If you could control how America spends its money, where would you allocate the nation’s budget? Would you prioritize healthcare, education, or maybe national defense? It turns out that Americans have some pretty strong opinions on how to spend the country’s dollars — and those opinions vary widely depending on where you live.
We conducted a nationwide survey, asking people from every U.S. state to take on the role of budget master and allocate America’s spending across 10 major categories, from Social Security to transportation. The results paint a picture of regional priorities and fiscal responsibility.
So, what do Americans value most? Let’s explore how people across the country would shape the future of U.S. spending.
How Would the Average American Allocate the U.S. Budget?
When it comes to managing a country’s finances, everyone has an opinion. But what would the U.S. budget look like if the average American had control over it?
A lot goes into properly managing a country’s finances, and every single resident will have their own opinions on how it should be done. To get an idea of how those opinions shake out, we surveyed over 2,000 Americans and asked them how they would allocate the U.S. budget if it were up to them.
To simplify the task for survey takers, we gave them 10 broad spending categories and had them enter the percentage of the budget they’d prefer to be allocated to each one. The breakdown of spending from high to low and how we defined each category can be found below.
Here’s how the average American would allocate the U.S. budget.
Health (12.5%): Americans prioritized health, suggesting the largest portion of the budget should go toward programs like Medicaid and public health services for low-income families.
Social Security (12.3%): Close behind was Social Security, which includes payments to retired workers, disabled people, and their families.
National Defense (12%): Military spending, covering operations, equipment, and personnel, also ranked high on the list.
Medicare (10.9%): The average American would direct a significant share toward Medicare, which provides healthcare for people 65+ and certain younger individuals with disabilities.
Education, Training, Employment, and Social Services (10.8%): Funding for schools, job training, and social services would receive nearly 11% of the budget, indicating its importance to many respondents.
Income Security (9.1%): Financial support for unemployment, food assistance, and welfare programs also made up a considerable share.
Transportation (8.6%): Infrastructure like highways, airports, and public transit would receive a similar portion of the budget as veterans services.
Veterans Benefits & Services (8.6%): This category, which includes support for military veterans, would receive just under 9% of the budget.
Interest & National Debt (7.9%): Paying off the national debt was a lower priority for Americans, with just under 8% allocated to it.
Community & Regional Development (7.5%): Housing programs and economic development in communities ranked last, although still receiving a meaningful share of the budget.
It may not be the most realistic, but overall, our survey results show that Americans want an incredibly balanced approach to budgeting. They suggest allocating the most amount of national funds to health, Social Security, and national defense while putting less emphasis on paying down the national debt and investing in community development.
Now that we’ve got an idea of how people, in general, would balance the books, let’s take a look at how those views change regionally.
The States Where Residents Would Allocate the Most and Least by Budget Item
While the national average gives us an idea of how the average American would distribute the national budget, the data gets even more interesting when we zoom in on individual states. Each region has its own priorities, and these differences become clear when we look at which states would allocate the most — or the least — toward each spending category.
Here’s a closer look at the states on the extremes for each budget category.
Health (National Average: 12.5%)
- Most: Maine residents would allocate 15% of the budget to health. This makes sense when you consider Maine’s older population that might want a stronger emphasis on rural healthcare access.
- Least: On the other hand, Pennsylvanians would allocate only 10.5% of the budget to health, potentially reflecting the state’s larger focus on other areas like Medicare.
Social Security (National Average: 12.3%)
- Most: Nebraska tops the list, suggesting 14.8% of the budget go to Social Security. With a higher proportion of rural communities, Social Security plays a significant role in supporting retirees and their families.
- Least: Utah residents would allocate just 10.3%. With the youngest average age of any state in the Union, Utah’s preference for lower spending on Social Security is understandable.
National Defense (National Average: 12%)
- Most: South Carolina would spend 14.7% on defense, a state with a notable military presence, including bases like Fort Jackson and the Marine Corps’ Parris Island.
- Least: Mississippi comes in at 9.7%, allocating less to defense. Mississippi has the highest poverty rate in the country, so its residents would likely prefer to invest more in domestic spending categories that have a more direct impact.
Medicare (National Average: 10.9%)
- Most: Pennsylvania leads here, allocating 12.2% to Medicare. As one of the states with a higher senior population, the focus on Medicare spending reflects its residents’ needs.
- Least: Iowa, allocating 9.5%, would spend the least on Medicare, possibly due to a relatively younger population and strong rural health networks.
Education, Training, Employment, and Social Services (National Average: 10.8%)
- Most: Hawaii leads with 12.9% being allocated to this category, a reflection of the state’s strong investment in education and job training, particularly given its geographical isolation.
- Least: Virginia would allocate only 9.6%, likely due to a higher focus on other areas, such as national defense, given the state’s proximity to Washington, D.C., and major military installations.
Income Security (National Average: 9.1%)
- Most: Arizona allocates 11.2% to income security, possibly reflecting the state’s need for unemployment and welfare support, especially with fluctuating economic conditions.
- Least: Tennessee, at 7.8%, would spend the least. The state may have placed more emphasis on transportation spending, as reflected in the next category.
Transportation (National Average: 8.6%)
- Most: Tennessee residents would spend 10.7% of the budget on transportation, which makes sense given its central location and reliance on interstate infrastructure.
- Least: Alabama would allocate only 7%, signaling other pressing priorities within the state budget.
Veterans Benefits & Services (National Average: 8.6%)
- Most: Idaho, at 10%, places a strong emphasis on supporting military veterans, which aligns with the state’s deep military connections.
- Least: Nebraska would allocate the least (7.2%) to veterans services, likely due to its emphasis on other spending categories, like Social Security.
Interest & National Debt (National Average: 7.9%)
- Most: Texas stands out by allocating 10.7% to national debt payments, making them the most pragmatic of any state we surveyed.
- Least: Maine would spend only 6%, with the state preferring to prioritize immediate needs like health and social programs over debt payments.
Community & Regional Development (National Average: 7.5%)
- Most: Hawaii leads again, wanting 9% to be allocated to community and regional development. This reinforces the state’s ongoing focus on housing and economic development, which is vital due to its unique geographical challenges.
- Least: Kansas residents would spend only 5.9% on community development, suggesting a more conservative approach to this category, which might be better served using local resources rather than national.
These regional differences highlight how diverse America’s priorities are when it comes to national spending. Whether it’s defense investment in South Carolina or healthcare in Maine, the unique needs of each state are reflected in their budget preferences.
Next, you’ll be able to see the full breakdown of how every state would allocate the U.S. budget.
How Would Residents From Every State Allocate America’s Budget?
Curious how your state’s residents would allocate America’s national budget? We’ve compiled the full data from our survey, showing how people from every U.S. state would distribute spending across the 10 broad categories.
You can search for your state, sort by any budget category, and explore the full data set to see how different regions prioritize America’s financial resources.
Closing Thoughts
Americans everywhere have different priorities when it comes to spending, and our survey shows just how much these values vary from person to person and state to state. Whether it’s a focus on healthcare, national defense, or education, Americans’ preferences often reflect what matters most to the people they know and love. Just like how people approach national budgeting differently, personal financial planning is no one-size-fits-all.
At Coventry Direct, we understand that as retirement approaches, your financial needs can shift, too. Just as our survey takers seek to allocate resources where they’re needed most, selling your life insurance can help you maximize your financial assets and align your personal budget with your long-term goals.
Ready to explore if you qualify? Get started today.
Methodology
To determine how every state would prefer to allocate America’s national budget, we surveyed over 2,200 Americans across 44 states, gave them 10 broad spending categories, and asked them to provide a percentage of the national budget they’d allocate to each.
Total responses for the 10 categories had to equal 100% exactly to be considered valid. Budget categories and how we defined them to survey takers can be found below. These are not necessarily actual spending categories and are an attempt to see what issues matter most to Americans across the country.
Social Security – Payments to retired workers, disabled people, and their families.
Health – Programs like Medicaid and public health services for low-income families.
Medicare – Healthcare coverage for people 65+ and certain younger individuals with disabilities.
National Defense – Military spending, including operations, equipment, and personnel.
Income Security – Financial support for unemployment, food assistance, and welfare programs.
Veterans Benefits & Services – Services and support for military veterans.
Education, Training, Employment, and Social Services – Funding for schools, job training, and social services.
Transportation – Infrastructure like highways, airports, and public transit.
Community and Regional Development – Housing programs, economic development in communities.
Interest and National Debt – Payments on the government’s debt obligations.
The survey ran over a two-week period in September 2024. We excluded the following states due to insufficient survey respondents: Alaska, Montana, North Dakota, South Dakota, Vermont, and Wyoming.
