Are You Financially 'Healthy'? Two-Thirds Of Americans Aren't — Here's How To Know If You're The Exception

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If you're one of the rare Americans who feels confident about your finances, congratulations — you're officially in the minority.

According to new national data, only about one in three U.S. households is considered Financially Healthy. The rest, roughly 67%, are labeled Financially Unhealthy, a category that includes millions who are just getting by and another group barely keeping their heads above water.

The findings come from the 2025 U.S. Financial Health Pulse Trends Report, released last month by the Financial Health Network in partnership with the University of Southern California's Dornsife Center for Economic and Social Research. The study, part of an eight-year research series, surveyed more than 7,400 households between April and May 2025 to take the economy's true pulse — not through stock charts or GDP growth, but through how people actually spend, save, borrow, and plan.

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The topline result? Despite modest progress, the report says America's financial health is still stuck in neutral. "More than two-thirds of U.S. households remain Financially Unhealthy," the researchers wrote, warning that most families still live too close to the edge to weather another shock.

How the Report Defines ‘Financially Healthy'

To be considered Financially Healthy, a household has to check a few not-so-easy boxes:

spend less than it earns pay bills on time keep debt manageable maintain at least three months of living expenses in liquid savings.

Only 31% of households met that bar in 2025 — the same share as in 2022, meaning the post-pandemic recovery hasn't translated into real stability.

Meanwhile, 54% were Financially Coping — covering the basics but without much cushion — and 15% were Financially Vulnerable, often behind on bills or deep in debt. The balance between these groups has barely shifted since 2018. The study's authors found that between 2024 and 2025, about 31 million households, nearly a quarter of the country, moved up or down a financial health tier. For every family that climbed a step, another slipped backward. It's proof, they note, of how fragile financial progress can be.

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Savings and Spending: A Small but Real Improvement

The bright spot in 2025 is savings. Almost half of households, 49%, managed to spend less than they earned, up two points from last year. Only 23% reported spending more. That improvement was helped by cooling inflation — down to 2.3% — and wages rising slightly faster than prices.

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Automation also played a role. About 31% of households now use automatic transfers to stash money into savings. Those who do fare dramatically better: 76% of automated savers have more than two thousand dollars on hand, compared with 63% of those who save manually. And 65% of automated savers have at least three months of living expenses set aside, compared with 58% of non-automated households. The Financial Health Network points to this as proof that small structural habits — like setting savings on autopilot — can make the difference between security and stress.

Debt and Credit: A Minor Relief

There's been a modest decline in the share of households reporting unmanageable debt, falling from 30% to 29%. The number of debt-free households inched up to 20%, and fewer Americans are carrying credit-card balances or auto loans. But for those with student loans, the picture dimmed once repayment resumed. Borrowers reporting good or better credit scores fell from 69% to 65%, a sign that interest and delinquency pressures are quietly building again.

Insurance: Confidence Keeps Dropping

One of the most worrying sections of the report focuses on insurance. Only 56% of households said they were moderately or very confident their insurance coverage would protect them in an emergency — down from 59% last year and the lowest level since tracking began in 2018. Among families that endured a natural disaster or severe weather event in the past year, confidence dropped to 52%.

The Financial Health Network attributes this slide partly to the surge in home-insurance costs, which rose another 10–12% in 2024. The report notes that many households are either reducing coverage to save money or being priced out entirely in high-risk markets. In short, people are paying more but trusting the system less.

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The Fragile Gains of 2025

Some groups did better this year. Lower-income and Black households saw meaningful improvement: the share of Financially Vulnerable families in those categories fell by several points. Food insecurity also declined slightly, from 16% to 15%, and fewer households missed rent, mortgage, or utility payments.

Still, only 5% of upper-income households are considered vulnerable compared with nearly one-quarter of lower-income ones, highlighting how inequality remains baked into the nation's financial health. Rural households were also less likely to be financially healthy than suburban or urban ones.

Turning Modest Gains Into Real Progress

While financial vulnerability has ticked down, the authors caution that new headwinds — rising insurance premiums, resumed student-loan collections, and planned changes to Medicaid and SNAP — could easily erase 2025's small gains.

For households that are in the Healthy tier, maintaining that status matters just as much as achieving it. For those still coping or vulnerable, incremental habits — automated saving, tracking expenses, rebuilding credit — help more than dramatic overhauls.

And whether your finances feel solid or shaky, there's a universal takeaway: talk to a qualified financial advisor. The same way an annual checkup catches health issues early, a professional review can prevent a manageable budget issue from turning into a long-term condition. Because as this year's data makes clear, financial health in America isn't terminal — but it's still very much in recovery.

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This article Are You Financially 'Healthy'? Two-Thirds Of Americans Aren't — Here's How To Know If You're The Exception originally appeared on Benzinga.com

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