Americans are becoming less likely to see gas cars as cheaper to buy and maintain than electric cars

A new YouGov survey asks how Americans view electric cars, gas cars, and alternative modes of transportation such as bikes and electric scooters.

Majorities of Americans say that compared to electric cars, gas cars are louder (76%), cheaper to buy (68%), and more powerful (58%).

Americans are more likely to say electric cars are better for the environment than gas cars (56% vs. 13%), more likely to be driven by people who are politically liberal (54% vs. 7%), and more energy efficient (53% vs. 19%).

Republicans are much more likely than Democrats to say that compared with electric cars, gas cars are a better investment (64% vs. 19%), more reliable (71% vs. 32%), safer to operate (54% vs. 22%), and more affordable to maintain (66% vs. 34%).

Democrats are more likely than Republicans to say that compared to gas cars, electric cars are better for the environment (77% vs. 41%) and more energy-efficient (76% vs. 41%).

The share of Americans who believe gas cars are cheaper to buy than electric ones has fallen to 68% from 76% in November 2025. Americans are also less likely now to say gas cars are more affordable to maintain (47% now vs. 58% in November).

In September 2024, a higher percentage of Americans (44%) said gas cars were safer to operate than electric ones.

71% of Americans currently own a gas or diesel vehicle; far fewer own hybrid (6%), electric (3%), or plug-in hybrid vehicles (2%).

41% of Americans say they would consider buying a hybrid vehicle and 40% say they would not consider buying one. 39% would consider buying an electric vehicle and 49% say they would not consider buying one. 37% of Americans say they would consider buying a plug-in hybrid vehicle and 52% say they would not consider buying one.

Democrats are more likely than Republicans to say they would consider buying an electric vehicle (55% vs. 24%), a hybrid vehicle (52% vs. 33%), and a plug-in hybrid (51% vs. 24%).

Six in 10 Americans (60%) — including 77% of Democrats and 48% of Republicans — say they would strongly or somewhat support the U.S. government providing financial incentives for Americans to purchase bicycles. 60% would support the government offering incentives for the purchase of small vehicles and 54% would support incentives for electric bikes and scooters. Around half of Americans would support the government incentivizing purchases of each of electric vehicles (49%) and gas or diesel vehicles (49%). About one-third are opposed to incentives for each (34% and 35%, respectively).

One-third (33%) of Americans would support the U.S. government providing incentives for the purchase of large vehicles; 45% say they would oppose this.

38% of Americans say that if they had to choose between the government expanding the use of electric cars or alternatives to driving — such as public transportation, bicycles, and walking — they would choose the alternatives. About half as many (17%) think the government should focus more on expanding the use of electric vehicles. 27% — including 8% of Democrats and 50% of Republicans — say neither.

40% of Americans say they support setting standards for automakers that are intended to lead them to produce fewer gas vehicles and more electric vehicles. About as many (37%) are opposed.

Among Republicans, 44% strongly oppose this — about twice the share of Democrats (21%).

How much do Americans think gasoline-powered cars and trucks contribute to climate change? 35% — including 63% of Democrats and 14% of Republicans — say they contribute a lot. Slightly more (44%) say they contribute a little, and only 12% say they don’t contribute at all.

In September 2022, fewer Democrats (55%) said gasoline-powered cars and trucks contribute a lot to climate change. Among Republicans, 44% said these vehicles contribute a little and 26% said they contribute nothing at all to climate change.

18% of Americans say that phasing out the production of new gasoline-powered cars and trucks would reduce climate change by a lot. Far more (50%) say it would do a little to end climate change. One-quarter (24%) of Americans say that it would have no impact in ending climate change. 7% of Democrats and 39% of Republicans hold this view.

— Carl Bialik contributed to this article

Methodology: This article includes results from an online survey conducted on March 30 - April 2, 2026 among 1,113 U.S. adult citizens. Respondents were selected from YouGov’s opt-in panel to be representative of adult U.S. citizens. The sample was weighted according to gender, age, race, education, 2024 presidential vote, 2020 election turnout and presidential vote, baseline party identification, and current voter registration status. 2024 presidential vote, at time of weighting, was estimated to be 48% Harris and 50% Trump. Demographic weighting targets come from the 2019 American Community Survey. Baseline party identification is the respondent’s most recent answer given around November 8, 2024, and is weighted to the estimated distribution at that time (31% Democratic, 33% Republican). The margin of error for the overall sample is approximately 4 percentage points.

Image: Getty (3alexd)

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