In New York, the post-judgment interest rate is 9% per year on most money judgments and 2% per year on judgments arising from consumer debt against an individual. Both rates are set by CPLR 5004 and run as simple interest from the day the clerk enters the judgment until the balance is paid.
The 9% Default Rate
CPLR 5004 fixes post-judgment interest at 9% per year for most civil judgments.1New York State Senate. New York Civil Practice Law and Rules Law 5004 – Rate of Interest It is a flat statutory rate, not tied to any market index, and it applies unless another statute or a contract between the parties sets a different one. Under CPLR 5003, every money judgment bears interest from the date the clerk enters it.2New York State Senate. New York Civil Practice Law and Rules 5003 – Interest Upon Judgment
The 9% figure is simple interest. It accrues on the original judgment amount and does not compound on previously accumulated interest. Partial payments reduce the principal that future interest is calculated on, but they do not pause accrual. Interest keeps running on whatever balance remains.
The 2% Rate for Consumer Debt
Since 2021, judgments arising from consumer debt against an individual carry a post-judgment rate of 2% per year rather than 9%.1New York State Senate. New York Civil Practice Law and Rules Law 5004 – Rate of Interest The reduced rate also applies retroactively to any portion of an older consumer debt judgment that remained unpaid when the law took effect.
Consumer debt means any obligation where the money, property, insurance, or services involved were primarily for personal, family, or household purposes. Credit card balances, medical bills, auto loans, and similar personal obligations qualify. The defendant must be a natural person, not a business entity.1New York State Senate. New York Civil Practice Law and Rules Law 5004 – Rate of Interest
The gap between the two rates is large. On a $50,000 judgment, the difference between 9% and 2% is $3,500 per year in accruing interest. When a creditor seeks a default judgment on consumer debt, the application must affirmatively state that the 2% rate applies. The same disclosure requirement applies to confessions of judgment and execution paperwork.3New York State Senate. S5724A – Relates to the Rate of Interest on Money Judgments in Certain Actions Involving Consumer Debt If a consumer debt judgment was entered against you at 9%, it is worth checking whether the reduced rate should be applied.
How the Daily and Annual Numbers Work
To get the daily accrual, divide the annual rate by 365. On a $100,000 judgment at 9%, that is roughly $24.66 per day, or $9,000 per year. On the same judgment at the 2% consumer rate, daily accrual drops to about $5.48, or $2,000 per year.
When partial payments come in, interest continues on the remaining balance. Courts also decide whether a given payment is applied first to accrued interest or to principal, and that choice can meaningfully change the final total. If the judgment is appealed and later modified or reversed, the interest calculation is adjusted to the new amount. During the appeal itself, interest keeps running on the original judgment unless the appellate court orders a stay.
Federal Judgments Use a Different Rate
If the judgment comes from a federal court rather than a New York state court, the rate is not 9%. Under 28 U.S.C. § 1961, federal post-judgment interest is pegged to the weekly average one-year constant maturity Treasury yield for the calendar week before the judgment was entered.4Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 28 USC 1961 – Interest That rate moves with the market and has historically been well below New York’s fixed 9%.
Federal interest also behaves differently. While New York state judgment interest is simple, federal interest under § 1961 is compounded annually and computed daily until payment.4Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 28 USC 1961 – Interest Applying the wrong rate is a common source of recalculation disputes, so it pays to confirm at the outset which rate governs.
Judgments Against New York State
Judgments where the State of New York is the debtor fall under State Finance Law § 16 rather than CPLR 5004. The rate cannot exceed 9% per year, but it is not automatically set at 9%. The court has discretion to set a lower rate.5New York State Senate. New York State Finance Law 16 – Rate of Interest on Judgments and Accrued Claims Against the State In Denio v. State of New York, the Court of Appeals upheld a Court of Claims decision applying the full 9% rate against the state, confirming that the statutory cap allows for the maximum rate even where the debtor is a government entity.6Cornell Law Institute. Sarah J. Denio and James S. Denio v. The State of New York
Interest Before the Judgment Is Entered
Post-judgment interest is only one layer of what a creditor can recover. New York also awards interest for the period before a judgment is formally entered, and the rules differ by case type.
In contract disputes and actions involving interference with property, CPLR 5001 allows pre-judgment interest from the earliest date the cause of action existed.7New York State Senate. New York Civil Practice Law and Rules Law 5001 – Interest to Verdict, Report or Decision Where damages were incurred at different times, interest can be computed on each item from the date it was incurred or from a single reasonable intermediate date. In equitable actions, both the rate and the start date are left to the court’s discretion.
CPLR 5002 then covers the gap between a verdict, report, or decision and the formal entry of judgment. During that window, interest accrues on the total sum awarded at the statutory rate, in any action. The clerk computes the amount and includes it in the final judgment.8New York State Senate. New York Civil Practice Law and Rules Law 5002 – Interest From Verdict, Report or Decision to Judgment A debtor cannot avoid interest by stalling the ministerial steps between the verdict and the entry of judgment.
How Long Interest Keeps Accruing
Interest runs until the judgment is paid, and a New York money judgment can be enforced for a long time. Under CPLR 211, a judgment is conclusively presumed satisfied 20 years after the date the creditor was first entitled to enforce it.9New York State Senate. New York Civil Practice Law and Rules Law 211 – Actions to Be Commenced Within Twenty Years The clock resets, though, if the debtor acknowledges the debt or makes a partial payment during that window, with a new 20-year period running from the last acknowledgment or payment.
A judgment lien on real estate has a shorter life. Under CPLR 5203, the lien is effective for 10 years from the filing of the judgment roll with the county clerk.10New York State Senate. New York Civil Practice Law and Rules Law 5203 – Priorities and Liens Upon Real Property After that, the creditor must move the court, on notice to the debtor, to extend it. Extensions are limited in duration and are not guaranteed.
Settlements have their own clock. Under CPLR 5003-a, when a personal injury or wrongful death case is settled, the defendant must pay all sums due within 21 days after the plaintiff delivers a signed release and stipulation of discontinuance.11New York State Senate. New York Civil Practice Law and Rules Law 5003-A – Prompt Payment Following Settlement Missing that deadline can trigger additional interest and court sanctions. The 21-day clock starts when the plaintiff tenders the paperwork, not when the parties reached a verbal agreement.
Stopping the Interest Clock
Interest stops only when the judgment is paid in full. Once that happens, the creditor is legally obligated to file a satisfaction-piece with the court clerk. Under CPLR 5020, the creditor must file within 20 days of receiving full payment and must mail a copy to the debtor within 10 days after filing.12New York State Senate. New York Civil Practice Law and Rules Law 5020 – Satisfaction-Piece
Creditors who fail to file face statutory penalties. For judgments under $5,000, the penalty is $100. For judgments of $5,000 or more, it is $500.12New York State Senate. New York Civil Practice Law and Rules Law 5020 – Satisfaction-Piece An unsatisfied judgment keeps showing up on the debtor’s record and can interfere with real estate transactions, credit, and future litigation. If you have paid in full and the creditor has not filed, a written demand citing the penalty provision usually resolves it.