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(Do you think the difference in incomes between rich people and poor people in the United States today is larger, smaller, or about the same as it was 20 years ago?) Would you say the difference in incomes is) much larger or somewhat larger? / Would you say the difference in incomes is) much smaller or somewhat smaller?
Degree of change in rich-poor income gap over 20 years · Asked in 5 waves, 2004–2020 · 21,611 responses · weighted estimates computed from individual responses
Codes that include 'no Pre/Post IW' were dropped for respondents without that interview. Kept and flagged: -9 (other_missing), -8 (dk).
Dashed lines mark changes in how interviews were done, which can shift answers: 1. → mixed mode (2012).
Shares of people who gave an answer. Each column is one wave, evenly spaced rather than to scale in time; hover for exact shares.
| Group | Much larger | Somewhat larger | About the same | Somewhat smaller | Much smaller | n | MoE | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| All respondents |
| Poll | Field dates | Mode | Respondents | Responses |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| ANES 2020 Time Series Study Source variable: V201400x. | 2020-08-18 to 2021-01-04 | mixed | 8,280 | 8,264 |
| ANES 2016 Time Series Study Source variable: V161138x. | 2016-09-07 to 2017-01-09 | mixed | 4,270 | 4,267 |
| ANES 2012 Time Series Study Source variable: ineq_incgap_x. | 2012-09-09 to 2013-01-13 | mixed | 5,914 | 5,912 |
| ANES 2008 Time Series Study Source variable: V085080a. | 2008-09-02 to 2008-12-30 | face to face | 2,322 | 2,102 |
| ANES 2004 Time Series Study Source variable: V045113a. | 2004-09-07 to 2004-12-19 | face to face | 1,212 | 1,066 |
Dashed lines mark changes in how interviews were done, which can shift answers: 1. → mixed mode (2012).
Shares of people who gave an answer. A group’s column is left blank in waves where its effective sample is under 50; hover for exact shares.
| 56% |
| 16% |
| 22% |
| 4% |
| 1% |
| 8264 |
| ±1 |
| Lower income | 53% | 16% | 23% | 6% | 3% | 2800 | ±3 |
| Middle income | 57% | 16% | 22% | 5% | 1% | 2622 | ±3 |
| Upper income | 58% | 16% | 22% | 4% | 1% | 2549 | ±2 |
ANES 2020 Time Series Study · US citizens 18+ (face-to-face samples: contiguous 48 states and DC; web samples: 50 states and DC). Shares of people who gave an answer. n is unweighted; ± is the 95% margin of error at 50% from the weighted effective sample. Groups with an effective sample under 50 are grayed; under 20, hidden.