Which U.S. presidents have the highest and lowest Gallup approval averages since 1945?
Executive summary
Gallup’s compiled presidential approval data show wide variation since 1945: John F. Kennedy has one of the highest retrospective peak approvals while recent presidents such as Jimmy Carter and Joe Biden rank among the lowest in average approval; Gallup reports Biden’s average at 42.2% (second-lowest in Gallup records) and Carter averaged about 45.5% (tied with Harry Truman as the second-lowest among post‑World War II presidents) [1][2].
1. The baseline: what Gallup measures and why averages matter
Gallup’s presidential job-approval series aggregates periodic multiday polls and, in recent decades, weekly tracking to produce averages that let analysts compare presidents’ public standing over an entire term rather than at a single moment; Gallup’s Presidential Job Approval Center explicitly compiles these records from Truman through the current president [3]. Averaging is critical because approval moves with events—wars, recessions, scandals—so a single high or low poll (for example, a spike after a crisis) can distort impressions unless put into an average context [3].
2. Who shows up at the top of Gallup’s historical lists
Gallup’s historical presentation highlights that presidents who presided over unifying or extraordinary events often reach exceptionally high approval levels; for example, Gallup notes Kennedy’s retrospective ratings were especially high in public memory [2]. Gallup’s interactive Job Approval Center lets readers compare those peaks and multi‑term averages across presidents, showing how unique moments can lift approval well above typical ranges [3].
3. Who ranks lowest by Gallup’s averages and why that matters
Gallup’s reporting identifies Jimmy Carter and Harry Truman among the lowest post‑World War II averages and, in more recent reports, Joe Biden’s overall average for his term at 42.2% is described as the second-lowest in Gallup records [2][1]. These low averages matter because they reflect sustained public dissatisfaction over long stretches of a presidency rather than transient dips; Gallup specifically calls out Carter’s 45.5% average and connects it to broader retrospective comparisons [2].
4. The modern variability: Trump and the role of tracking
Gallup’s methodology has evolved; the organization used weekly Daily tracking for Barack Obama and portions of Donald Trump’s terms and periodic polls later on, which can affect how easily raw averages map to daily‑fluctuation narratives [3]. Gallup’s reporting on Trump highlights that his approval averaged lower than most post‑World War II presidents in parts of his terms, and Gallup’s frequent updates in 2024–25 show how second‑term and event-driven swings produced new lows at times [4][5].
5. What the numbers omit and remaining ambiguities
Available sources do not provide a single, fully enumerated table in these excerpts listing every president’s final Gallup average since 1945, so a definitive rank-ordered list cannot be reproduced here from the supplied material; Gallup’s interactive center and Gallup Analytics are the cited repositories for full series data [3]. Also, Gallup notes that methodology shifted (periodic vs. daily tracking), which can affect direct comparisons across eras [3].
6. Competing takes and interpretive pitfalls
Different outlets and compilations (e.g., university repositories like The American Presidency Project) sometimes publish “final” approval ratings compiled from Gallup; the American Presidency Project cites Gallup-derived final ratings but its excerpt here is descriptive rather than a live ranked table [6]. Wikipedia and major news organizations summarize high-profile moments (e.g., George W. Bush’s post‑9/11 spike to 90%) but users should rely on Gallup’s primary interactive dataset for precise averages because secondary summaries sometimes conflate peak single‑day numbers with term averages [7][3].
7. Bottom line for readers seeking a ranked list
To obtain an authoritative, ranked list of highest-to-lowest Gallup approval averages since 1945, consult Gallup’s Presidential Job Approval Center (the interactive dataset) and the Gallup historical overview; those sources are Gallup’s own compilations and the ones cited in this analysis [3]. For quick context from the supplied reporting: Kennedy is remembered with exceptionally high retrospective approval, Carter and Truman sit low among post‑World War II presidents, and recent Gallup reporting places Joe Biden’s term average at about 42.2%—one of the lowest in Gallup records [2][1].
Limitations: this article uses only the provided search material; the exact, complete rank order of averages for every president since 1945 is not printed in the supplied excerpts and must be read directly from Gallup’s interactive dataset for precise numbers [3].