- More than half of Americans (53%) say they are experiencing recession fatigue (i.e., growing tired of hearing about it, becoming desensitized to warnings of one), climbing to 59% of millennials (ages 29-44).
- The number one concern among Americans when it comes to a potential recession is not having enough money to afford necessities, such as food, rent and bills (42%).
- More than one in five (22%) of Gen Z (ages 18-28) say they have not taken any steps or done more to prepare their finances for a potential recession because they are tired of the cost-of-living crisis infringing on their ability to have fun.
Recession warnings plague the news cycle as tariff uncertainty rattles the economy, and Americans are feeling a range of emotions.
According to a new study conducted online by The Harris Poll on behalf of Intuit Credit Karma, among 2,074 U.S. adults ages 18 and older, a vast majority of Americans (93%) have heard of warnings or discussions of a potential recession in the past three years, and 44% say it’s a topic they’ve heard about often or very often. More than half of Americans (57%) believe that news reports of a potential recession are a fair reflection of the current economic situation, while roughly one-in-five (22%) think they are overblown and exaggerated.
Regardless of how people perceive recent economic news cycles, a little more than half of Americans (53%) say they are experiencing “recession fatigue” – whether they’re growing tired of hearing about a potential recession or becoming desensitized to warnings of one – a phenomenon felt by 59% of millennials. And, with most news cycles these days, roughly half of Americans (51%) say their anxiety around a potential recession has increased because of the amount of time they spend online, which is the case for 61% of millennials and 59% of Gen Z.
Many Americans associate tariffs with the likelihood of a recession – 67% believe that tariffs are what will spike a recession in the U.S., and 58% mostly base the likelihood of a recession on the stock market’s performance.
Affording necessities tops the list of recession concerns
While most Americans are well aware of recession warnings, 66% say they are actually fearful of one, including 72% of millennials. On the other hand, roughly one-third (34%) of Americans are not fearful, highlighting a potential divide in how folks are emotionally responding to the possibility of a recession.
When thinking of a potential recession, Americans’ number one worry comes down to not having enough money to afford necessities, such as food, rent and bills (42%). Other recession concerns include having to empty their savings (33%), not being able to afford important expenses like medical bills and education costs (31%), not being able to bounce back financially after a recession (29%), and a stock market downturn (28%).
Certain recession concerns are heightened among younger Americans when it comes to potential losses. 30% of millennials and 28% of Gen Z are worried about losing their living situation, and 28% of millennials and 27% of Gen Z fear they will lose their jobs or have their hours cut. In a similar vein, roughly one in five (22%) of Gen Z are worried about their inability to find a job after graduating.
Recession fears drive financial preparedness
A majority of Americans (82%) have taken at least some steps to prepare their finances in anticipation of a potential recession, including 89% of Gen Z and 88% of millennials. The number one thing people are doing in preparation is cutting back on non-essential spending (47%), although Gen Zers are less inclined to do so compared to some other generations (36%) compared to 45% of millennials and 51% each of Gen X ages 45-60 and boomers ages 61-79.
Proactive steps Americans are taking to prepare for the potential financial impact occasionally vary by generation. For instance, 29% of Gen Zers are finding additional sources of income, compared to just 10% of boomers, and roughly one in seven millennials (14%) are cutting back on retirement contributions compared to7% each of Gen Z and Gen X, and 4% of boomers.
Other ways people altered their financial behaviors include having limited their credit card usage (34%), making sure they have ample cash on hand – whether at home or in liquid assets that can be converted to cash (32%), building up an emergency fund (29%), paying down debt (28%), putting big purchases or milestones on hold (e.g. buying a home/car, having a wedding (28%)), diversifying investments (15%), and pulling out of or pausing stock investments (11%).
A recession won’t rain on my fun parade
Safeguarding for a recession isn’t top of mind for everyone, and for various reasons. In one camp, 28% of Americans who have not taken any steps to prepare say its because they don’t have the ability to make changes to their finances – e.g. they’re barely able to make ends meet as it is – climbing to 46% of Americans with less than $50K in household income. For low-income households, the inability to alter their spending habits is further exemplified by their inability to save money. In fact, 30% of Americans with less than $50K in household income report not having any emergency savings.
Perhaps some Americans haven’t taken any steps to prepare their finances for a recession because they’ve already done so in the recent past. In fact, 27% who haven’t taken steps to prepare their finances say it’s because it already feels like they are living through a recession. On the opposite end of the spectrum, 21% aren’t taking any steps because they simply don’t think a recession is looming.
However, for Gen Z, their decision not to prepare their finances for a potential recession is less rooted in finances and more so in wanting to make the most of their youth. More than one in five (22%) of Gen Z Americans say they have not taken any steps or done more to prepare their finances for a potential recession because they are tired of the cost-of-living crisis infringing on their ability to have fun. And, roughly one in six (17%) say they haven’t because, if a recession is imminent, they’d rather live their best lives now.
Not to mention that in some cases being young means facing less financial pressures. About one in five Gen Zers (22%) haven’t taken any steps or done more to prepare their finances for a potential recession because they have a financial security blanket, such as parents who will financially support them. Given that 21% of Gen Z Americans do not have emergency savings, having a financial security blanket is likely imperative for their ability to survive a potential economic downturn.
“It’s understandable that Americans have torn feelings about what to make of a potential recession, especially given how overwhelming the news cycle has been regarding major economic impactors like tariffs,” said Courtney Alev, consumer financial advocate Intuit Credit Karma. “Regardless of how people feel about recession warnings, we know many Americans are taking proactive steps to prepare their finances, whether that’s cutting back on non-essential spending or limiting their credit card usage. It’s never a bad time to build a financial safety net, and I encourage those who haven’t yet taken any proactive measures to do so. It’s good practice to audit your current financial situation, identify any spending behaviors you may want to change and create a realistic budget that you can stick to over time that will hopefully allow you to contribute to an emergency savings fund.”
Methodology
This survey was conducted online within the United States by The Harris Poll on behalf of Credit Karma from April 7-9, 2025, among 2,074 U.S. adults ages 18 and older. The sampling precision of Harris online polls is measured by using a Bayesian credible interval. For this study, the sample data is accurate to within +/- 2.5 percentage points using a 95% confidence level. This credible interval will be wider among subsets of the surveyed population of interest. For complete survey methodology, including weighting variables and subgroup sample sizes, please contact pr@creditkarma.com.