What do American people think about universal basic income?
Economic axis · 🇺🇸 the United States · measured continuously, published only above 100 responses.
30% of American respondents take the position “The state should pay everyone enough to live on, with no strings.”, against 43% for “Money from the state should go to people who work, or who clearly need it.”, with 27% choosing neither. n = 113, margin of error ±9.3, weighted to the United States's adult population.
Where the United States sits on economic
What is measured about the United States on this axis. These are facts about the country, not what its people think about them — that is the part of this page waiting on a sample.
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Income inequality (Gini)
World Bank PovcalNet/PIP · 2024
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41.8 0–100 |
higher than most countries
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Unemployment
ILO modelled estimate · 2025
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4.2% |
somewhat below the middle
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Income per person
World Bank / ICP · 2025
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$76,931 |
among the highest in the world
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Ranked against every country with a published figure for the same series. Sources: World Bank World Development Indicators, which republish UN, ILO, UNESCO, WHO, SIPRI, IISS and UNODC data.
The questions that bear on universal basic income
Asked as a forced choice between two written positions, in randomised order, with the sides flipped for half of respondents.
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A · Money from the state should go to people who work, or who clearly need it.
B · The state should pay everyone enough to live on, with no strings.
World, unweighted: 24% A ·
22% neither ·
54% B · n = 3930
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30% B 🇺🇸 n=113 |
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A · If machines take the jobs, people must retrain and move on.
B · If machines take the jobs, the state must guarantee an income.
World, unweighted: 25% A ·
25% neither ·
50% B · n = 1709
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🇺🇸 n=59 of 100 |
A national figure appears only once that nation clears 100 responses on the question. The world column is a raw count of every answer received and is not post-stratified — it is shown because withholding it would say less, not more.
Asked another way
The same question, as people put it.
- The united states public opinion on universal basic income
- Universal basic income poll the united states
- What do american people think about universal basic income
- What percentage of american people support universal basic income
Each has one answer on this page, and it is the same answer.