Only 24% of Americans Saved More in 2025

A growing share of Americans look financially stable on paper yet remain one unexpected bill away from strain, according to PYMNTS Intelligence research that reframed household savings as a fragile, unevenly distributed buffer rather than a reliable safety net.

That was the central takeaway from “Why Paycheck-to-Paycheck Consumers Can’t Weather a $2,000 Shock,” the September installment of The Paycheck-to-Paycheck Report.

Based on a survey of 2,215 U.S. consumers conducted in August, the report found that the nation’s savings story was no longer just about who saved and who did not. It was about how unevenly resilience itself was spreading.

While high-income and financially comfortable households were steadily strengthening their cushions, millions of others were losing ground, even as they tried to save. The result was a widening divide that left large segments of the population exposed to routine financial disruptions.

Three data points underscored the depth of that divide:

In August, 68% of Americans were living paycheck to paycheck, and 25% of that group said they were struggling to pay monthly bills, nearly matching the highest level recorded in the previous year.

The average U.S. household had $9,869 in highly liquid assets, but consumers struggling to pay their bills had just $2,336, a 27.3% decline over the prior 16 months.

Only 48% of consumers said they were very or extremely confident they could come up with $2,000 within 30 days, a figure that fell to 15% among those already struggling to pay bills.

Beyond these headline figures, the report pointed to structural forces that made this fragility difficult to reverse. Rising costs remained the most cited obstacle to saving, affecting consumers across income levels. More than half of Americans said higher living expenses had limited their ability to build savings over the previous six months.

Unexpected expenses and debt payments compounded the problem, particularly for households with little margin for error.

The data also showed that saving behavior was becoming self-reinforcing. Consumers who already saved large portions of their income were increasingly able to accelerate those efforts, while those saving little were more likely to cut back further.

Half of consumers saving more than 30% of their income increased their savings rate over the prior six months. Fewer than 1 in 6 low savers did the same. This dynamic meant that resilience was accumulating where it already existed, while vulnerability deepened elsewhere.

The report also challenged assumptions about income alone as a shield against financial stress. Even among consumers earning more than $100,000 annually, more than 1 in 4 expressed doubts about covering a $2,000 emergency within a month. One in five consumers not living paycheck to paycheck reported similar concerns. Financial comfort did not automatically translate into liquidity.

Generational patterns further complicated the picture. Generation Z workers were saving a higher share of their income as readily available cash than any other age group, reflecting a defensive posture rather than excess resources.

Older cohorts, particularly baby boomers, were split between those with substantial non-liquid assets and those with none, underscoring uneven preparation for shocks later in life.

The report also highlighted a gap between expectations and experience. While 52% of consumers said they believed they would increase their savings over the following year, only 24% actually did so in the prior six months. Optimism remained widespread, but the path forward did not.

The disconnect suggested that without changes in income growth, cost pressures or financial tools that improve liquidity, confidence alone would not close the savings divide.