According to a new report from the Federal Reserve Bank of New York, American consumers and businesses paid most of the cost of tariffs introduced by Donald Trump through late 2025. The study shows 90% of the import tax burden was carried by U.S. consumers.
In September 2024, while promoting the tariffs, Trump told supporters, “It’s not going to be a cost to you, it’s going to be a cost to another country.” Despite his previous assurance that the financial burden would fall on foreign countries, the new study showed the opposite.
Trump: We’re going to be a tariff nation. It’s not going to be a cost to you, it’s going to be a cost to another country pic.twitter.com/11XnGZjneM
— Acyn (@Acyn) September 7, 2024
The findings further showed how tariffs, which are taxes placed on imported goods, often increase prices for local buyers. This has led several economists to argue that tariffs usually raise costs for companies that import and people who buy those goods.
Meanwhile, a report from the Tax Foundation estimated that Trump tariffs increased taxes by about $1,000 per U.S. household in 2025. Further, it is expected that this number might rise to around $1,300 in 2026, making it the largest tax increase in the United States since 1993.
Naturally, this completely counters the promise made by Trump while initiating this tariff policy in the U.S. While he promised his plan would not cost American families money, the new research challenges that statement.
The New York Fed study also found that by August 2025, 94% of tariff costs were passed on to American companies and consumers. Although the rate slightly dropped to 86% in November, citizens are still paying most of the cost.
#TrumpAffordabilityDisaster Donald Trump promised to lower prices on day one. He lied.
Instead, his tariff system, which amounts to salestax costs us all more money. pic.twitter.com/1jt3mxgtPT
— Pat Fuller #KeeperOfTheFlame 🔥 🟧🟦☮️ (@bannerite) February 13, 2026
In fact, researchers have concluded that if this policy continues, U.S. firms and buyers will keep carrying the main financial burden of the tariffs. Even economist Wayne Winegarden from the Pacific Research Institute confirmed the same, stating, “U.S. consumers and businesses pay most of the costs from the Trump tariffs”.
According to Winegarden, tariffs mainly act as taxes on domestic businesses and shoppers. Further, the National Bureau of Economic Research also showed that tariffs increased inflation. A November research found tariffs added about 0.7% points to U.S. inflation in late 2025.
Due to this inflation, household furnishings and supplies rose nearly 4% between January 2025 and January 2026, with bedding prices increasing around 4%, and dishes and flatware at about 5%. So it seems that despite Trump’s promise, most of the burden is being carried by the U.S.
In the end, although part of the tariff cost reaches final shoppers directly, with companies absorbing most of the costs, it still affects wages, investments, and product prices over time. So now, it seems, tariffs remain a major factor shaping prices and economic conditions in the U.S.
