Is your income tax unfair? New poll finds near-record level of agreement

This tax season, many Americans are unhappy with the amount of money they and others owe the federal government, according to new polling, which found record or near-record levels of disapproval.

In the latest Gallup survey, less than half of respondents described their federal income tax rate as fair, and most said it is too high. Further, majorities said poor and middle-class Americans are overtaxed, while the rich are undertaxed.

Here is a breakdown of the results from the poll, which sampled 1,002 U.S. adults March 3-16.

Is your federal income tax rate fair?

In the poll, 46% of respondents said the federal income tax they will pay this year is fair, which is 1 point above the all-time low recorded in 1999. Meanwhile, 50% said their rate is unfair.

For the past 25 years, most Americans have tended to say their federal income tax rate is fair. But there was a shift in 2023, when that figure fell to 46% — and it has not risen above 50% since then.

“The decline in perceived fairness of taxes since 2022 may be tied to inflation and higher prices in recent years, and possibly Biden-era tax increases, though those primarily were limited to upper-income Americans making $400,000 or more,” according to Gallup.

The poll — which has a margin of error of 4 percentage points — also found significant partisan differences when it came to opinions on federal income taxes.

A majority of Democrats, 62%, said their rate is fair, which is largely consistent with previous years.

In contrast, among Republicans, just 35% described their rate as fair, marking a precipitous decline from recent years. For example, in 2020, 63% of Republicans considered their federal income tax rate to be fair.

Interestingly, while political affiliation was closely correlated with opinions about fairness, there were “no meaningful differences” in opinions across wealth lines.

Is your federal income tax too high?

The poll also asked respondents if they thought their federal income tax rate was too high, about right or too low.

A majority, 59%, said their rate is too high, which is similar to results from 2024 and 2023, though up significantly from earlier years. Meanwhile, 38% said their rate is about right, and just 2% said it is too low.

“The percentage saying their taxes are too high is near the upper end of the trend since 2003, possibly reflecting the financial squeeze felt by Americans the past few years after increased inflation and cumulatively higher prices,” according to Gallup.

Here, again, there were notable partisan differences. The vast majority of Republicans, 71%, said their rate is too high, while just 39% of Democrats said the same.

Taxes owed by low, middle and high-income Americans

Further, the poll asked respondents about the federal taxes paid by three groups: low, middle and high-income Americans.

The majority, 58%, said low-income people pay too much, marking the highest share on record since Gallup began asking this question in 1992. This figure is up 8 points from 2024.

Similarly, 54% of respondents said middle-income Americans pay too much in federal taxes, marking the highest share since 1999. Compared to 2024, this figure is up 3 points.

And, when it came to upper-income Americans, 58% of respondents said they pay too little in federal taxes. This figure — while up 3 points from 2024 — is largely consistent with previous years.

There was some cross-party agreement concerning middle-income Americans, with most Democrats and Republicans saying they pay too much.

But views diverged on the other two groups. About two-thirds of Democrats said low-income people paid too much, while 43% of Republicans said the same. Similarly, 87% of Democrats said high-earners pay too little, while a plurality of Republicans, 48%, said they pay their fair share.