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US Federal Debt Outstanding vs US Rural Population
US Federal Debt Outstanding and US Rural Population correlate at r = -0.75 over 66 years (1960–2025), p < 0.0001. With the time trend removed, r = +0.56. Direction flips without the trend.
Verdict: Direction flips without the trend. The raw correlation is -0.75, but once each series' time trend is removed it becomes 0.56. The year-to-year movements run the opposite way to the long-run trends, so the headline number is misleading.
- Pearson r
- -0.75
- p-value
- < 0.0001
- Years compared (n)
- 66 (1960–2025)
- 95% confidence interval
- -0.84 to -0.62
- Correlation with the time trend removed
- +0.56
Sources
- US Federal Debt Outstanding (USD): U.S. Treasury. Total US federal debt outstanding at the end of each fiscal year (U.S. Treasury Fiscal Data).
- US Rural Population (% of total): World Bank. US Rural Population (World Bank indicator SP.RUR.TOTL.ZS).
Related pairs
- US Rural Population vs US Urban Population (r = -1.00)
- US Renewable Energy Share vs US Federal Debt Outstanding (r = +0.99)
- US Wind Power Generation vs US Federal Debt Outstanding (r = +0.99)
- US Federal Debt Outstanding vs US GDP (current US$) (r = +0.97)
- US Population vs US Rural Population (r = -0.97)
- US Adult Obesity vs US Rural Population (r = -0.95)
Correlation does not imply causation. How the verdict is worked out.