Americans’ confidence in both their employment outlook and financial future increased in September, the latest results of a national monthly survey by personal finance platform WalletHub released Friday reveal.
WalletHub’s Economic Index is based on a monthly survey that evaluates economic prospects based on 10 components of consumer sentiment regarding finances, purchasing plans and employment opportunities.
One component index gauges Americans’ confidence that they “will have a job 6 months from now.”
“People’s confidence in having a job in the next six months is higher (+3.5%) in September 2026 compared to last year (September 2025),” signaling that they have a “stronger sense of job security,” WalletHub reports.
Compared to August’s index, consumers’ confidence in their job status six months hence was up 11.6% in September.
The increase in employment optimism regarding the next six months suggests that the disappointing job numbers for September released Friday by the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics may be part of a short-lived slowdown in job growth.
Consumers’ confidence that their finances will improve, another component of the overall index, also rose in September. Here, consumers’ confidence that their finances will be better in six months increased 5.1% from August and 8.1% from September of 2025.
Taking all 10 component indices into account, the overall consumer sentiment index shows “consumers felt more confident about their financial outlook in September 2026,” WalletHub reports. September’s Economic Index was up 3.0% from August and 4.4% higher than it was 12 months earlier.
September’s results are a promising sign for businesses, as well as consumers, WalletHub Analyst Chip Lupo said in a statement:
“The over 4% increase in consumer sentiment over the past year is an encouraging sign that our economy is recovering from the damage it suffered as a result of the pandemic and inflation. People who have high financial confidence are likely to spend more money and reduce their debts, both of which are good for the economy as a whole.”
Indeed, small business confidence increased in the third quarter of this year (July-Sept.), the U.S. Chamber of Commerce reported earlier this week. "The small business economy remains remarkably steady," the Chamber’s Senior Vice President of Small Business Policy, Tom Sullivan, said, announcing results of the Chamber's survey.
Looking ahead, 62% of small business owners expect revenue to increase over the next year, 38% plan to increase investment and 36% anticipate adding staff.
