Half of Americans struggle to afford groceries and gas, exclusive poll finds

The Guardian ^ | Tue 7 Jul 2026 | Gaya Gupta

[anthropocene_x]

Ninety-five per cent of Americans believe the US is suffering an affordability crisis, as many report trouble with the rising cost of groceries and gas, according to a survey, conducted by Harris Poll.

Despite stable employment and record-high stock markets, more Americans believe the overall economy is getting worse (57%) than in February (46%), when the poll was last conducted and before the war in the Middle East sent gas prices soaring. Fewer people today also believe the economy is getting better (16%, compared with 28% in February) and more say their financial security has gotten worse.

Even rural Americans, a strong base for Republicans, are feeling more pessimistic: 64% say the economy is getting worse, compared with 46% who said the same in February.

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TOPICS: Business/Economy; The Hobbit Hole; Weird Stuff
KEYWORDS: 123oclock4oclockzot; 2manytaxes2manylaws; concerntroll; concerntrolling; deficit; economy; fakenews; fakepolling; fakepolls; gayagupta; grauniad; harrispoll; inflation; jobs; leftistsource; misanthropex; moneyprintergobrrrr; multiplenicks; poll; polls; randspam; tds; tdstroll; tdstrolls; trollfarm

[Texas Eagle]

A simple Google search provided the following.....

The median income in the United States is approximately $58,136, while in England it is around £35,464. This indicates that American wages are generally higher than those in the UK. adamsmith.org progressivepolicy.org

The average European pays €1.717/L for petrol — 69.8% more than the US equivalent at €1.011/L ($4.38/gal).

[Big Red Badger]

Mindless Media

[Varsity Flight]

Government spending billzzz

* “Read my lips” 📈

* Willy 📈

* Read My Lips II📈

* O-Counterfeit📈

* Trumperville I 📈

* Bidenville 📈

* Trumperville II 📈📈

💰📈

[Texas Eagle]

In the UK, a half-dozen (6) free-range eggs average about £1.80 ($2.25), which equates to roughly $4.50 for a full dozen. In the USA, standard large eggs typically cost between $3.00 and $6.00 per dozen depending on the grade and local availability.

Here in Northern Commiefornia we pay $1.99 dz at Grocery Outlet.

[Robert DeLong]

Gee, I am part of the 2% that doesn't struggle, and imagine that as I am living off of SS payments no where close to what I pulled in when I worked, nd never ammassed a nestwegg, because I was going to enjoy myself while I could, and let the Lord take care of me after I retired.

Smells like rotten reporting or a bogus poll to me.

😋

[Varsity Flight]

“Drill baby drill”

“Drill baby drill”

Oh wait ❓

[GOPJ]

Here’s how it works: if you spend more than you earn you’ll be poor no matter how much money you make...

[Feckless]

I’ve been retired since age 60. Retired with zero debt. Been doing a 4-8 week bike trip last 6 years where I drop $6-8k. 20 year old truck, no frills but eat and live good.

[delta7]

I have seen much worse....I remember the late 70’s and early 1980’s. Our USD dollar purchasing power since 2020 has dropped 23 percent, in the late 70’s/ 80’s, it fell almost 70 percent.

My house mortgage then was at 14 percent, and money markets were paying 16 percent......we likely will see the same in the future. Time will tell.

[alaskamomma]

whoa, 95%. well, why didn’t they just make it 100%. They think we are ALL STUPID TO BELIEVE THAT CRAPOLA. The guardian is a leftwing rag overseas and doesn’t tell the truth most of the time or just makes up crap. take them with a grain of salt. now we are having “affordability” problems. my gawd why can’t they just leave us the heck alone. they lie- and are in the back pocket for the Demonrat party. shun them and all leftwing rags. We are doing just fine and they are an enemy within.

[Fai Mao]

“Never remembered it with Ronald Reagan. A true President. 🎯”

I do. They were blaming the unemployment left over from Carter on him.

[goodnesswins]

EXACTLY...and Starbucks drinks, too!

[Robert DeLong]

read my lips, the President doesn't determie the budget, Congress does. This, you are blaming the worng person.

Besides that I say that wither the reporting is suspect, and polls are never accurate by a majority of the polling outfits as well.

But you apparently hav bought into the tale of woe without questioning its authenticity.

Have you learned nothing regarding the lying press that su pports the Democrat party by a considerable margin?

[Varsity Flight]

Signed ✖️

[Varsity Flight]

Signed ✖️

The “President” does that.

[RckyRaCoCo]

The Guardian...nothing about the effect of millions of illegals Bidet flooded the country with.

incomplete article = worthless

(par for the source)

That's not to let the do-nothing Republicans off the hook

...nobody simply trusts ANY politician to do right by them or the country, only their donors/puppet-masters.

At this point what's left of the middle-class either thinks they are on yet another economic roller-coaster ride...or the Titanic.

[Veto!]

I’m a very low income senior. buy the best of everything at the market with virtually no help. I’m healthiest 90-year-old my MD has ever seen. United insurance gives me a whopping $42 per month grocery money.

and my cat gets the world’s best crunchies at amz. affordable too. Plus nice wet food.

both of us are very healthy, I don’take a single prescription drug.

fell out of the exercise habit though. Need to get back to the gym and lift some weights, run on the treadmill. vision sucks too much to run outdoors, will only walk.

[Robert DeLong]

Don't you just love that Democrats push the affordability, but think nothing about what alloweing millions of illegals to invade this country was a major contributor to that affordabilitty problem, and their millions only fight the effort to remove these illegal invaders.

That is why I could never vote for a Democrat. They are but criminal criminals themselves, and the lying press support their lies that the nation's idiots buy as being the fact. Sad to see that it even infects this board.

It's also why I go out of my way to fight back against these losers, who most likely are Trump haters, or are invaders that come here to disrupt this board.

[kiryandil]

Truer words were never spoken...

[Robert DeLong]

You really are an idiot. aren't you. If he doesn't sign it then the government runs out of money. Do you really think that would be a postive move? If the answer is yes, then you need to rethink your beliefs, because they are ignorant. In fact, the President 's hands are tied when it comes to not spending all of the budget, because Democrat control of Congress for son long allowed them to to create lasw that a President must spend what is allocatted. On top of that the Democrats allow the military to be degraded, and spend money on social issues which is what always kept the in control of Congress for forty years.

So, you really have little clue as to what you are saying, and you act like chicken little running around proclaiming that the sky is falling, placing the blame solely on Trump for. Trump is spending money, but he is spending money to bring back the jobs that were outsourced by the previous presidents you also mentioned./. At least with them you were more credible. Bush made the mistake of Nation building foreign nations in the middle east, while allowing out nation to be degraded in that process. trump asks for more money, but that money is spent on making this country competitive, and has added the the national treasury with triffs.

Grow up and stop playing the fool.