How hot do you like your food?
As hot as it comes22.5%
Properly spicy38.2%
A bit of heat26.5%
Barely any7.8%
None at all4.9%
38.2% answered "Properly spicy".
How much spice can people handle in USA?
Statistics from 204 accepted quiz answers*. Updated September 2026. How these statistics work
Asked "How hot do you like your food?" on the Sarahah quiz, the most common answer was "Properly spicy", chosen by 38.2% of 204 people in USA.
Where everyone lands
Low19.6%
Medium39.7%
High40.7%
40.7% of 204 people in USA scored high on the Sarahah Spicy food quiz.
Question by question
Ordering somewhere that asks how spicy you want it, what do you pick?
The hottest they have17.2%
One below the hottest24.5%
The middle option29.4%
Mild18.6%
Not spicy at all10.3%
29.4% answered "The middle option".
Hot sauce is on the table. Do you add it?
Always, before I even taste the food23.5%
Usually, after tasting33.8%
Sometimes27.5%
Never15.2%
33.8% answered "Usually, after tasting".
Have you ever eaten a chilli raw?
Yes, regularly26.5%
Yes, once or twice37.7%
No35.8%
37.7% answered "Yes, once or twice".
When food is hotter than you expected, what do you do?
Keep going, it passes27.9%
Slow down and finish it32.8%
Reach for a drink33.8%
Stop eating it5.4%
33.8% answered "Reach for a drink".
What do you actually enjoy about it?
The heat itself9.8%
The flavour that comes with it45.6%
Both equally29.9%
Neither, I just tolerate it7.8%
I don't enjoy spicy food6.9%
45.6% answered "The flavour that comes with it".
What do you reach for when it is too much?
Water56.4%
Milk or yoghurt21.6%
Bread or rice6.9%
Nothing, I wait it out15.2%
56.4% answered "Water".
Has your tolerance changed over the years?
Gone up a lot27%
Gone up a little34.3%
Stayed the same26.5%
Gone down12.3%
34.3% answered "Gone up a little".
* Everyone here chose to take the quiz, and no answers are weighted to match a real population. Each question counts only the people who answered it, so a question some people skipped rests on a smaller group than the total above.
Statistics by country
Only countries with at least 50 eligible answers of their own appear here.