20% of Americans Cut Groceries to Pay Soaring Electricity Bills

04 November 2026

Rising electricity costs are forcing 20% of Americans to cut back on grocery spending, straining household budgets and forcing stark trade-offs.

Survey data published by Consumer Reports in October 2023 shows that 81% of Americans have seen their electricity bills increase over the past three years, with nearly a third reporting rises of 20% or more. For households below a $75,000 annual income, soaring electricity costs are straining finances "a lot," according to three in five respondents.

To afford rising electricity bills, one in five Americans—over 65 million people—have cut back on groceries or switched to cheaper food options. Nearly a quarter have reduced heating or cooling to uncomfortable levels. A similar percentage have looked into utility company programs to lower electricity costs.

Americans point to multiple factors driving up electric bills, named by the priority:

- Utilities earning too much profit

- Increasing electricity demand from data centers and electric vehicles

- Volatile fossil fuel prices

- The costs of utility infrastructure updates and repairs

Across major U.S. cities, electricity prices rose 14% over the past three years, according to Bureau of Labor Statistics data. This same survey shows about half of Americans believe utilities should not pass this expense on to customers at all, and that 84% support separate electric-rate categories for large power users like data centers and factories.

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When asked why electricity costs rise, one in eight Americans point first to the profit motives of utility companies, more than any other factor, according to the Consumer Reports survey. Those pooled earnings by the electricity companies include payments to utilities' shareholders.

Roughly three in four Americans say they trust state regulators, who determine utility charges, "only a little" or "not at all."

"The leap in prices for gas, electricity and other utilities has come as a shock to too many Americans," the Consumer Reports analysis noted. "While power bills have historically risen, they soared 14% over the past three years in most of the major U.S. cities for which we have data, driving pain for many lower- and moderate-income households."

Grocery budgets are a top casualty. McKinsey analysis finds that 28% of all U.S. consumers are actively trying to reduce grocery spending. The consulting firm summarizes 2023 conditions as "a new phase of the grocery squeeze," led by consumers earning $100,000 or less - the group that depends the most on food as a controllable budget item.

Almost 90% of Americans say they have changed their grocery shopping habits to cope with inflation, from generic preferences to avoiding name-brand impulse buys, according to a survey published by LendingTree. The Bureau of Labor Statistics also documents these inflation pressures that drove trade-offs for low income households.

Fewer Americans are eating out, but that's driving a different sort of grocery trade-up. Of those purchasing groceries, 40% say they are buying more expensive items than they were a year ago, up from 28% just two years ago. That suggests Americans are substituting higher-margin fresh foods for the lower-margin canned goods and other shelf-stable staple foods. Notably, this 40% figure far exceeds the 8% who say they are saving on grocery spending.

Cash-strapped households describe a product-consumption squeeze that only promises to continue into 2024: utility payments that consume more of the budget with each passing month, leading directly to less grocery spending on more expensive items.