How Americans feel about their finances

Nearly a third of US adults say they felt worse off financially in 2023 compared to the year prior. Their main financial challenges? Inflation and high living costs. USAFacts compiled data to show how people of different demographic and educational backgrounds felt about their fiscal situations.

In 2023, 72% of Americans were “living comfortably” or “doing okay,” the lowest since April 2020. Before that, the rate hadn’t been that low since 2016.

Line graph showing adults financial situations compared with 12 months prior

In 2022, 35% of people felt worse off financially than the year prior. That dropped to 31% in 2023.
Inflation reached a 40-year high of 9.1% in June 2022. The number of people who said inflation was among their main financial concerns was up 27% from 2016 to 2023.
Adults with higher levels of education were more likely to feel financially secure. Eighty-seven percent of respondents with a bachelor’s degree or higher reported doing at least okay, versus 63% with a high school education but no college. Less than half of people who didn’t finish high school reported doing okay financially.
In 2023, 64% of parents reported doing at least okay, compared to 75% of other adults. The gap has only been that wide one other time over the last nine years of data: 2020.

How do you fit into this financial picture? Explore the data here.

Earthquakes are getting more expensive

Earthquake damages have nearly doubled in the last five years, primarily due to people — and the subsequent infrastructure they create — moving to earthquake-prone areas. Many of the most affected states are in the western US. See the numbers behind this trend.

Annual earthquake damages in the US are estimated at $14.7 billion, up from $7.5 billion in 2017. California accounts for $9.6 billion of the annual losses, followed by Washington ($1.2 billion) and Oregon ($745 million).

Bar graph showing top 10 highest annual losses from earthquakes

The continental United States had 2,296 earthquakes of magnitude 2.5 or higher in 2023, including 22 that were 4.5 or higher. There were 981 earthquakes of magnitude 2.5+ in the continental US through May 21 this year.
Annualized estimates of how many people are injured and killed in earthquakes include 6,394 minor injuries, 183 major injuries, and 360 deaths. Over 60% of injuries happen in California. Washington and Oregon are second and third in all categories.

See maps on national and global earthquake data in the article.

Data behind the news

The Labor Department is proposing a rule that could protect millions of workers from the health risks of extreme heat. The rule would require employers to develop plans that include requirements for drinking water, rest breaks, and controlling heat indoors. See how heat affects US workers and how many people die from heat each year.

Beryl, the earliest Category 5 hurricane on record, has hit Houston, taking out power and killing at least one person. The tropical storm/former hurricane has been around for more than a week, causing major destruction and deaths in the Carribean. Learn how hurricanes are predicted and if major natural disasters are getting more frequent.

The Department of Transportation recently announced that it received nearly 97,000 complaints in 2023, up from 86,000 in 2022. USAFacts has the data on disability-related complaints against airlines.

Put your notebooks under your chair — it’s time for the weekly fact quiz.

One last fact

Line graph showing what countries are most common for international adoption

Of the 282,921 foreign-born children US families adopted between 1999 and 2022, 82,658 (or 29.2%) came from China. That’s more than the next two countries combined — Russia with 46,113 and Guatemala with 29,807. However, global issues have changed international adoptions, often for reasons unrelated to children, including the pandemic and political disagreements.