Americans Hate This Accent—Even the Ones Who Have It

The New York accent may be iconic, but apparently, it’s also incredibly irritating—at least according to most Americans.

A new survey by AI voice platform Podcastle found that nearly 60% of respondents find the New York accent annoying. And in a twist of brutal self-awareness, 45% of New Yorkers agree.

It’s the accent behind the classic “Hey! I’m walkin’ here!” energy—loud, fast, and impossible to miss. Whether it’s barking at a cab in Midtown or ordering a bacon, egg, and cheese “on a roll,” the New York accent has long been a cultural shorthand for attitude. But according to this new survey, most Americans aren’t charmed. They’re cringing.

Only 10% of people said they trust someone with a New York accent. Compare that to the Southern drawl—which respondents found 256% more trustworthy and 232% more appealing—and the regional gap becomes clearer. British accents were the overall favorite, with nearly half of listeners on TikTok associating them with calmness and credibility.

Survey Finds Most Americans Hate the New York Accent—Even New Yorkers

“How we speak and how others hear us can shape everything from trust to how we connect emotionally,” said a spokesperson from Podcastle. “This survey shows just how much accents matter.”

Michael Newman, a linguistics professor at Queens College, says the classic NYC accent is evolving. “Some of the features that have been traditionally associated with New York City English are diminishing,” he told Fox News. “What’s being lost is the final ‘R.’ You get in the ‘caw’ and you go to the ‘baw.’ It’s now ‘car’ and ‘bar.’”

That shift isn’t just influencing how people hear each other—it’s confusing the robots, too. A study from Guide2Fluency found that AI assistants like Siri and Alexa struggle to understand the New York accent, ranking it among the hardest for voice-recognition systems to comprehend. Turns out, machines don’t speak “New Yawk,” either.

But despite the stats—and the side-eyes from other states—there’s still pride in the accent’s grit. “None of us as New Yorkers really want to sound like we are from somewhere else,” Newman added.

So while the world may prefer its audio content in a polite Southern drawl or a soothing British murmur, the New York accent remains what it’s always been: loud, polarizing, and unapologetically itself.