These people make good money. Life, they say, is unaffordable.
“Upward mobility is sort of dead,” said a 27-year-old who earns nearly six figures.
From The Times
December 26, 2025

Economists say a typical middle-class family today is richer than one in the 1960s. Americans in their 20s and 30s don’t believe it.

A couple, dressed casually, sit on their living room couch, smiling at their child. A dog and a Christmas tree are nearby.

Kim Raff for The New York Times

“Upward mobility is sort of dead,” said a 27-year-old who earns $90,000 a year. →

MORE TOP STORIES

A photo illustration of a vertical stack of $100 bills cinched with a rubber band and made to look like a person, with paper arms and legs, walking across a red tightrope.

The economy avoided a recession in 2025, but many Americans are reeling. →

An illustration, which is predominantly red, of a round vase with all sorts of pie charts and arrows coming out of the top.

From A.I. to tariffs, here are 14 charts that explain 2025. →

An illustration showing a hand shaking out a cup of die with various market images, like a bull and a bear, arrows pointing down and one that says 6 percent.

Want to know where the market is going? Don’t trust this, or any, forecast. →

Get a better grasp on your finances.

Sign up for the Your Money newsletter

Get a better grasp on your finances.

Get it in your inbox

If you received this newsletter from someone else, subscribe here.

Need help? Review our newsletter help page or contact us for assistance.

You received this message because you signed up for updates from The New York Times.

To stop receiving From The Times, unsubscribe. To opt out of other promotional emails from The Times, including those regarding The Athletic, manage your email settings.

Subscribe to The Times

Connect with us on:

facebookxinstagramwhatsapp

Change Your EmailPrivacy PolicyContact UsCalifornia Notices

LiveIntent LogoAdChoices Logo

The New York Times Company. 620 Eighth Avenue New York, NY 10018