Drawing on a nationally representative survey (n = 1,013) conducted from December 11 – 22, 2024, this report describes Americans’Throughout this report, we use the term “Americans” to refer to adults (18+) who reside in the United States (the 50 states plus the District of Columbia). beliefs and attitudes about global warming. Among the key findings in this report:
Global Warming Beliefs
- Americans who think global warming is happening outnumber those who think it is not happening by a ratio of more than 5 to 1 (73% versus 14%).
- 60% of Americans understand that global warming is mostly human-caused. By contrast, 28% think it is caused mostly by natural changes in the environment.
- 57% of Americans understand that most scientists think global warming is happening. By contrast, 21% think there is a lot of disagreement among scientists about whether it is happening.
Worry About Global Warming
- 64% of Americans say they are at least “somewhat worried” about global warming. This includes 28% who say they are “very worried.”
Perceived Risks and Impacts of Global Warming
- 48% of Americans think people in the United States are being harmed by global warming “right now,” and 49% say they have personally experienced the effects of global warming.
- Majorities of Americans think global warming will harm plant and animal species (70%), the world’s poor (68%), people in developing countries (68%), people in the United States (63%), people in their community (53%), and their family (51%). Many also think they themselves (46%) will be harmed.
- 11% of Americans have considered moving to avoid the impacts of global warming.
- 66% of Americans think global warming is affecting weather in the United States, including 35% who think weather is being affected “a lot.”
- Majorities of Americans think global warming is affecting many environmental problems in the United States, including extreme heat (77%), wildfiresNote: This survey was conducted before the January 2025 wildfires in the greater Los Angeles area. (74%), droughts (73%), flooding (72%), rising sea levels (71%), hurricanes (71%), air pollution (68%), water shortages (67%), reduced snowpack (65%), tornados (65%), water pollution (63%), electricity power outages (62%), and agricultural pests and diseases (61%).
- 56% of Americans think extreme weather poses either a “high” (16%) or “moderate” (40%) risk to their community over the next 10 years.
Harm from Local Environmental Problems
- Majorities of Americans say they are worried their local area might be harmed by environmental problems including air pollution (75%), electricity power outages (74%), water pollution (74%), droughts (70%), extreme heat (69%), agricultural pests and diseases (66%), flooding (61%), water shortages (61%), tornados (57%), and wildfiresNote: This survey was conducted before the January 2025 wildfires in the greater Los Angeles area. (55%). Many Americans are also worried their local area might be harmed by reduced snowpack (43%), hurricanes (42%), and rising sea levels (42%).
Personal and Social Engagement with Global Warming
- 62% of Americans say they “rarely” or “never” discuss global warming with family and friends, while 38% say they do so “occasionally” or “often.”
- 37% of Americans think it is at least “moderately” important to their family and friends that they take action to reduce global warming (an injunctive norm), and 36% say their family and friends make at least “a moderate amount of effort” to reduce global warming (a descriptive norm).
- 47% of Americans say they hear about global warming in the media about once a month or more frequently. Fewer say they hear about global warming on social media once a month or more often (27%) or that they hear people they know talk about global warming once a month or more frequently (20%).
- 65% of Americans say the issue of global warming is either “extremely,” “very,” or “somewhat” important to them personally, while 35% say it is either “not too” or “not at all” personally important.
- 31% of Americans say they have rewarded companies that are taking steps to reduce global warming by buying their products at least “once” in the past 12 months; 26% say they have punished companies that are opposing steps to reduce global warming by not buying their products at least “once.”