Cambridge Credit Counseling, an Agawam, Massachusetts-based credit counselor, said on Monday that 56 percent of Americans it surveyed said gas prices were a major concern for household budgets. Fifty-three percent of those surveyed said gas prices will force them to make sacrifices or cut back spending.

Some of the cutbacks in spending will involve paying down less credit-card debt, according to Cambridge Credit Counseling.

A month ago, 75 percent of Americans planned to pay off debt, but that percentage has since slipped to only 67 percent, the credit counseling firm said.

Those most impacted by the higher gas costs are lower wage earners, the credit counselor found.

Soaring gasoline prices are affecting lower-income Americans the most, with 69 percent of those earning $25,000 a year or less saying they were being forced to cut back on other spending, compared to 34 percent of those earning $75,000 a year, Cambridge said.

"With less disposable income to spend each month on other living expenses, it is imperative that consumers evaluate their overall budgets and cut back in other areas to counteract these increasing costs," Chris Viale, president and chief executive operating officer of Cambridge said in a press release. "Paying off debt should always remain a top priority."

Cambridge surveyed 1,000 adults from May 19-23. The survey has a margin of error of 3 percentage points.

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