How Many Americans Live Paycheck To Paycheck? [2023]: Income Insecurity Statistics In The U.S.

Research Summary. Managing money well is tricky even under the best of circumstances, and it doesn’t necessarily get easier the more money you make. Many Americans of all income levels live paycheck to paycheck – here’s what our data science team uncovered:

• 125 million Americans live paycheck to paycheck.

• 63% of Americans live paycheck to paycheck as of September 2022.

• High pay doesn’t always solve the issue – 60% of millennials who make over $100,000 a year live paycheck to paycheck.

• 40% of Americans have enough money in savings to cover a $1,000 emergency.

• Nearly 75% of American workers are in debt, and 50% of those workers believe they’ll always be in debt.

For further analysis, we broke down the data in the following ways:
Emergency Savings | Demographics | Pandemic’s Effect | Why

How Many Americans Live Paycheck to Paycheck by Income

• 63% of Americans live paycheck to paycheck.

  Here is the breakdown of this statistic by income level:

  • Of those who earn over $100,000 a year, 40% live paycheck to paycheck.

  • Of those who earn between $50,000 and $100,000 a year, 53% live paycheck to paycheck.

    

  • Of those who earn less than $50,000 a year, 72% live paycheck to paycheck.

• 21% of U.S. adults struggle to pay their bills.

  This means that these individuals spend most or all of their income each month with little, if any, money left to save.

  Here is this statistic broken down by income level:

  • Of those who earn over $100,000 annually, 12% struggle to pay their bills.

  • Of those who earn between $50,000 and $100,000 annually, 18% struggle to pay their bills.

  • Of those who earn less than $50,000 annually, 33% struggle to pay their bills.

• Almost 75% of the American workforce is in debt.

  In addition, over 50% of those who are in debt believe they will always be in debt.

How Many Americans Have Emergency Savings?

• 60% of Americans can’t cover the cost of a $1,000 emergency with cash from their savings.

• About 30% of U.S. adults don’t have any emergency savings.

• The average American can make it for ten weeks without a paycheck.

• 38% of Americans have at least three months of living expenses saved, which is the bare minimum that many experts suggest having set aside.

• The average savings for those who struggle to pay their bills is $4,000.

How Many Americans Live Paycheck to Paycheck by Demographics

• Millennials and Gen Xers have a similar percentage of people living paycheck to paycheck – just under 60%.

  The percentage of people of each generation living paycheck to paycheck is as follows:

  • Millennials: 58% live paycheck to paycheck.

  • Gen Xers: 59% live paycheck to paycheck.

  • Baby Boomers: 47% live paycheck to paycheck.

• More females (55%) than males (51%) say they live paycheck to paycheck.

  Almost 55% of females say they live paycheck to paycheck, while 51% of males say the same. In addition, men say they can live about 11 weeks without a paycheck, while women say they can only make it about eight weeks.

• 40% of households don’t have enough saved to live on a poverty line income for three months, and this is higher for Black and Latino households.

  62.5% of Latino households and 62.7% of Black households have less than $6,275 saved, which is the amount needed for a family of four to live at a poverty-level income for three months.

The Pandemic’s Effect on Americans Living Paycheck to Paycheck

• Before the COVID-19 pandemic, 53% of surveyed U.S. adults weren’t living paycheck to paycheck, while 63% say they have been living paycheck to paycheck since the pandemic began.

• Almost 40% of Americans dipped into their savings during the COVID-10 pandemic.

• 73.3% of people who dipped into their savings during the COVID-19 pandemic used half of the money they had set aside.

Why Do Americans Live Paycheck to Paycheck?

• Since 2000, housing costs have increased by just over 31%, while wage levels have only increased by just over 10.4%.

  Housing costs have risen and fallen during that 20-year span, but the overall growth rate has been significantly higher than the overall wage growth rate. This means a larger percentage of people’s paychecks are going to housing rather than to other expenses or savings.

• Health care costs have increased by over 55% since 2000, compared to wages only increasing by 10.4%.

  This has resulted in a higher percentage of Americans’ paychecks going toward insurance premiums and medical bills, as well as more people going into debt due to medical expenses.

• In 2016, twice as many households had student loan debt as they did in 1998.

  In addition, the median amount of student debt has increased from the $12,800 that Gen Xers owed in their 20s and 30s to the $19,000 that many millennials owe at the same age.

  This is due to the rising cost of college, as from 2000 to 2020, the cost of a college education increased by 57.3%. Meanwhile, wages only increased by 10.4%.

• Millennials spend an average of $478 a month on nonessential purchases.

  These purchases include eating out, vacations, luxury items, and entertainment. This is high compared to baby boomers who spend an average of $359 a month on such purchases, but still lower than Gen Xers’ average of $587 a month.

  Experts agree that this $478 a month is generally too high for millennials to be spending, explaining that many people in this demographic overspend because they’re struggling to get the rest of their finances in order due to rising costs in other areas and a lack of financial literacy.

• From 2011 to 2021, the total amount of credit card debt in the U.S. has increased from $690 billion to $790 billion.

  This amount has risen and fallen many times over the decade, but it has continued to trend upward overall.

  As of the second quarter of 2021, the average cardholder has $5,668 in credit card debt.

  

How Many Americans Live Paycheck To Paycheck FAQ

1. How many people live paycheck to paycheck?

   Approximately 125 million Americans live paycheck to paycheck. This is 63% of the adult population of the U.S.

   Of those who earn less than $50,000 a year, 72% live paycheck to paycheck. In comparison, 53% of those who earn between $50,000 and $100,000 annually and 40% of those who earn over $100,000 each year live paycheck to paycheck.

2. How many Americans have no savings?

   About 30% of Americans have no savings. This means that about one-third of the adult American population doesn’t have money set aside for an emergency or unexpected expense.

   38% of Americans do have at least three months of living expenses set aside, but 70% still have less than $15,000 saved.

3. What is the average credit card debt for Americans?

   The average credit card debt for Americans is $5,668. In total, Americans have $790 billion in credit card debt.

   This is an increase from $690 billion in 2011 but a decrease from a high of $930 billion at the end of 2019.

4. What percentage of working Americans are in debt?

   75% of working Americans are in debt. In addition, over 50% of these believe that they will always be in debt.

   The vast majority of these come from the demographic that earns between $50,000 and $99,999 a year, as 70% of these individuals are in debt.

Conclusion

Approximately 63% or 125 million Americans live paycheck to paycheck. This means that if they lost their monthly income, they would immediately have bills that would go unpaid.

Americans of all income levels live paycheck to paycheck, as 40% of those who earn over $100,000 a year, 53% of those who earn between $50,000 and $100,000 a year, and 72% of those who earn less than $50,000 a year live paycheck to paycheck.

Experts agree there are a number of factors that go into these statistics, including financial illiteracy, a lack of savings, increased debt and expenses, and stagnant or slowly growing income levels.

The COVID-19 pandemic didn’t help any of this, as it drove almost 40% of Americans to have to dip into their emergency savings and increased the percentage of those living paycheck to paycheck.

References

1. PR Newswire. “Nearly 40 Percent of Americans with Annual Incomes Over $100,000 Live Paycheck-to-Paycheck.” Accessed on January 20, 20222.

2. Business Insider. “60% of Millennials Earning Over $100,000 Say They’re Living Paycheck to Paycheck.” Accessed on January 20, 2022.

3. The Washington Post. “A Breakdown of What Living Paycheck to Paycheck Looks Like.” Accessed on January 20, 2022.

4. Forbes. “78% of Workers Live Paycheck To Paycheck.” Accessed on January 20, 2022.

5. Magnify Money. “Survey: 53% of Americans Live Paycheck to Paycheck.” Accessed on January 20, 2022.

6. Nonprofit Quarterly. “Is Living Paycheck to Paycheck the New Normal for Middle-Class America?” Accessed on January 20, 2022.

7. NPR. “Paycheck-To-Paycheck Nation: Why Even Americans With Higher Income Struggle With Bills.” Accessed on January 20, 2022.

8. CNBC. “62% of Millennials Say They’re Living Paycheck to Paycheck.” Accessed on January 20, 2022.

9. MoneyGeek. “Average Credit Card Debt in America.” Accessed on January 20, 2022.

Author

Abby McCain

Abby is a writer who is passionate about the power of story. Whether it’s communicating complicated topics in a clear way or helping readers connect with another person or place from the comfort of their couch. Abby attended Oral Roberts University in Tulsa, Oklahoma, where she earned a degree in writing with concentrations in journalism and business.