{"id":694560,"date":"2026-10-14T09:53:04","date_gmt":"2026-10-14T13:53:04","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/?p=694560"},"modified":"2026-10-14T09:53:04","modified_gmt":"2026-10-14T13:53:04","slug":"americans-views-of-economic-inequality-its-causes-and-who-should-fix-it","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/social-trends\/2026\/10\/14\/americans-views-of-economic-inequality-its-causes-and-who-should-fix-it\/","title":{"rendered":"Americans\u2019 Views of Economic Inequality, Its Causes and Who Should Fix It"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Since 2019, a growing share among those who say there\u2019s too much inequality think the economic system needs to be completely rebuilt to address it<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
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An encampment of homeless people is seen next to a residential building in Los Angeles on July 25, 2025. (Apu Gomes\/Getty Images)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
About this research<\/summary>\n

This Pew Research Center report looks at Americans\u2019 views of economic inequality, including what factors they think contribute to it and who they believe should be responsible for reducing inequality. It also explores trends in income and wealth inequality.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Why did we do this?<\/h4>\n\n\n\n

Pew Research Center does research to help the public, the media and decision-makers understand important topics. This analysis builds on our previous work on economic issues<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Learn more about Pew Research Center<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

How did we do this?<\/h4>\n\n\n\n

The analysis of Americans\u2019 views of economic inequality is based primarily on a Pew Research Center survey of 5,166 U.S. adults conducted Aug. 24-30, 2026. Everyone who took part is a member of the Center\u2019s American Trends Panel<\/a>. The survey is designed to represent the views of all U.S. adults.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Here are the survey questions<\/a> used for this report, the detailed responses<\/a> and the survey methodology<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In addition to survey data, the report also examines the trends in the typical income and wealth of lower-, middle- and upper-income households using data from the U.S. Census Bureau and other standard government sources.<\/p>\n<\/details>\n\n\n\n

About six-in-ten Americans (61%) say there is too much economic inequality in the United States, a view that is far more common among Democrats and Democratic leaners than Republicans and GOP leaners (78% vs. 42%).<\/p>\n\n\n

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Democrats are nearly twice as likely as Republicans to say there is too much inequality<\/strong><\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t
% saying there is ___ economic inequality in the U.S. these days<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t
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Note: Shares of respondents who didn\u2019t offer an answer are not shown.<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t
Source: Survey of U.S. adults conducted Aug. 24-30, 2026.
\u201cAmericans’ Views of Economic Inequality, Its Causes and Who Should Fix it\u201d<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t
PEW RESEARCH CENTER<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t
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