WalletHub’s nationally representative Halloween Spending & Financial Fears Survey found that 22 million more people are having nightmares about money problems this year than last year, and that roughly 13 million more people are scared about their kids’ financial future. The survey also includes findings on how politicians prey on people’s financial fears, whether people consider their finances a horror show, and more. The complete results are laid out in the following infographic.
Key Stats
- 22M more people have nightmares about money this year than last year.
- Almost 90% of Americans think that politicians prey on peoples’ financial fears.
- Roughly 13M more people are scared about their kids’ financial futures this year than last year.
- Nearly 40% of people are more afraid of credit card debt than the coronavirus.
- Almost a third of Americans think their finances are a horror show.
- 130M Americans think the coronavirus is the scariest thing about Halloween this year.
Ask the Experts
For advice and insight, we asked a panel of experts to share their thoughts on the following key questions:
- WalletHub’s survey found that 78 million Americans (roughly 31% of adults) would say their finances are a horror show. Do you think that’s more hyperbole or a realistic assessment?
- Are you one of the roughly 70% of Americans who are fearful of a recession? Why or why not?
- Is there any significance to 85% of people saying they plan to spend less on Halloween this year than last year?
- 9 in 10 respondents believe that politicians prey on people’s financial fears - what do you think that says about the current political and economic climate?
Ask the Experts
- D'Arcy Becker
Ph.D. – Professor, Department Chairperson, Department of Accounting – University of Wisconsin-Whitewater
Read More
- Monica A. Zimmerman
Ph.D., CPA – Professor; Executive Director of the Dr. Edwin Cottrell Entrepreneurial Leadership Center – West Chester University
Read More
- Jorge Eduardo Scarpin
Ph.D. – Assistant Professor, Offutt School of Business – Concordia College
Read More
Survey Methodology
This report reflects the results of a nationally representative online survey of nearly 1,300 respondents.
After we collected all responses, we normalized the data by age, gender and income so the sample would reflect U.S. demographics.
Full Details Overall
| Do you have nightmares about money problems? | |
|---|---|
| No | 59% |
| Yes | 41% |
| Do politicians prey on people’s financial fears? | |
| Yes | 89% |
| No | 11% |
| How fearful are you of this economy? | |
| Somewhat fearful | 54% |
| Very fearful | 31% |
| Not fearful | 15% |
| What type of expense are you most fearful of? | |
| Medical bills | 40% |
| Mortgage / Rent | 32% |
| Credit card | 21% |
| Car loan | 7% |
| Whose financial future are you most fearful about? | |
| Your own | 58% |
| Your kids | 34% |
| Your grandkids | 8% |
| Are you planning on spending more or less on Halloween this year compared to last year? | |
| Less | 84% |
| More | 16% |
| Which are you more afraid of? | |
| Coronavirus | 62% |
| Credit card debt | 38% |
| What is the scariest thing about credit cards? | |
| Interest rates & fees | 37% |
| Overspending | 25% |
| Fraud | 23% |
| Hidden terms | 9% |
| Losing them | 6% |
| What’s the scariest thing about Halloween? | |
| Coronavirus | 51% |
| Strangers Ringing Doorbell | 17% |
| Spending Money | 15% |
| Movies | 11% |
| Costumes | 6% |
| What is your biggest financial fear? | |
| Unplanned emergency | 26% |
| Not enough retirement savings | 26% |
| Job loss | 18% |
| Fraud | 13% |
| Loss of health insurance | 10% |
| Poor credit | 7% |
| What scares you or stresses you out most? | |
| Money | 29% |
| Politics | 23% |
| Health | 19% |
| Terrorism | 11% |
| Work | 9% |
| Economy | 9% |
| Would you say your finances are a horror show? | |
| No | 68% |
| Yes | 32% |
| Are credit cards a trick or a treat? | |
| Trick | 59% |
| Treat | 41% |
| Are you celebrating Halloween this year? | |
| No, due to Covid-19 | 39% |
| Yes | 35% |
| No, due to other reasons | 26% |
| Which scares you most: COVID-19, COVID-19 vaccines or being out of work? | |
| COVID-19 | 47% |
| Being out of work | 35% |
| COVID-19 vaccines | 18% |
Note: Percentages may not total 100% due to rounding.