Fewer Americans See Their Finances Improving in 2026 Than Previous Two Years

After two years of stubbornly high prices and little relief at the checkout line, Americans are starting the new year with lower expectations for their personal finances.

Bankrate surveyed more than 2,000 Americans at the end of last year. Thirty-two percent say their “personal finances will worsen in 2026,” the highest share since the personal finance site began asking the question in 2018.

In Bankrate’s outlook for 2025, 23% said they expected their finances to get worse. The year before, 26% said the same. The main culprit for that cynicism? Inflation. About 78% cited rising prices as a top concern, while 55% pointed to actions by elected officials.

“Inflation fatigue is real, as Americans prepare to flip the calendar but cannot turn the page,” says Mark Hamrick, Bankrate’s senior economic analyst. “A declining sense of economic optimism comes as the job market has cooled and inflation has remained persistent, with prices broadly still elevated.”

Expecting life to cost more

As Debt.com reported in late December, everyday costs continue to creep higher, even as headline inflation cools. Groceries, insurance, housing, utilities, and transportation remain stubbornly expensive, leaving little room for error in most household budgets.

At the same time, consumers are carrying more debt than ever. Americans now hold more than $1.2 trillion in credit card debt, or nearly $7,000 per cardholder on average. When prices rise faster than paychecks, credit cards often become the default solution.

They’re also one of the most expensive. Average credit card interest rates remain well above 20% and there’s little reason to expect major relief this year.

That math adds up quickly.

“I don’t think it’s a wild prediction to insist life will get costlier in 2026,” says Debt.com president Don Silvestri. “It certainly won’t get cheaper.”

Don’t bank on higher pay

Many Americans are hoping higher wages will help offset higher prices. Whether that happens depends largely on how the job market holds up.

According to the latest U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics figures, overall job growth slowed sharply in 2025, with only about 584,000 jobs added over the year, far fewer than in recent years.

The unemployment rate also crept higher, ending the year around 4.4%. That leaves income gains less certain than they were earlier in the recovery, particularly for workers hoping to jump to higher-paying jobs.

“With so many Americans looking to find a better-paying job or other form of income boost, here’s hoping that the job market remains sufficiently resilient that their hopes will be realized,” Hamrick says. “The risk is that unemployment rises before it makes a meaningful move lower, which will translate to added financial pressure and stress for individuals and households.”