WASHINGTON, D.C. — Economic issues continue to dominate Americans’ national concerns, with majorities expressing “a great deal” of personal worry about the economy, healthcare availability and affordability, inflation and the federal budget deficit. Along with the economy and healthcare, public concern about Social Security and the environment is up significantly, with Social Security registering a 15-year high.
At the same time, concern about crime, drug use, immigration, and the availability and affordability of energy has decreased when the last measure of President Joe Biden’s term in 2024 is compared with the first measure of President Donald Trump’s second term this year.
After the change in presidential administrations, partisans’ worries have shifted significantly on most of the 16 issues Gallup measured, as Democrats and Democratic-leaning independents have become more concerned, while Republicans and Republican-leaning independents are less worried.
Economic Issues Top List of Americans’ Worries
Americans’ top-ranking worries are pocketbook issues, including the economy (60% worry a great deal), healthcare costs (59%), inflation (56%), federal spending and the budget deficit (53%), and the Social Security system (52%).
Meanwhile, half of Americans are greatly worried about hunger and homelessness, and 48% each are concerned about the way income and wealth are distributed in the U.S. and the size and power of the federal government.
Crime and violence, the quality of the environment, a possible terrorist attack on the U.S., illegal immigration and drug use are toward the bottom of the list, while Americans exhibit the lowest concern about unemployment, the availability and affordability of energy, and race relations. Race relations, the issue evoking the least amount of worry, has been declining since it peaked at 48% in 2021.
Inflation and the economy have been uppermost worries since 2022, but healthcare has not ranked at the top of the list since 2020 (at the start of the COVID-19 pandemic in the last year of Trump’s first term).
Twelve of the 16 issues (all but inflation, the federal budget deficit, income and wealth distribution, and the federal government’s size and power) included in Gallup’s latest poll, conducted March 3-16, have been tracked annually since 2005. An average 45% of Americans worry a great deal about these 12 issues in 2025. This is the third consecutive reading of this measure that matches the high point in the trend, which was first recorded in 2011.
Worry About Economy, Healthcare, Social Security, Environment Has Increased
High-level worry about the economy, healthcare and Social Security has risen by eight or nine percentage points since last year, and concern about the environment is up six points. In contrast, concerns about immigration (-8 points), crime and drug use (-6 points each) have decreased. Meanwhile, Americans’ worries about federal spending, inflation, hunger and homelessness, race relations, unemployment, and terrorism are relatively steady. Federal government size/power and income/wealth distribution were not asked about in 2024.
Democrats’ Worries Increase Across the Board, as Republicans’ Ease
The degree to which Democrats and Republicans worry about many issues has differed, with each group generally worrying more when the sitting president is from the opposing political party and less when a president of their own party is in the White House. This pattern has been particularly evident since 2017.
Democrats and Democratic-leaning independents and Republicans and Republican leaners express significantly different degrees of worry on all issues except the possibility of a terrorist attack in the U.S. Republicans are more worried than Democrats about the federal budget deficit, crime, illegal immigration, drug use, and the size and power of the federal government. Democrats express more worry than Republicans on every other issue.
As Trump has replaced Biden, Democrats have become significantly more worried about 10 of the 14 issues measured last year, while Republicans have become less worried about 12. The steepest drops in Republican concern are seen for inflation (-18 points), possible U.S. terrorist attacks (-17 points), the economy and energy affordability (-16 points each).
The only issue on which Republican concern did not decrease was healthcare availability and affordability, though it remains a lower priority overall for that group compared with Democrats and is roughly on par with last year’s reading.
Bottom Line
Americans’ top worries remain firmly rooted in economic insecurity, with the economy, healthcare affordability, inflation and the federal budget deficit atop the list of problems they worry about a lot. Social Security also ranks high after worry increased sharply from 2024. Environmental concern rose because of an increase among Democrats and Democratic leaners, while worry about crime and drug use declined modestly. Meanwhile, sharp partisan differences over immigration, the environment and income inequality point to continued polarization on several major policy fronts.
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Editor's Note: This story is updated to reflect the correct figure for concern about energy in 2024 (37%), as well as the correct percentage-point change between 2024 and 2025 (two points). An earlier version of this story incorrectly reported these as 48% and 13 points, respectively.
