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The U.S. Economy by Numbers

Can you answer these multiple choice questions about the American economy?
Quiz by Quizmaster
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Last updated: December 5, 2020
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First submittedJanuary 30, 2019
Times taken10,850
Average score46.7%
Rating4.00
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1. What has been the approximate annual rate of inflation since the year 2000?
-3%
2%
7%
15%
2. About what percentage of American workers work in agriculture?
< 2%
9%
19%
3. About what percentage of American workers work in manufacturing?
8%
27%
54%
81%
4. About what percent of the U.S. GDP is spent on health care?
3%
9%
18%
Despite spending by far the most of any country, the U.S. is not in the top 30 countries in life expectancy
5. About how much money did the federal government spend in 2019?
$44 billion
$930 trillion
$4.4 trillion
$93 trillion
6. What is the highest federal income tax bracket as of 2019?
17%
37%
57%
77%
7. About what percentage of federal income taxes are paid by the 1% highest earners?
< 1%
4%
10%
40%
8. What was the average rent for a one-bedroom apartment in San Francisco in January 2019?
$791 / month
$1,541 / month
$3,261 / month
∞ / month
9. What is the national minimum wage?
There isn't one
$7.25 / hour
$10.20 / hour
$15.00 / hour
10. About what percent of the U.S. government debt is held by China?
0%
4%
49%
90%
Most of the debt is held within the United States, much of it by the Federal Reserve
11. What was the approximate median household income in 2019?
$14,000
$39,000
$66,000
$117,000
12. What was the average price for a gallon of whole milk in 2018?
$3.28
$5.28
$8.28
13. What was the largest part of the U.S. federal budget in 2019?
Social Security
Military
Foreign aid
Interest on the debt
14. True or false. The U.S. exports more than it imports.
True
False
The U.S. has a gigantic trade deficit. Every year, it imports more than $500 billion more than its exports.
15. Which of the following investments has had the highest rate of return since 1950?
Savings account in the bank
Gold
Stocks
Stocks have outperformed nearly every class of investment by a huge amount
+15
Level 88
Jan 30, 2019
$3261/month? What the hell?
+21
Level 72
Jan 30, 2019
Gotta pay extra to have hobo poop and pee cleaned up out front every day.
+8
Level 88
Jan 30, 2019
Funny, that's what those of us who live in SF say.
+15
Level 48
Feb 6, 2019
Absolutely insane... I live in Finland, and with that money you can get a brand new 3 bedroom apartment with an ocean view terrace, sauna and from the heart of Helsinki, which already is by far the most expensive city here to live in. But to get a small one-bedroom apartment for that... it's crazy.
+1
Level 65
Feb 6, 2019
You're one to talk. Finland is stupid expensive.
+15
Level 65
Feb 6, 2019
@Elan, he agrees with you that Finland is expensive. You should read his comment.
+2
Level 70
Jan 7, 2021
they should build more houses
+1
Level 67
Jan 8, 2021
I picked infinity, and imo at this point that should be accepted as a correct answer.
+1
Level 73
Jan 30, 2019
only got the new max tax rate wrong ... haven't done taxes since they changed
+12
Level 82
Feb 6, 2019
This was a tough quiz. Aside from the "infinity dollars per month" most of these answers were at least within the realm of what could be reasonable. But I did better than I thought when I hit submit.
+22
Level 86
Feb 6, 2019
Same for me, except for the "I did better than I thought" part.
+1
Level 93
Aug 21, 2019
Logically the only way it could be infinity on average is if there are 0 one bedroom apartments. Possible but highly unlikely, so I ignored it too.
+1
Level 74
Jan 6, 2021
$8 for a gallon of milk is reasonable??
+1
Level 68
Jan 7, 2021
Right? I can usually get it for around $2.00 a gallon if I watch for sales. (If you're shopping for organic milk, that's a different story!)
+7
Level 65
Feb 6, 2019
Multiple choice is a fun change of pace!
+1
Level 63
Feb 6, 2019
Agreed! We should have more quizzes with this format!
+3
Level 48
Feb 13, 2019
The infinity per month rent made me laugh.
+3
Level 84
Sep 9, 2019
Good quiz. Several of these are items where the general public are woefully misinformed or uninformed about.
+2
Level 73
Jan 6, 2021
Darn, only got 3
+2
Level 43
Jan 6, 2021
Great quiz. Brings truth to a lot of misconceptions
+4
Level 71
Jan 6, 2021
Wow, I only got 8 right and that's still above 70% of quiz takers. Really puts into perspective how much catchy headlines, political talking points, and social media warp our sense of reality.
+2
Level 70
Jan 6, 2021
the agriculture question was very surprising to me
+1
Level 78
Jan 6, 2021
One of the few I was sure about.
+2
Level 79
Jan 7, 2021
I'm Malaysian and have never been to the U.S. before; got 7/15. I don't have a good concept on economics.
+1
Level 66
Jan 7, 2021
I'm from the US and got the same score. I need to study economics more.
+1
Level 84
Jan 7, 2021
The federal government only spent $4.4 trillion in 2019? In 2020 the deficit alone was $3.8 trillion!
+1
Level 52
Jan 8, 2021
Yeah, pandemics and recessions tend to do that
+1
Level 78
Jan 9, 2021
Perhaps a fitting accompanying quiz by me.
+1
Level 56
Jan 11, 2021
What does USA spend so much on for healthcare? COnsidering it is not free?
+3
Level 88
Jan 26, 2021
Substantial profit every step of the way, including private insurance of course.
+1
Level 82
Sep 25, 2023
For many Americans, their healthcare is heavily subsidized by the federal government. The meme that you've been sold regarding an average American paying $700,000 out of pocket for a band-aid at the hospital is an American-bashing lie. This is the "price" an insurance company pays, or the federal government for those who do not have insurance, through programs like medicare and medicaid. This isn't an endorsement of the American system, but an attempt to clear up an infuriating misconception which non-Americans repeat ad nauseam and many Americans love to encourage.

No downvotes on this site, sorry guys.