Americans are overwhelmingly rejecting President Donald Trump’s insistence that prices are dropping and inflation is barely a factor—a disconnect that drags down his standing on the economy, polls show.
There’s a stark gap between the White House’s glossy economic language and what respondents say they are living through, the CBS News/YouGov found.
Trump has been claiming prices are down, that there is “almost no inflation,” and that everything is more or less fine. Most Americans—60 percent—say he describes prices and inflation as better than they really are, including four in 10 Republicans.
Ratings for the overall economy slid again, hitting the lowest mark of 2025, with most respondents saying prices are still going up. Only 32 percent think the economy is good, compared to 35 percent at the start of the month and highs of 39 percent in May and July.
A majority, 58 percent, also say Trump’s policies are making the cost of food and groceries rise. Just 31 percent think they’ve stayed the same, and 11 percent believe Trump’s message that things are cheaper. A whopping 65 percent say the president’s policies are making prices soar. Just 21 said they have no effect, while a measly 14 think Trump’s work has helped prices go down.
That sour mood continues to weigh heavily on his numbers.
Americans who judge the president primarily on his handling of the economy and inflation overwhelmingly say he is not spending enough time on those issues. A vast 77 percent were critical, 18 percent think he’s hitting the right balance, while five percent say he’s spending too much time on the economy.
His approval ratings on the economy and inflation have been falling for months, and both hit new lows in the latest survey: 36 percent, down from a 51 percent high in March. More than two-thirds disapprove of his handling of inflation. Sixty-four percent disapprove of his work on the economy overall. Sixty percent disapprove of his overall job performance.
Independents, in particular, have pushed his economic ratings to their lowest point of the year, helping drive his broader approval to a low for his second term after a steady months-long slide.
A Marquette University Law School poll conducted Nov. 5-12 found voters brushing off Trump’s upbeat claims about grocery prices. “Our groceries are way down. Everything is way down,” Trump said on Nov. 6. He reiterated that “groceries are way down, other than beef,” and later claimed prices were “already at a much lower level than they were with the last administration.”
Just 12 percent of Americans said grocery prices have gone down over the last six months, according to the poll, while 75 percent said they have risen. Average grocery prices were up roughly 1.4 percent in September compared to when Trump took office in January, and the one-month 0.6 percent jump from July to August was the largest in three years.
Even among Republicans, only two in ten echoed Trump’s version of events. Most said prices are higher.
A Fox News poll released earlier this month showed similar skepticism. In the survey conducted Nov. 14-17, 85 percent of registered voters said grocery prices are higher than a year ago, with 60 percent saying they have “increased a lot.” Around two-thirds or more said utilities, healthcare, and housing costs were also up. (“A year ago” includes two months before Trump took office, though voters likely interpreted the question as referring mainly to his presidency.)
The White House has been contacted for comment.
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