Amid reports of a tough job market and rising costs of living, a new Pew Research Center survey finds that majorities of Americans say young adults have it harder today financially than their parents’ generation did.

Most adults (64%) say it’s harder for young people to find a job today, up from 39% who said the same in 2021. Just 15% say it’s easier, down from 40% five years ago. Another 20% say it’s about the same for young people today as it was for their parents.

We surveyed 10,091 U.S. adults from May 4 to 17, 2026. Everyone who took part is a member of the Center’s American Trends Panel. The survey represents the views of all U.S. adults.

Here are the survey questions used for this analysis, the detailed responses and the survey methodology.