” expectation would be further increases after 2025, especially since same-week values have climbed from 6,276 (week 6 of 2022) to 9,970 (week 6 of 2026). If growth were to continue at roughly the 2022–2025 pace, annual totals could plausibly move above 600,000 in the next couple of years, but weeks like 9,970 versus 14,156 show that short-run volatility will remain significant. Importantly, the composition shift matters for trend expectations: year-to-date Chapter 11 is 1,571 in 2026 versus 794 at the same point in 2025, so a higher baseline for business-related filings could keep the overall totals elevated even if Chapter 7 and Chapter 13 fluctuate.