Keep Factually independent
Whether you agree or disagree with our analysis, these conversations matter for democracy. We don't take money from political groups - even a $5 donation helps us keep it that way.
Trump is the 3rd best president
Executive summary
Claims that “Trump is the 3rd best president” are not supported by major expert surveys and most national scholarly rankings cited in current reporting place Donald Trump near the bottom of historical lists (e.g., last of 44/45 in surveys cited) rather than third [1] [2]. Some partisan or public polls show pro-Trump respondents naming him among top presidents, but these are distinct from academic rankings [3].
1. What the major expert rankings actually say
Scholarly and academic surveys discussed in current reporting repeatedly place Trump at or near the bottom of presidential greatness rankings. A high-profile 2024 survey of 154 historians and experts ranked Trump dead last (45th) with a very low aggregate score, while Joe Biden was placed at #14 in that same project [4] [1] [2]. Siena College’s expert poll similarly placed Trump in the bottom five of presidents alongside Andrew Johnson and James Buchanan [5]. These are expert evaluations meant to measure “greatness” using structured criteria; they do not support a claim that Trump ranks third overall [1] [5].
2. Public and partisan polls can tell a different story
Public-opinion and partisan polls sometimes show Trump ranked highly by his supporters. For example, a YouGov/Economist-style survey in 2021 found Trump listed by some respondents as “third best” in a question about best presidents, reflecting contemporary public tastes rather than historian judgment [3]. AEI’s coverage notes that polls of the public can show more favorable views—Gallup and CBS-style polls cited in reporting have shown mixed public assessments of Trump’s effectiveness and prospects [4]. In short: public popularity among certain groups can produce high rankings that conflict with scholarly assessments [3] [4].
3. The context behind diverging rankings
The discrepancy arises because different exercises measure different things. Academic surveys ask historians to weigh long-term leadership, constitutional stewardship, crisis management, and historical consequences; these typically penalize presidents perceived to have weakened norms or been especially polarizing, which reflects poorly for Trump in these studies [1] [5]. By contrast, partisan polls ask respondents to name “best” presidents often based on affinity, policy preferences, or contemporary perceptions; those produce much more favorable placements for living or recent presidents who retain active supporter bases [3] [4].
4. How Trump and media reacted to “third-best” claims
Media reports show that Trump himself reacted angrily to being described as “third-best” on television, saying he was “extremely angry” and joking about trying to top Washington and Lincoln; outlets recount he did not specify the polling source and treated the remark as anecdotal rather than grounded in academic ranking data [6] [7] [8]. Several news stories note Trump’s public irritation at any ranking that places him below foundational figures like Washington and Lincoln [6] [7].
5. Alternative ranking projects and ideological framing
Some organizations and projects frame presidential rankings to reflect ideological premises. For example, PragerU promoted a presidential rankings survey intended to broaden viewpoints it considers ignored by mainstream academic efforts; such projects often produce different outcomes by selecting respondents or metrics aligned with particular values [9]. Journalists and scholars caution that methodology, respondent pool, and the criteria used determine outcomes—and can reflect explicit or implicit agendas [9] [5].
6. Bottom line and what’s not found in current reporting
Available sources do not show any major historian or widely cited expert survey placing Donald Trump as the third-best U.S. president; instead, multiple prominent expert surveys place him among the worst ranked presidents [1] [2] [5]. There are, however, public and partisan polls in which some respondents list Trump near the top, which explains why statements claiming “third-best” circulate in media and political rhetoric [3] [4]. If you have a specific poll or ranking that names Trump third, provide it and I will analyze its methodology and how it compares to the expert surveys cited here.
Limitations: this summary is based solely on the provided reporting and surveys; other polls or niche ranking projects not included in the supplied sources may show different results—those are not found in current reporting [10] [9].