You’ve probably seen it floating around your social feed or mentioned in a heated political thread. The charles murray bubble quiz. It’s that 25-question checklist that supposedly tells you if you're a "snob" or if you actually know what a "real" American life looks like.
People get weirdly defensive about it. Or weirdly proud. Honestly, both reactions are kinda missing the point.
The quiz isn't really a test of your character, even if it feels like one when you're clicking "no" to whether you've ever lived in a small town. It’s a sociological mirror. It was designed to measure how thick the "bubble" is around the new American upper class—a group of people who are increasingly living, working, and marrying only each other.
Where This Thing Actually Came From
Charles Murray, a libertarian scholar at the American Enterprise Institute, dropped this quiz in his 2012 book Coming Apart: The State of White America, 1960–2010. He wasn't just trying to be a provocateur (though he’s good at that). He was trying to illustrate a massive shift in how the U.S. is structured.
Back in the 1960s, a doctor and a plumber might have lived on the same street, watched the same TV shows, and gone to the same VFW hall. Today? Not so much.
Murray’s argument is that the "New Upper Class" has essentially seceded into "Super-ZIPs." These are places where everyone has a degree from a top-tier university, everyone drinks the same $7 lattes, and nobody knows anyone who works on a factory floor. The charles murray bubble quiz was his way of letting people prove to themselves just how isolated they’ve become.
The Questions That Make You Squirm
The quiz doesn't ask about your politics. It asks about your life. It’s less about who you vote for and more about what’s in your fridge.
Some of the questions feel like a personal attack if you’ve spent your whole life in a city. For example:
- Have you ever worked a job that caused something to hurt at the end of the day?
- Can you identify a field of Branson, Missouri, or NASCAR?
- Have you ever lived for at least a year in a neighborhood where most of your neighbors didn't have college degrees?
- How many times in the last year have you eaten at an Applebee’s, Denny’s, or IHOP?
If you’re cringing because you haven't stepped foot in a Denny's since 2009, you're exactly who Murray is talking to.
Breaking Down the Scores
The scoring is pretty straightforward, but the implications are heavy.
💡 You might also like: Wait, When Is Halfway Through the Year? The Math Most People Get Wrong
A high score—say, above a 65—means your bubble is thin. You likely grew up in a working-class or middle-class environment, or you’ve made a conscious effort to live outside the elite enclaves. You understand the cultural touchstones of "mainstream" America.
A low score (below 20) means you are essentially living in a cultural vacuum. Murray found that the average score in elite enclaves like Manhattan or Silicon Valley often hovers between 12 and 25. Compare that to the national average of about 44.
| Score Range | What It Typically Means |
|---|---|
| 0–10 | You grew up in an elite bubble and never left. You probably think "The Big Bang Theory" is a documentary. |
| 11–40 | You're likely a first-generation member of the upper-middle class. You have some roots, but the bubble is thickening. |
| 41–80 | You’ve got a foot in both worlds. You probably know what a "flyover state" actually looks like from the ground. |
| 81–100 | Your bubble is nonexistent. You are the mainstream. |
The "White America" Caveat
It’s important to be real about what this quiz is and isn't. Murray explicitly stated that the quiz is designed to measure "mainstream white America."
Why? Because his book focused on the divergence within the white population. Critics have rightly pointed out that this makes the quiz a bit of a relic. It doesn't really account for the complex bubbles that exist in minority communities or the unique cultural markers of a diverse, 21st-century America.
If you’re a person of color living in a major city, your "bubble" might look entirely different than what Murray’s questions are fishing for. The quiz is a tool of its time and its specific focus.
Why We Should Still Care in 2026
You might think a 14-year-old quiz is irrelevant. You'd be wrong.
📖 Related: Another Word for Taller: Why We Keep Getting These Synonyms Wrong
If anything, the bubbles have only gotten thicker. Algorithms now curate our news, our friends, and our shopping habits. We don't just live in different ZIP codes; we live in different digital realities.
The charles murray bubble quiz serves as a low-tech reminder that your personal experience is not the universal experience. When we lose the ability to understand why someone would choose a Waffle House over a farm-to-table bistro, we lose the ability to govern ourselves. Empathy requires shared context. Without that context, the "other side" doesn't just look different—they look alien.
How to Actually Use Your Results
So you took the quiz and got a 14. Now what? Don't go out and buy a truck just to feel "authentic." That’s performative and honestly a bit condescending.
The real value is in the awareness. If your score is low, it’s a signal to diversify your inputs. Read local news from a town you've never visited. Talk to the people who keep your city running—the mechanics, the janitors, the bus drivers—not as "subjects" of a study, but as neighbors.
Actionable Steps to Pop the Bubble:
- Change Your Media Diet: If you only read the New York Times or watch MSNBC, try spending a week reading a regional paper from the Midwest or the South. See what their local concerns are.
- Travel Differently: Next time you go on a trip, skip the "top-rated" tourist spots. Go to a local diner. Walk through a neighborhood that isn't highlighted in a travel blog.
- Check Your Assumptions: When you hear a political or social opinion that sounds "crazy" to you, ask yourself: "What life experience would make this opinion make sense?"
The bubble isn't a cage unless you refuse to look through the glass. Knowing your score on the charles murray bubble quiz is just the first step in realizing there’s a whole lot of country outside your front door.
Take the quiz today by looking up the original PBS NewsHour version or finding the text in Coming Apart. Don't worry about the "grade"—worry about what the questions are telling you about the world you’re missing.