Fed Survey Shows Stable US Financial Wellbeing

Americans' financial wellbeing remained largely stable in 2025 even as concerns about the job market grew and pessimism about the national economy persisted, according to an annual Federal Reserve survey released on Wednesday. The survey found that 73% of adults said they were "doing OK" financially or living comfortably, the same share as in 2024.

At the same time, 63% reported they would cover a $400 emergency expense entirely with cash or its equivalent, unchanged from the previous year. Sentiment varied sharply across demographic groups. Only 26% of adults rated the national economy as "good" or "excellent," down from 29% in 2024 and well below the 50% recorded in 2019 before the pandemic.

Job-related anxiety rose, with 42% of adults viewing finding or keeping a job as at least a minor concern, an increase from 37% the prior year.

High prices continued to shape household behavior.

The survey showed that 77% of adults changed their spending or saving habits because of elevated prices, only slightly below the 79% who reported doing so in 2024. Price increases remained the most frequently cited financial worry, although the intensity of that concern eased modestly from the previous year.

Most households said they were still adjusting how they shop and spend to cope with the higher cost of living that took hold after the pandemic.

The report also documented widespread exposure to financial fraud. One source reported that 20% of Americans faced financial fraud in 2025, with unrecovered losses totaling $56 billion. Separately, about one in four workers said they had used generative AI tools at work during the prior month.

Those who used the technology were more likely to believe it would improve their career prospects than to fear it would replace their jobs. The same group was also more inclined to say the tools saved them time.