Whether you consider it a civic responsibility, a necessary evil, or something that inspires a few choice words, it’s no surprise that most people dread tax season. From the cost and inconvenience of filing to concerns about fairness and even anxiety over basic math, there are plenty of reasons April brings stress. This year, however, the main source of frustration isn’t just the filing process itself, but rising costs, fairness, and the financial strain many Americans feel. In fact, WalletHub’s survey found that 78% of Americans are more worried about affordability than taxes right now.
Even so, tax season remains an unpleasant experience for many. Just how much do Americans dislike taxes and tax collectors — and what might they be willing to do to avoid paying?
To explore these questions and more, WalletHub conducted a nationally representative survey of 200 taxpayers.
Key Stats
- Affordability Concerns: 78% of Americans are more worried about affordability than taxes right now.
- Tax Burden: 66% of Americans think their current tax rate is too high.
- Tax Filing Cost: 95% of Americans think filing taxes should be free.
- Proactive Budgeting: More than 4 in 5 Americans believe people should budget throughout the year to afford tax payments.
Survey Methodology
This report reflects the results of a nationally representative online survey of 200 respondents.
After all responses were collected, we normalized the data by age, gender and income so the sample would reflect U.S. demographics.
Full Survey & Responses
| Are you more worried about taxes or affordability right now? | |
|---|---|
| Affordability | 78% |
| Taxes | 22% |
| What are your biggest Tax Day fears? | |
| Not Having Enough Money To Pay | 32% |
| Making A Mathematical Mistake | 31% |
| Identity Theft | 20% |
| Getting Audited | 15% |
| Forgetting To File | 2% |
| What would you rather do than your taxes? | |
| Jury duty | 28% |
| Attend driver’s ed classes | 18% |
| Go on a hunger strike | 17% |
| Miss a connecting flight | 8% |
| Talk to your kids about sex | 8% |
| Swim with sharks | 7% |
| Get naked on a live stream | 5% |
| Spend the night in jail | 5% |
| Drink expired milk | 4% |
| Do you think your current tax rate is…? | |
| Too High | 66% |
| Just Right | 31% |
| Too Low | 3% |
| Should filing taxes be free? | |
| Yes | 95% |
| No | 5% |
| How would you describe companies that advertise free tax filing services? | |
| Bait and switch | 61% |
| Exactly as advertised | 39% |
| Do the rich pay their fair share in taxes? | |
| No | 71% |
| Yes | 29% |
| Do businesses pay their fair share in taxes? | |
| No | 57% |
| Yes | 43% |
| Do you need a tax refund to make ends meet? | |
| Yes | 61% |
| No | 39% |
| Should people budget throughout the year to afford tax payments? | |
| Yes | 82% |
| No | 18% |
Note: Percentages may not total 100% due to rounding.
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