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New York Fed: Americans Paid 90% Of Tariff Costs In 2025

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Published Feb 12, 2026
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A grocery bag with a red dollar sign contains bread, lettuce, bananas, eggs, wine, and packaged foods on a kitchen counter—highlighting the tariff costs Americans face daily. "BriefsFinance" logo appears in the corner.
Summary:
  • Americans paid the price. U.S. businesses and consumers covered nearly 90% of tariff costs in 2025, not foreign companies.
  • Your wallet took a hit. The average household paid $1,000 extra in 2025, climbing to $1,300 in 2026.
  • Revenue's way up. The government collected $287 billion in tariffs for 2025, nearly triple the previous year.

The New York Fed just dropped a report and it turns out American businesses and consumers paid nearly 90% of tariff costs in 2025.

They also broke it down month by month. From January through August, U.S. importers ate 94% of the cost. By November it "improved" to 86%.

The Real Cost Per Household

Here's where it hits home. The Tax Foundation crunched household numbers and found tariffs cost the average American family $1,000 in 2025.

That number's climbing to $1,300 in 2026 if nothing changes.

Taxes are around the corner - your tax refund might go up a grand, but tariffs already took it back.

How Big Did Tariffs Get?

The average U.S. tariff rate jumped from under 3% to 13% in 2025. That's the highest rate since 1946.

The government collected $287 billion in tariff revenue for 2025, up 192% from the previous year.

And the money keeps rolling in. Through January 2026, the year-to-date total hit $124 billion, up 304% from the same period in fiscal 2025.

What The White House Says

The administration's position? Foreign companies pay most of it.

White House spokesperson Kush Desai told CBS News that tariff rates went up nearly sevenfold while "inflation has cooled and corporate profits have increased".

The New York Fed report says otherwise.

The Supreme Court Wild Card

None of this might even stick. The Supreme Court's about to rule on whether Trump had the legal authority to impose these tariffs under emergency powers law.

If the Court strikes them down? The government could owe businesses $168 billion in refunds.

Until then, you're still paying.

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