Americans with six-figure incomes are in 'survival mode'

A six-figure salary doesn’t mean what it once did.

That’s the takeaway from a new Harris poll, which suggests a six-figure income in 2025 equates to survival, but not necessarily to success.

One in three six-figure earners described themselves in the poll as financially distressed. Two in three said six-figure pay is not a sign of wealth.

The Harris Poll survey, released Nov. 14, reached 2,109 Americans, including 728 who earn at least $100,000 a year.

The notion that high-salary workers are struggling rings counter-intuitive. Economic data shows high-income Americans increasingly power the economy, spending freely at a time when less affluent households are pinched.