Budgeting Survey: More Americans are Living Paycheck to Paycheck – Even Though More are Budgeting

Debt.com’s seventh annual budgeting survey reveals good and bad news.

The mixed financial picture shows that while more people are budgeting more and finding it beneficial to stay out of debt, the number of individuals living paycheck to paycheck has risen significantly.

In 2022, Debt.com first asked 1,000 Americans how strained their finances were. For two years in a row, 50% reported living paycheck to paycheck. This year, that number has climbed to 60%.

That doesn’t mean they’re in debt or not trying to keep their finances in order. In fact, 20% more respondents use a budget than seven years ago when Debt.com first conducted its annual budgeting survey.

The percentage of people who say budgeting has “helped them get out or stay out of debt” has increased from 73% in 2018 to 89% in 2024.

“Debt.com’s survey indicates that while budgeting is becoming more common and beneficial, it hasn’t completely shielded Americans from financial hardship,” Howard Dvorkin, CPA and founder of Debt.com says. “The increase in the number of people living paycheck to paycheck suggests that external economic factors may be at play, making it crucial for individuals to continue refining their budgeting strategies.”

Debt.com’s seventh annual budgeting survey underscores the importance of budgeting in maintaining financial health, even as many Americans face ongoing financial challenges.

What percentage of Americans are living paycheck to paycheck?

How many people budget?

How many Americans say budgeting helps them get out of debt?

Why don’t people budget?

Are men or women more likely to stay debt-free without a budget?

Which generation of Americans is most likely to stay debt-free without a budget?

Where in the U.S. are Americans more likely to budget their money?

For full 2024 survey results, click here

Who should budget?
Everyone	90.05%
People with a lot of debt	3.65%
People with limited income	4.63%
People who earn a lot of money	1.67%

Do you budget?
Yes	90.05%
No	9.95%

Why don’t you budget?
It’s too time-consuming	27.00%
It makes me feel anxious/bad	20.00%
I don’t have much income	29.00%
It causes disagreements with my spouse/significant other	5.00%
I have budgeted, but it’s never helped me	19.00%

Have you been able to stay out of debt without a budget?
Yes	59.00%
No	41.00%

What prompted you to start budgeting?
Debt	21.32%
Retirement	15.27%
Loss of job/income	6.15%
Divorce/loss of spouse	1.65%
I want to increase my wealth/savings	38.13%
Rising costs of living due to inflation	17.47%

How does your household feel about budgeting?
I love to budget, but my significant other doesn’t	29.55%
My significant other is on a budget, but I am not	8.05%
I’m single, financially independent, and I budget	20.62%
I live with my parents, and I don’t use a budget	3.20%
My whole household works to stay on a budget	38.59%

Have you used websites for advice on how to build a better budget?
Yes, that’s why I visited Debt.com	29.55%
Yes, I have visited websites for advice other than Debt.com	21.72%
No, I never thought about it	48.73%

How do you prefer to create a budget?
Mobile apps	30.76%
Spreadsheets	23.48%
Pen and paper	31.75%
A financial advisor	7.61%
My bank/credit union’s budgeting tools	6.39%

Which budgeting method would you be most interested in trying?
Mobile apps	48.12%
Spreadsheets	19.32%
Pen and paper	18.32%
A financial advisor	7.40%
My bank/credit union’s budgeting tools	6.84%

Has budgeting helped you get out or stay out of debt?
Yes	88.84%
No	11.16%

Do you think dining out or ordering food should be included in a grocery budget?
Yes	79.23%
No	20.77%

Do you live paycheck to paycheck?
Yes	60.00%
No	40.00%

For full 2023 survey results, click here

Who should budget?
Everyone	87.26%
People with a lot of debt	5.46%
People with limited income	5.94%
People who earn a lot of money	1.34%

Do you budget?
Yes	84.56%
No	15.44%

Why don’t you budget?
It’s too time-consuming	25.47%
It makes me feel anxious/bad	23.60%
I don’t have much income	27.33%
It causes disagreements with my spouse/significant other	6.21%
I have budgeted, but it’s never helped me	17.39%

Have you been able to stay out of debt without a budget?
Yes	56.52%
No	43.48%

What prompted you to start budgeting?
I want to increase my wealth/savings	38.78%
Debt	22.68%
Rising costs of living due to inflation	15.99%
Retirement	15.19%
Loss of job/income	5.78%
Divorce/loss of a spouse	1.59%

How does your household feel about budgeting?
My whole household works to stay on budget	43.31%
I’m single, financially independent, and I budget	23.24%
I love to budget, but my significant other doesn’t	21.77%
My significant other is on a budget, but I am not	8.28%
I live with my parents, and don’t use a budget	3.40%

Have you used websites for tips on how to build a budget?
No, I never thought about it	60.09%
Yes, I have visited websites for advice other than Debt.com	24.49%
Yes, that’s why I visited Debt.com	15.42%

How do you prefer to create a budget?
Pen and paper	39.34%
Spreadsheets	29.93%
Mobile apps	20.98%
My bank credit union’s budgeting tools	4.76%
A financial advisor	4.99%

Which method of budgeting would you be most interested in trying?
Mobile apps	42.45%
Spreadsheets	23.16%
Pen and paper	18.96%
My bank/credit union’s budgeting tools	7.95%
A financial advisor	7.49%

Has budgeting helped you get out or stay out of debt?
Yes	86.72%
No	13.28%

Have you been able to stay out of debt without a budget?
Yes	56.52%
No	43.48%

Do you think dining out or ordering food should be included in a grocery budget?
Yes	73.44%
No	26.56%

Do you live paycheck to paycheck?
Yes	50.00%
No	50.00%

For full 2022 survey results, click here

Who should budget?
Everyone	90.24%
People with a lot of debt	3.77%
People with limited income	5.12%
People who earn a lot of money	0.87%

Do you use a budget?
Yes	85.60%
No	14.40%

Why don’t you budget?
It’s too time-consuming	20.13%
It makes me feel anxious/bad	18.12%
I don’t have much income	31.54%
It causes disagreements with my spouse/significant other	9.40%
I have budgeted, but it’s never helped me	20.81%

Have you been able to stay out of debt without a budget?
Yes	50.34%
No	49.66%

What prompted you to start budgeting?
I want to increase my wealth/savings	39.73%
Debt	22.57%
Rising costs of living due to inflation	17.16%
Retirement	11.63%
Loss of job/income	7.11%
Divorce/loss of spouse	1.81%

How does your household feel about budgeting?
My whole household works to stay on budget	44.24%
I’m single, financially independent, and I budget	24.38%
I love to budget, but my significant other doesn’t	21.56%
My significant other is on a budget, but I am not	7.90%
I live with my parents, and I don’t budget	1.92%

Have you used websites for tips on how to build a budget?
No, I never thought about it	65.24%
Yes, I have visited websites for advice other than Debt.com	24.49%
Yes, that’s why I visited Debt.com	10.27%

How do you prefer to create a budget?
Pen and paper	39.16%
Spreadsheets	28.56%
Mobile apps	22.23%
My bank/credit union’s budgeting tools	6.77%
A financial advisor	3.27%

Which method of budgeting would you be most interested in trying?
Mobile apps	47.40%
Spreadsheets	19.64%
Pen and paper	18.62%
My bank/credit union’s budgeting tools	7.67%
A financial advisor	6.66%

Has budgeting helped you get out or stay out of debt?
Yes	84.88%
No	15.12%

Have you been able to stay out of debt without a budget?
Yes	50.34%
No	49.66%

Do you think dining out or ordering food should be included in a grocery budget?
Yes	70.85%
No	29.15%

Do you live paycheck to paycheck?
Yes	49.81%
No	50.19%

For full 2021 survey results, click here

Who should budget?
Everyone	88.22%
People with a limited income	6.77%
People with a lot of debt	2.26%
People who spend a lot of money	2.75%

Do you use a budget?
Yes	80.24%
No	19.76%

What prompted you to start budgeting?
I want to increase my wealth/savings	37.63%
Debt	31.57%
Retirement	16.41%
Loss of job/income	8.96%
Divorce/loss of income	5.43%

How does your household feel about budgeting?
My whole household works to stay on budget	40.36%
I’m single, financially independent, and I budget	36.72%
I love to budget, but my significant other doesn’t	18.23%
My significant other is on a budget, but I am not	2.86%
I live with my parents, and I don’t use a budget	1.82%

Why don’t you budget?
I don’t earn enough income	34.01%
It’s too time-consuming	20.30%
It makes me feel bad/anxious	19.80%
I have budgeted, but it’s never helped me	19.29%
It causes disagreements with my spouse	6.60%

Have you used websites for tips on how to build a budget?
No, I never thought about it	49.10%
Yes, this is one of the reasons why I visited Debt.com	29.19%
Yes, I have visited sites other than Debt.com	21.71%

How do you prefer to create a budget?
Pen and paper	61.38%
Spreadsheets	17.21%
Mobile apps	9.76%
My bank/credit union’s budgeting tools	7.86%
A financial advisor	3.79%

Which method of budgeting would you be most interested in trying?
None, I’m not interested in budgeting	25.67%
Pen and paper	23.53%
Mobile apps	25.13%
Spreadsheets	12.30%
My bank/credit union’s budgeting tools	8.02%
A financial advisor	5.35%

Has budgeting helped you get out or stay out of debt?
Yes	87.77%
No	12.23%

Have you been able to stay out of debt without a budget?
Yes	50.27%
No	49.73%

When I shop for groceries…
I shop with a list, stick to my budget, and use coupons	46.92%
I shop with a list and stick to my budget	27.22%
I shop without a list, but control my spending	20.11%
I walk in to buy one thing, and walk out with a cart full of stuff	3.42%
I buy whatever I want	2.33%

Do you budget for special events and holidays?
Yes, I save for these events throughout the year	61.93%
No, I spend on special events without a budget	16.14%
Yes, but I shop at the last minute and often go over budget	10.90%
No, I don’t buy gifts or celebrate special events	11.03%

Do you budget separately for special events and holidays?
No, I spend on special events without a budget	42.93%
No, I don’t buy gifts or celebrate special events	16.30%
Yes, I save for these events throughout the year	20.11%
Yes, but I shop at the last minute and often go over budget	20.65%

Do you think restaurant meals should be included in a grocery budget?
Yes	60.97%
No	39.03%

Do you budget for the “little things”? (For example, vending machines, gas stations, coffee shop runs, etc.)
Yes	56.23%
No	43.77%

For full 2020 survey results, click here

Who should budget?
Everyone	97.48%
People with limited income	1.39%
People with a lot of debt	0.64%
People who spend a lot of money	0.49%

Do you use a budget?
Yes	79.46%
No	20.54%

What prompted you to start budgeting?
I want to increase my wealth/savings	42.46%
Debt	31.33%
Retirement	13.41%
Loss of job/income	9.57%
Retirement	7.56%
Divorce/loss of spouse	3.22%

How does your household feel about budgeting?
My whole household works to stay on budget	50.40%
I’m single, financially independent, and I budget	29.49%
I love to budget, but my significant other doesn’t	15.93%
My significant other is on a budget, but I am not	2.18%
I live with my parents, and I don’t use a budget	1.99%

Why don’t you budget?
I don’t earn enough income	32.05%
It’s too time-consuming	24.54%
It makes me feel anxious/bad	21.43%
I have budgeted, but it’s never helped me	16.12%
It causes disagreements with my spouse	5.86%

How do you prefer to create a budget?
Pen and paper	58.61%
Spreadsheets	23.47%
Mobile apps	8.39%
My bank/credit union’s budgeting tools	6.78%
A financial advisor	2.75%

Which budgeting method would you be most interested in trying?
None, I’m not interested in budgeting	28.26%
Pen and paper	27.34%
Mobile apps	22.94%
Spreadsheets	12.48%
A bank/credit union’s budgeting tools	5.69%
A financial advisor	3.30%

Has budgeting helped you get out or stay out of debt?
Yes	85.63%
No	14.37%

Have you been able to stay out of debt without a budget?
Yes	51.56%
No	48.44%

When I shop for groceries…
I shop with a list, stick to my budget, and use coupons	46.70%
I shop with a list and stick to my budget	27.26%
I shop without a list, but control my spending	19.11%
I walk in to buy one thing, and walk out with a cart full of stuff	4.08%
I buy whatever I want	2.84%

Do you budget for special events and holidays?
Yes, I save throughout the year	59.93%
No, I spend on special events without a budget	15.88%
Yes, but I shop at the last minute and often go over budget	13.23%
No, I don’t buy gifts or celebrate special events	10.95%

Do you budget separately for special events and holidays?
No, I spend on special events without a budget	52.48%
No, I don’t buy gifts or celebrate special events	17.61%
Yes, I save for these events throughout the year	16.70%
Yes, but I shop at the last minute and often go over budget	13.21%

Do you think restaurant meals should be included in a grocery budget?
Yes	59.32%
No	40.68%

Do you budget for the “little things?” (For example, vending machines, gas stations, coffee shop runs, etc.)
Yes	57.71%
No	42.29%

For full 2019 survey results, click here

What prompted you to start budgeting?
Desire to manage my money better	34.43%
I have always budgeted my money	25.22%
Debt	13.24%
I want to increase my wealth/savings	7.94%
Retirement	7.44%
Loss of job/income	7.31%
Divorce	2.40%
Loss of spouse	2.02%

How do you feel about budgeting?
My whole household works to stay on budget	43.81%
I’m single, financially independent, and use a budget	39.65%
I’m on a budget, but my significant other is not	13.76%
I’m living with my parents, and budget because I’m saving to live on my own	1.39%
My significant other is on a budget, but I’m not	1.39%

Why don’t you budget?
I don’t earn enough money	39.61%
It’s too time-consuming	21.05%
I have budgeted, but it’s never helped me	15.51%
I have budgeted, but only for special occasions and holidays	14.13%
I never overspend	8.31%
I make so much money I don’t need to budget	1.39%

Have you used websites for tips on how to build a budget?
No, I never thought about it	32.78%
Yes, this is one of the reasons why I visited Debt.com	28.01%
I have a budget that I created on my own	22.46%
Yes, I have visited sites other than Debt.com for advice	16.74%

What tools do you use to budget?
Pen and paper	67.05%
Spreadsheets	28.66%
I budget in my head	25.38%
I use my bank/credit union budgeting tools	15.28%
Mobile apps	13.26%
I have a financial advisor	5.43%
I don’t budget	0.88%

Have you ever thought about trying any of these budgeting tools/methods?
Pen and paper	73.65%
Spreadsheets	32.63%
Mobile apps	32.63%
Budgeting tools/software provided by my bank/credit union	20.36%
Financial advisor	14.67%

Has budgeting helped you get out or stay out of debt?
Yes	75.88%
No	24.12%

Have you been able to stay out of debt without a budget?
Yes	29.25%
No	70.75%

When I shop for groceries…
I shop with a list, stick to my budget, and use coupons	46.21%
I shop with a list and follow it according to my budget	32.07%
I don’t bring a list, but control myself from overspending	14.52%
I usually walk in wanting to buy one thing, and walk out with a cart full	4.80%
I buy whatever I want	2.40%

Do you budget for special events and holidays?
Yes, I save throughout the year	33.21%
I can’t because I live paycheck to paycheck	23.11%
I create a budget a month or two before	21.09%
I don’t buy gifts or celebrate special events	14.14%
I shop at the last minute	8.46%

Do you budget separately for holidays?
No, because I’m living paycheck to paycheck	44.04%
I don’t buy gifts or celebrate special events	17.73%
Yes, I save all year	14.40%
I set a budget a month or two before	12.19%
I shop at the last minute	11.63

Do you separate restaurant meals from your grocery budget?
Yes	62.12%
No	37.88%

Do you budget for the “little things”? (For example, vending machines, gas stations, coffee shop runs, etc.)
Yes, I put extra money aside for the “little things”	42.68%
I probably should, but don’t	29.04%
No, these things cost me little money so I don’t budget for them	28.28%

For full 2018 survey results, click here

Who should budget?
Everyone	92.61%
People with limited income	3.64%
People with a lot of debt	2.50%
People who spend a lot of money	1.25%

Do you use a budget
Yes	70.24%
No	29.76%

What prompted you to start budgeting?
Desire to manage money better	36.15%
I have always budgeted my money	18.96%
Debt	16.44%
I want to increase my wealth/savings	9.33%
Retirement	7.56%
Loss of job/income	8.44%
Divorce	1.93%
Loss of spouse	1.19%

How do you feel about budgeting?
My whole household works to stay on a budget	48.15%
I’m single, financially independent, and use a budget	34.67%
I’m on a budget, but my significant other is not	11.11%
I’m living with my parents, and budgeting to get my own place	3.85%
My significant other is on a budget, but I’m not	2.22%

Why don’t you budget?
I don’t earn enough money	33.80%
It’s too time-consuming	21.25%
I have budgeted, but only for special occasions	19.86%
I never overspend	7.32%
I earn too much to need a budget	1.05%

Have you ever used websites for tips on how to build a budget?
No, I never thought about it	26.74%
Yes, this is one of the reasons why I visited Debt.com	41.52%
I have a budget that I created on my own	11.65%
Yes, I have visited sites other than Debt.com for advice	20.08%

What tools do you use to budget?
Pen and paper	66.22%
Spreadsheets	32.00%
I budget in my head	26.52%
I use my bank/credit union budgeting tools	13.33%
Mobile apps	16.74%
I have a financial advisor	5.93%
I don’t budget	0.44%

Have you ever thought to try any of these budgeting tools?
Pen and paper	72.01%
Spreadsheets	36.19%
Mobile apps	32.46%
Software from bank/credit union	18.28%
Financial advisor	18.66%

Has budgeting helped you get out or stay out of debt?
Yes	73.10%
No	26.90%

Have you been able to stay out of debt without a budget?
Yes	26.67%
No	73.33%

When I shop for groceries…
I shop with a list, stick to my budget, and use coupons	57.33%
I shop with a list and follow my budget	23.41%
I don’t bring a list, but control myself from overspending	12.44%
I walk in to but one thing, and walk out with a full cart	5.48%
I buy whatever I want	1.33%

Do you budget for special events and holidays
Yes, I save throughout the year	33.63%
No, because I’m living paycheck to paycheck	24.74%
I start budgeting a month or two before	24.74%
I don’t buy gifts or celebrate special events	10.52%
I shop at the last minute	6.37%

Do you budget separately for holidays and events?
No, I’m living paycheck to paycheck	45.10%
I don’t buy gifts or celebrate special events	8.04%
Yes, I save throughout the year	19.23%
I budget a month or two before	12.94%
I shop at the last minute	14.69%

Do you separate the cost of restaurant meals in your food budget?
Yes	57.93%
No	42.07%

Do you budget for the “little things”? (For example, vending machines, gas stations, coffee shop runs, etc.)
Yes, I put extra money aside for the “little things”	44.74%
I probably should, but I don’t	28.44%
No, these things cost me little money so I don’t budget for them	26.81%

Methodology: Debt.com surveyed more than 1,000 Americans and asked 12 questions about their budgeting and spending habits. People responded from all 50 states and Washington, DC and were aged 18 and above. Responses were collected through SurveyMonkey. Percentages were rounded up to the nearest whole number and might not total 100 percent.