---
title: "Luxury to Necessity and Back Again"
description: "Less than half of Americans consider the microwave a necessity, down from 68% in 2006."
date: "2009-06-15"
authors:
  - name: "Russell Heimlich"
    job_title: "Former web developer"
    link: "https://www.pewresearch.org/staff/russell-heimlich/"
url: "https://www.pewresearch.org/short-reads/2009/06/15/luxury-to-necessity-and-back-again/"
---

# Luxury to Necessity and Back Again

When the question was first asked in 1996, only about a third of Americans considered the microwave a necessity. A decade later, most Americans couldn’t live without one — 68% called the microwave a necessity, a 36-point jump in 10 years. But just three years and a recession later, many have returned to a more retro view of their kitchens; fewer than half (47%) now say the microwave is a necessity. A similar fate has met what once were can’t-live-without products such as home air conditioning, dishwasher and clothes dryer, all of which have seen double-digit drops in the number of Americans calling them a necessity post-recession. Even the mighty television saw a considerable drop in luxury-necessity perception. Only 52% currently consider TV a necessity, the smallest share since this question was first asked more than 35 years ago. [Read More](https://www.pewresearch.org/pubs/1199/more-items-seen-as-luxury-not-necessity)