Almost half of Americans said that they considered the cost of living among the biggest issues plaguing the country. This is more than any of the other 19 issues surveyed by Statista Consumer Insights among 60,000 Americans between July 2025 and June 2026. Around 35 percent of respondents considered crime, the economy, health and social security as well as housing major issues. Approximately 30 percent of respondents said the same about poverty, immigration and unemployment, the latter issue rising from rank 8 to a shared rank 6.
Worry about inflation was very widespread among the 21 countries in the survey and many nations collectively rated it as the biggest issue right now – not surprising in the current global environment of rising or persistently high prices. A problem the United States rated higher than other countries was crime – only between a quarter and a third of people thought it was a major issue in several European and Asian locales as oposed to 35 percent in the United States. On the other hand, worry about climate change was lower in the U.S. at only 22 percent worrying about it to a high degree. In other developed countries, this rate was closer to 35 or 40 percent, with the issue normally reaching rank 5-8 among important problems, ahead of rank 13 it occupies in the United States.
Immigration was not rated as big a concern by Americans, however, when compared to other nations. 28 percent of Americans said they thought it was a major issue, compared to around 30-40 percent in several European countries.
