Burden Meter

Just dealt with a benefits office? Tell us how it went.

Two minutes, no name, nothing that points back to you. Your answers become a number for your county that offices and the people who fund them cannot get anywhere else: how hard it was to get help, in hours, trips, dollars, and how it felt.

Think about your most recent experience with that program, applying or renewing.

How difficult was it to find information about the program, such as how to apply or what you needed to do to renew?
How was the process of filling out the paperwork, providing proof (pay stubs, proof of address, birth certificates), and attending interviews?
During all of this, how frustrated did you feel?
How would you describe the experience overall?

What it cost you (optional, best guess)

We keep the answers and the county, and nothing else: no name, no email, no address, no cookie, no device id. Two surveys can never be tied to the same person. The first four questions are adapted from a validated scale by Jilke, Baekgaard, Herd and Moynihan (2024), published under a Creative Commons license.

Why this exists

Offices measure how many people they serve. Nobody measures what it cost the family.

Researchers call it administrative burden: the time to learn the rules, the paperwork and interviews, and the stress. It is why eligible families go without. Nexus Point collects it county by county, continuously, and reports it to the offices and funders who can change it. If you run an agency or a foundation and want the numbers for your county, write to us.