Brookings Says 45.5% of US Households Could Not Make Ends Meet in 2024
Updated
Updated · Brookings Institution · May 28
Brookings Says 45.5% of US Households Could Not Make Ends Meet in 2024
12 articles · Updated · Brookings Institution · May 28
45.5% of U.S. households lacked enough post-tax income to cover basic necessities in 2024, according to Brookings' new affordability measure spanning every county and state.
A 10-percentage-point drop from 2022 erased most post-pandemic gains after stimulus checks and expanded tax credits expired while housing, food, child care and other costs kept rising.
55% of households of color could not make ends meet in 2024, and Brookings said no state had a higher make-ends-meet rate for households of color than its overall state baseline.
Affordability varied sharply by place: more than 60% of households were making ends meet in Colorado, the Dakotas, New Hampshire and Washington, D.C., versus under 50% in states including New York and California and just 39% in Hawaii.
Brookings said 37.9 million households could make ends meet with a $10-an-hour wage increase, while another 10 million could do so if monthly costs fell by $500, underscoring the policy stakes for November's state elections.
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48% of Americans Struggling to Make Ends Meet: Causes, Consequences, and Policy Solutions
Overview
Nearly half of US households continue to struggle financially, with 29% of adults reporting they are worse off than a year ago, a figure that, while lower than in 2022, remains above pre-pandemic levels. Most adults feel their situation is unchanged, and only a small increase report improvement. This persistent hardship is linked to high prices and widespread dissatisfaction with the economy, despite a stable labor market. The report highlights how these financial pressures are not just temporary setbacks but reflect deeper, long-term challenges that many Americans face in making ends meet.