Nearly nine in 10 adults in the U.S. (88%) are concerned about inflation according to a new poll from the New York Times and SurveyMonkey, with a full 60% saying they are “very concerned.”
- Where there are differences, they mostly show up between partisans: 80% of Republicans, 60% of independents, and 41% of Democrats are very concerned
- Differences by gender, age, education, race, and income are all much less drastic
While concern is high, 44% of people say the recent increase in inflation is only having a minor negative impact on their household’s financial situation, slightly ahead of the 37% who say it is having a major negative impact. Another 11% say inflation is having no impact on their finances, and 6% say it is having a positive impact.
- Lower income households (those with incomes under $50,000) are more likely than others to report inflation having a major negative impact (45%); but they are also more likely to report a positive impact from inflation (9%)
- Among the highest income households (those with incomes over $150,000), nearly a quarter (23%) say they’re experiencing no impact from inflation
Raises can’t keep up with inflation either
More than half of workers (57%) say they’ve gotten a pay raise this year, but those haven’t always kept up with the rise in inflation. Four in 10 workers (40%) say prices have risen faster than their pay, vs. 17% who say their pay increase has kept up with inflation. Another 33% of workers say they haven’t received a raise this year and 8% took a pay cut.
Among workers, 63% say they have worked for the same employer throughout the pandemic. Just 11% say they’ve left their job voluntarily and found a new job.
Read more about our polling methodology here.
Click through all the results in the interactive toplines below:
