Despite 64 percent of middle-income households being confident in their current financial situations, an overwhelming majority say they are beginning to feel the pressure of a rising cost of living impacting their financial security. Primerica’s latest Financial Security Monitor, a quarterly national survey documenting the viewpoints of middle-income families in the U.S. and Canada, finds 68 percent of middle-income earners believe the cost of living will outpace their income in 2022.

“As we enter a new year, middle-income families remain optimistic about their financial situations, while almost 9 out of every 10 households feel increasing costs for groceries and gas could impact their budgets,” said Glenn J. Williams, CEO of Primerica. “We’re encouraged that more people believe their financial situation will be better off a year from now than we saw in our last survey, yet we also found increasing credit card debt— a factor that makes it even more important for families to take steps now to secure their financial futures.”

Other key findings from the Q4 survey include middle income earners’ expectations for the disappearance of COVID-19 throughout the year, as well as expectations for changing jobs in 2022.

Primerica’s Financial Security Monitor for the fourth quarter of 2021 was conducted through online polling in December 2021 and was released this week. Read the press release here.