Half of Americans suffer from ‘kitchen envy’, survey says

Nine in 10 Americans said their kitchen should be “more beautiful than any other room” in their home, according to a new study.

The survey of 2,000 American adults found that a large majority believe the heart of their home should be superior to the other rooms, and half admit to experiencing “kitchen envy” when they see a kitchen that’s nicer than theirs.

Those who see green said they get jealous when they see a favorite kitchen layout (61%) and high-end appliances (44%).

These findings mean that those with kitchen envy want better quality appliances for their homes. One in five (22%) believe that the quality of their kitchen appliances has a major impact on their ability to host and entertain guests in their homes.

Specifically, the study found that 42% of Americans have a new refrigerator at the top of their kitchen envy “wish list,” and 55% said a refrigerator with plenty of storage space was ” the first must-have” for their dream kitchens.

Commissioned by Thermador and conducted by Talker Research, the study found that one in four are likely to eavesdrop on their friends and family’s kitchen (25%), with 69% of snoopers repeating what they observe to improve their view .

Another 36% have also gone through someone else’s fridge to see what food they buy or how things are organized.

Of all generations, Gen Zers were found to be the most likely to track down a friend or family member’s kitchen (36%) and their refrigerator (57%).

The survey identified a potential source of people’s envy: 18% of people said they are too embarrassed to show off their kitchen, but 59% of them would be more likely to show it off if it looked like a kitchen their dreams.

In fact, seven in 10 said that if they had unlimited funds, creating their “dream kitchen” would be among the first expenses, and refrigerators were the appliance most people would be willing to spend the most money on for their dream kitchen (42 %).

Knowing storage is important, four in five (83%) said having an organized fridge was important to them and 55% have either taken part in, or are currently taking part in ‘frigorscaping’ – rearranging items in their fridge to curate a visually stunning display. .

Some respondents even mentioned what they would be willing to sacrifice to achieve their dream kitchen: 33% would go without food for an entire year, 21% would go without a vacation for a decade, and 18% would willingly come across alerts for their favorite TV. shows and movies.

“The kitchen is the central space in the home, and homeowners aspire to create an environment that reflects personal taste and lifestyle,” notes Beatriz Sandoval, at Thermador. “Appliances designed to inspire, with innovative features and luxurious design, offer our consumers the opportunity to create a kitchen they’ll love – one that inspires envy and showcases their individuality.”

The research also revealed where people get their kitchen inspiration from: many get information from their friends and family (31%), TV and movies (30%), magazines (26%) and social media platforms (25%). At the top of the platforms were Facebook (61%) and YouTube (60%).

Gen Z stood out from the rest of the generations, preferring to get culinary inspiration from YouTube (67%) more than any other social media platform.

The younger buying power was also found to be more likely to be inspired by celebrity homes than any other generation (25%, compared to millennials (20%), Gen X (14%), baby boomers (9%) and The Silent Generation (3%).

Survey methodology:

Talker Research surveyed 2,000 Americans of the general population; The survey was commissioned by Thermador and administered and conducted online by Talker Research between September 12 and September 16, 2024.