Here's something that probably won't surprise you: most Americans think they're paying too much in taxes. What might be more interesting is who they're mad at about it.
According to a new Pew Research Center survey published Monday, 60% of U.S. adults say their personal federal tax burden exceeds what's reasonable given what they get back from the government. That's up from 56% in 2023 and roughly half back in 2019. The survey, conducted in January 2026, included 8,512 people, so we're talking about a pretty solid sample size.
But here's the twist: Americans aren't primarily upset about what they're paying. They're upset about what other people aren't paying.
About 61% say wealthy individuals dodging taxes bothers them "a lot," and roughly 60% say the same about corporations. In contrast, only 12% are concerned that lower-income Americans pay too little. So the frustration isn't really about the overall tax burden—it's about who's carrying it.
This breaks down along predictable partisan lines, but with some interesting wrinkles. Some 81% of Democrats are bothered by wealthy individuals avoiding taxes, compared with 41% of Republicans. But Republicans feel more personally burdened—47% say the amount they pay is unfair versus 36% of Democrats.
The people feeling the most strain? Upper-income households. A full 68% of upper-income Americans say their burden is unfair, and that number jumps to 79% among upper-income Republicans. So if you're doing well financially and voting Republican, you're almost certainly feeling like you're getting a raw deal on taxes.
Meanwhile, wealthy Americans have been responding to last summer's tax law changes in some creative ways. Donor-advised funds (DAFs)—which allow immediate tax deductions while spreading charitable giving over time—have seen a massive surge. National Philanthropic Trust reported new accounts up 123% in November–December 2025, Vanguard Charitable (VOO) saw a 99% rise, and DAFgiving360 contributions climbed roughly 50% year-over-year in the fourth quarter.
Think of DAFs as a tax planning tool that lets you get the deduction now and decide where the money goes later. It's perfectly legal, but it's exactly the kind of thing that makes other taxpayers feel like the system is rigged.
The political fight over all this is heating up. In April, Rep. Pramila Jayapal (D-Wash.) and Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) reintroduced the Ultra-Millionaire Tax Act, which would impose a 2% annual tax and 1% surcharge on fortunes above $50 million. That would target roughly 260,000 households and, according to analysts, could generate $6.2 trillion over a decade. Jayapal pointed out that Mark Zuckerberg (META) and Elon Musk (TSLA) pay lower effective tax rates than the average nurse.
Not everyone is on board with that approach. JPMorgan Chase & Co. (JPM) CEO Jamie Dimon pushed back against claims that billionaires avoid their fair share. Senator Bernie Sanders responded that a 5% wealth tax would require Dimon to pay roughly $135 million more while leaving him with over $2.5 billion, projecting $4.4 trillion in revenue from his Make Billionaires Pay Their Fair Share Act over ten years.
The pressure isn't just coming from Washington. At the World Economic Forum in Davos in January, nearly 400 millionaires and billionaires—including Abigail Disney—signed an open letter urging global leaders to tax the super-rich, warning that extreme wealth concentration threatens democracy worldwide.
Meanwhile, back at the kitchen table, household budgets are tightening. Average federal tax refunds have risen 10.9% to $3,571 as of late March, but U.S. inflation is projected at 4.2% in 2026. So even if you're getting more back, it might not go as far.
Just a friendly reminder: the filing deadline for the 2025 tax year remains April 15. So if you're among the 60% who think you're paying too much, at least you have until then to figure out exactly how much that is.
