Most people don’t know how tariffs work (and some even admit that)

The Ipsos Consumer Tracker asks Americans questions about culture, the economy and the forces that shape our lives. Here's one thing we learned this week.

Why we asked: One of the most vocal promises President Trump made on the campaign trail, and since the election, is that he will levy a wide range of tariffs on allies and rival economies alike. This has economists and other world leaders nervous. “To me,” Trump told an audience at the Economic Club of Chicago, “the most beautiful word in the dictionary is tariff. It’s my favorite word. It needs a public relations firm.”

What we found: Looks like he’s right about the PR firm. Yes, a plurality (45%) of Americans correctly answered that tariffs, “Tariffs are taxes imposed by a country on goods and services imported from another country, paid by the importer, often leading to higher prices for consumers.” But that means that a majority were either wrong (31%) or just said they didn’t know (23%). A majority of Democrats (65%) got the question right, but only 35% of Republicans did.

Beyond that, most people think tariffs will increase prices. Read more on that here.

More insights from this wave of the Ipsos Consumer Tracker:

The holidays are making us happy, joyful and stressed

Most think tariffs will increase prices, but aren’t doing anything about it

Our outlook keeps improving

Here’s what we resolve for 2025

37 questions for 2025

The Ipsos Care-o-Meter: What does America know about vs. what does America care about?