35.7 million adults cut back on food or medicine to pay energy bills, Census survey finds
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About 35.7 million American adults lived in households that cut back on food, medicine, or other basic needs to pay an energy bill during a two-month stretch ending this fall, according to new survey data from the U.S. Census Bureau. That is 15.2 percent of adults who answered the question.
Another 29.5 million adults, 12.5 percent, lived in households that could not pay an energy bill, or could not pay all of it, in the two months before they were surveyed. And 22.2 million, 9.4 percent, said their household kept the home at a temperature that felt unsafe or unhealthy.
The figures come from the bureau's Household Trends and Outlook Pulse Survey, which was in the field from September 9 to October 12, so the questions about the last two months cover the end of the summer cooling season. Asked about the summer as a whole, 15.9 percent of adults said their household kept the home at a safe and healthy temperature on hot days only sometimes or not at all.
Income makes the biggest difference. Among adults in households earning less than $35,000 a year, 26.5 percent cut back on necessities to pay an energy bill, and 22.7 percent couldn't pay a bill in full. In households earning $150,000 or more, those shares were 2.9 percent and 3.2 percent.
| Household income | Cut back on food or medicine to pay an energy bill | Could not pay an energy bill in full | Kept home at an unsafe temperature |
|---|---|---|---|
| Less than $35,000 | 26.5% | 22.7% | 17.0% |
| $35,000 to $74,999 | 20.6% | 15.9% | 8.2% |
| $75,000 to $99,999 | 13.2% | 10.3% | 7.9% |
| $100,000 to $149,999 | 6.0% | 6.3% | 10.1% |
| $150,000 and over | 2.9% | 3.2% | 5.1% |
| All adults | 15.2% | 12.5% | 9.4% |
Families with children were hit harder on bills. Among adults living with children under 18, 18.0 percent were in households that couldn't pay an energy bill in full, compared with 10.3 percent of those without children. Among the four largest racial and ethnic groups, Black adults reported the highest rate of unpaid bills, 23.0 percent, compared with 10.5 percent of white adults and 12.8 percent of Hispanic adults.
Younger adults were more likely to go without. About 20 percent of adults ages 18 to 34 lived in households that cut back on necessities to pay an energy bill, and 14.7 percent said the home had been at an unsafe temperature. Among adults 65 and older, those shares were 9.0 percent and 7.8 percent. Lost income made things worse: among adults whose household had lost job income in the past four weeks, 38.1 percent cut back on necessities to cover an energy bill.
Energy costs are part of a wider squeeze. In the same survey, 24.2 percent of adults who answered said paying for usual household expenses had been somewhat or very difficult over the past two months.
The bureau labels the survey's results experimental and warns that estimates for small groups can have large margins of error, so differences of a point or two between groups may not be meaningful. For how incomes differ across the country, see median household income by state and the latest poverty rate.
Sources
U.S. Census Bureau, Household Trends and Outlook Pulse Survey, September 2026 (data collected September 9 to October 12, 2026), released November 12, 2026: Housing Table 1 (energy use and spending), Housing Table 3 (safe temperature on hot days), and Spending Table 1. Figures are for adults 18 and older. Percentages are shares of adults who answered each question.
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How many Americans struggle to pay energy bills?
In a Census Bureau survey taken from September 9 to October 12, 2026, 12.5 percent of adults, about 29.5 million, lived in households that could not pay an energy bill in full during the previous two months.
How many people cut back on food or medicine to pay energy bills?
About 35.7 million adults, 15.2 percent of those who answered, lived in households that reduced or went without basic necessities such as food or medicine to pay an energy bill in the two months before the Census Bureau's fall survey.
Who is most likely to struggle with energy bills?
Lower-income households are hit hardest. Among adults in households earning less than $35,000, 26.5 percent cut back on necessities to pay an energy bill, compared with 2.9 percent in households earning $150,000 or more.
