The coronavirus, or COVID-19, is one of the biggest news topics of 2020, overshadowing even the upcoming presidential election. There have been over 4,200 cases of the virus in the U.S., which includes people in 49 states and D.C. In response, President Donald Trump has signed a $8.3 billion spending package to fight the spread of the virus, and has issued a 30-day travel ban on people coming from many European countries.
Despite the government’s best efforts, however, coronavirus has taken a toll on the economy. The stock market has taken a huge hit. In addition, 67 million Americans think they will have trouble paying their credit card bills, according to a nationally representative survey conducted by WalletHub. The survey gauged how coronavirus has affected Americans’ lives and spending habits.
Below are some more highlights from WalletHub’s survey.
Key Stats
- Coronavirus is a huge source of stress. Coronavirus is now the top stressor in America, above money problems or the 2020 election.
- Many Americans have decided to start saving. 158 million Americans are saving more money during coronavirus, rather than spending more.
- Women and men’s spending has changed differently. The top category females have spent less on due to coronavirus is travel. For males, it's entertainment events, such as concerts, sports and movies.
- Travel has greatly declined. 94 million Americans have cancelled or plan on canceling travel plans due to the coronavirus.
- Touching cash is scary. More than 6 in 10 people believe it is possible to contract the coronavirus from money.
Survey Methodology
This report reflects the results of a nationally representative online survey of over 500 people.
After all responses were collected, we normalized the data by age, gender and income so the sample would reflect U.S. demographics.
Full Details Overall
| Do you anticipate having trouble paying your credit card bills because of the coronavirus? | |
|---|---|
| No | 73% |
| Yes | 27% |
| Which stresses you out the most right now? | |
| Coronavirus | 28% |
| Money problems | 26% |
| 2020 election | 18% |
| Job | 11% |
| Relationships | 8% |
| Climate change | 5% |
| Terrorism / Mass shootings | 4% |
| Should credit card companies forgive late payments in light of issues related to the coronavirus? | |
| Yes | 76% |
| No | 24% |
| Have you canceled (or do you plan to cancel) any travel bookings due to the coronavirus? | |
| No | 63% |
| Yes | 37% |
| Do you think it’s possible to catch the coronavirus from money? | |
| Yes | 63% |
| No | 37% |
| Are you spending more or saving more money due to the coronavirus? | |
| Saving more | 63% |
| Spending more | 37% |
| Are you going to apply for a new credit card because of the coronavirus? | |
| No | 90% |
| Yes | 10% |
| Roughly how much more are you spending on groceries because of the coronavirus? | |
| Same amount | 54% |
| 10% more | 22% |
| 25% more | 17% |
| 50% more | 5% |
| 100% more | 2% |
| Which of these things do you plan to spend less on during the coronavirus outbreak? (select all that apply) | |
| Travel | 59% |
| Concerts, sports and/or movie tickets | 57% |
| Bars & Restaurants | 51% |
| Social functions (parties, dating, etc.) | 43% |
| Public Transportation | 42% |
| Uber/Lyft/Taxis | 31% |
| If you had $100 right now, would you spend it on: | |
| Entertainment | 62% |
| Masks and hand sanitizer | 38% |
Note: Percentages may not total 100% due to rounding.