This monthly composite index measures the financial resilience of Americans in a five question survey conducted by The Harris Poll on behalf of NerdWallet, across financial security, financial strength and economic outlook. Each of the five questions is weighted equally in this composite score, where zero would mean no resilience, and 100 represents perfect financial resilience.
As military conflict in Iran lingers — and with it, the impact on prices and general economic uncertainty — we’re bound to see sentiment continue to suffer, even if household balance sheets remain steady. In June, all five measures of financial resilience were stable month-over-month. The biggest percentage point difference: the share of Americans expecting the U.S. economy to enter a recession in the next 12 months went from 66% in May to 62% in June.
Unsurprisingly, high income Americans and older generations are more financially resilient, as measured by this composite. These groups likely have more financial insulation that allows them to handle volatility with less disruption to their way of life. In fact, the resilience score of baby boomers is about 20 points higher than the youngest generation — 73.9 compared to 53.8 among Gen Zers, 57.4 among millennials and 58.3 among Gen Xers.
Note: The survey defines Gen Zers as those 18-29; millennials, ages 30-45; Gen Xers, ages 46-61 and baby boomers, ages 62-80.
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Financial Security
Financial security is a subjective measure of personal financial control and confidence. It’s the psychological aspect of resilience — how people feel about their financial conditions.
76%: Americans who feel in control of their day-to-day finances.
- Just 61% of those with annual household incomes less than $50k feel this way, compared with 74% in the $50k-$74.9k range, 71% of those with household incomes of $75k-$99.9k and 86% of those with household incomes of $100k or more.
- Baby boomers (88%) are most likely to feel this sense of control compared to Gen Xers (71%), millennials (74%) and Gen Zers (69%).
78%: Americans who are confident in their ability to pay all of their bills on time this month.
- Nearly all baby boomers are confident in their ability to pay all of their bills on time this month — 93% versus 73% of Gen Xers, 74% of millennials and 69% of Gen Zers.
Financial Strength
Financial strength goes beyond how people feel. It measures concrete financial capacity and stress.
35%: Americans who will have to rely on credit to manage at least some of their expenses this month.
- Having a higher income doesn’t entirely eliminate this dependence. Across all but the highest incomes, roughly equal shares will have to rely on credit (e.g., credit cards, BNPL, loans) to manage some or all of their expenses this month: 41% of those with household incomes less than $50k, 39% in the $50k-$74.9k range and 42% in the $75k-$99.9k range. This compared to 30% of those with household incomes of $100k or more.
- Parents of children under age 18 are more likely to have to rely on credit to manage at least some of their expenses this month — 45% versus 31% of people without children under 18.
63%: Americans with enough cash on hand to cover an unexpected $1,000 expense, should one arise this month.
- The difference across income groups is dramatic: 78% of those with household incomes of $100k or more have enough cash on hand to cover such an expense, compared to 68% with incomes in the $75k-$99.9k range, 55% of those in the $50k-$74.9k range, and just 37% of those with household incomes less than $50k.
Economic Outlook
Economic outlook measures consumer expectations about future macroeconomic conditions.
62%: Americans who believe the U.S. economy will enter a recession in the next 12 months.
- Americans in the lowest income households are more likely to believe this than those with the highest household incomes: 67% of those with household incomes less than $50k compared with 59% of those with household incomes of $100k or more.
This is the longest-standing measure in our index. We’ve been asking about recession expectations since August 2025, when it was at 61%.
INDEX METHODOLOGY
Cite as NerdWallet (2026). “June 2026 Consumer Financial Resilience Index.” Retrieved from https://www.nerdwallet.com/finance/studies/financial-resilience-index
This survey was conducted online within the United States by The Harris Poll on behalf of NerdWallet from June 2-4, 2026 among 2,059 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 +/- 2.7 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 [email protected].
All five questions across this survey are weighted equally to develop a composite score with a maximum value of 100.
