A new YouGov survey on crying asked Americans where they’ve cried, what situations are most likely to make them cry, and how recently they’ve cried. Women are more likely than men to have cried in many places, and are far more likely to say they’ve cried within the last day.
Nearly all (89%) Americans say they’ve cried at home. Majorities have cried at a funeral (75%) and in their car (62%). Many have cried while in a movie theater (42%), at school (38%), at a place of worship (37%), and at their workplace (35%).
The places Americans are least likely to have cried — among 14 places included in the survey — are at a sporting event (5%) or on public transportation (9%).
Women are more likely than men to have cried in nearly all places included in the survey. Among the largest gender gaps: 47% of men and 76% of women have cried in their car. 21% of men and 49% of women have cried at their workplace. 14% of men and 42% of women have cried at a wedding.
When do Americans say they’d be most likely to cry? About three-quarters (72%) say they would be very likely to cry when experiencing the death of a loved one; 57% would be very likely to cry when experiencing the death of a pet. Around one-third of Americans say they would be very likely to cry when experiencing each of the following: feeling extremely sad (36%), saying goodbye to a loved one ahead of a long separation (36%), or chopping onions (31%).
The circumstances in which the smallest shares of Americans are very likely to shed a tear — among the list of 22 asked about — are feeling embarrassed (5% say they’d be very likely to cry), feeling extremely happy (11%), or listening to sad music (11%).
Women are more likely than men to say they’d be very likely to cry in nearly all of the circumstances included in the survey question. The gender gaps are largest on saying goodbye to a loved one ahead of a long separation (22% of men and 48% of women say they’d be very likely to cry when experiencing this) and feeling overwhelmed or stressed (8% vs. 34%).
Most Americans (57%) have cried within the last month, including 16% who most recently cried within the last day and 24% within the last week. 24% of women and 7% of men have cried within the last day.
After crying, how do Americans typically feel? 41% say they regularly feel sad after crying. 37% regularly feel exhausted, 25% feel refreshed, and 22% feel vulnerable. Women are more likely than men to regularly feel exhausted (49% vs. 23%) or sad (47% vs. 36%) after crying.
Adults under 30 are more likely than older Americans to regularly feel vulnerable (31% vs. 19%) or numb (27% vs. 13%) after crying.
46% of Americans — including 55% of men and 38% of women — think they cry less often than most people. 23% of Americans say they cry much less often.
22% of Americans think they cry more often than most other people, including 8% who think they cry much more often than other people. 11% of women and 4% of men think they cry much more often than other people.
The good news is, unless you’re the president or a politician, at least 70% of Americans think it’s always or usually acceptable for you to cry in public.
Americans are especially accepting of crying if it's coming from women or girls. 59% of Americans say it’s always acceptable for girls to cry in public and 31% say it’s usually acceptable. 52% say it’s always acceptable for adult women to cry in public and 35% think it’s usually acceptable. 51% say it’s always acceptable for female athletes to cry in public and 30% say it’s usually acceptable.
14% of Americans say when they feel like crying, they always try to hold it back. 26% say they usually try to hold it back, 33% sometimes do, 13% rarely do, and 6% never do.
Related:
- Most Americans are OK with men crying in public
- How and why do American couples argue?
- What do Americans think are the keys to a successful relationship?
See the results for this YouGov survey
— Carl Bialik and Taylor Orth contributed to this article
Methodology: This article includes results from an online survey conducted March 19 - 22, 2025 among 1,161 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, 32% Republican). The margin of error for the overall sample is approximately 4%.
Image: Getty
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