The Personal Financial Satisfaction Index (PFSi): What your Favorite Orange County Bookkeeper Thinks You Should Know

toa-psfi500

Patty Hansen

How happy are you with your financial situation right now?  In other words, do you feel personal financial pleasure or pain when it comes to your financial standing?

That is what the Personal Financial Satisfaction Index strives to measure for the typical American.

The PFSi is a quarterly economic indicator created by the American Institute of CPAs. This specific economic indicator weighs a variety of economic factors to calculate the financial standing of a typical American. These financial standings are only computed at a high level.

The main agenda of the PFSi is to calculate the difference between two component subindexes: the Personal Financial Pleasure Index and the Personal Financial Pain Index.  These two subindexes are each created of four, equally weighted proprietary and public factors, which ultimately measure the growth of assets and opportunities in the case of the Pleasure Index, as well as the erosion of assets and opportunities in the case of the Pain Index.

In other words, positive scores of the PFSi indicate that Americans are feeling personal financial pleasure. Negative scores, obviously, indicate that Americans are feeling personal financial pain. It might sound like a subjective emotional measure, but it’s not at all; it’s based on government statistics as well as proprietary AICPA data.

The PFSi has been mostly increasing from the third quarter of 2011 to the fourth quarter of 2019. Since then it has dropped dramatically. With the current pandemic still in place, unemployment and other economic factors have contributed to the drop in the index.  You can use the score as a measure against your own financial security and for planning purposes.

Read more about the index here: THIS LINK IS NOT AVAILABLE ANYMORE

Or reach out to your favorite Orange County Bookkeeper and we’ll be happy to answer any questions.

The Personal Financial Satisfaction Index (PFSi) Sign up for our newsletter: https://teamoneaccounting.com/

Categories:

Related Posts

Navigating Year-End Generosity as a Small Business Owner

By Charlotte Van Dyck | Dec 17, 2025

By: Charlotte Van Dyck The holidays are a wonderful time to show appreciation, spread goodwill, and celebrate the relationships that keep your business moving forward. From employee gifts and bonuses to appreciation of clients and charitable giving, year-end generosity has both an emotional and a financial impact. When planned correctly, many of these seasonal expenses…

Read More

Closing the Year Strong: How Holiday Decisions Impact Your Financial Reports and Taxes

By Charlotte Van Dyck | Dec 11, 2025

By: Charlotte Van Dyck The financial decisions you make during the holiday season don’t just affect December. They shape your year-end financial statements and your tax return. Increased spending on marketing, payroll, equipment, gifts, and events directly impacts your profit, taxable income, and cash flow. Seasonal promotions and advertising often drive revenue growth, but they…

Read More

Giving Thanks: Celebrating the Season of Gratitude as a Small Business Owner

By Charlotte Van Dyck | Nov 20, 2025

By: Charlotte Van Dyck As the year winds down and Thanksgiving approaches, it’s the perfect time for small business owners to pause and reflect. Not just on profits and goals, but on the people and partnerships that make their success possible. The giving season offers more than a chance to say, “thank you.” It’s an…

Read More