US Presidential Performance Dashboard

All Metrics

Presidential Performance by President

Methodology & Disclaimer These figures use term-length weighted averages — each president's contribution is weighted by years served, so an 8-year term counts more than a 2-year term. This reflects what Americans actually experienced under each party rather than a simple average across presidents. These figures do not account for which party controlled Congress, what economic conditions were inherited, global events, or any causal relationship between party and outcome. Treat these as descriptive statistics, not verdicts.

Trump II is included using 2025 data (weight: 1 year), as partial data is better than no data for ongoing terms.

⚑ flags mark metrics where extraordinary events (WWII, COVID, the Great Financial Crisis) dominate a party's average.

Democratic

FDR · Truman · JFK · LBJ · Carter · Clinton · Obama · Biden

vs.

Republican

Ike · Nixon · Ford · Reagan · Bush 41 · Bush 43 · Trump I · Trump II*

Metric	Democratic Avg	Republican Avg	Edge

* Trump II included with 2025 data only (weight: 1 year out of ~4). Pew data begins 2003; Uninsured Rate begins 1997.
Stock figures are price return only — dividends excluded. Pre-1957 S&P is back-tested data.

C-SPAN Presidential Historians Survey

C-SPAN's Historians Survey of Presidential Leadership has been conducted four times: 2000, 2009, 2017, and 2021. Each survey asks a cross-section of 100+ presidential historians to rate each president on 10 leadership qualities. Rankings are out of all presidents evaluated (44 in 2021). Arrows show trajectory from first appearance to most recent.

Top 5 in 2021: #1 Lincoln · #2 Washington · #3 FDR · #4 Theodore Roosevelt · #5 Eisenhower

President	2000	2009	2017	2021	Trend

Next survey expected ~2025–2029. Biden and Trump II will become eligible.
Source: C-SPAN (c-span.org/presidentsurvey2021)

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About This Dashboard

What This Dashboard Shows

Verified economic and social outcome data for US presidents from FDR (1933) through Trump II, drawn directly from primary government sources. All metrics are sourced from the originating federal agency or independent research organization.

What This Dashboard Does NOT Claim

That the president caused the outcomes shown
That Congress party control has been weighted or adjusted for
That metrics have been weighted by importance
That the global economic environment has been adjusted for
That stock market data includes dividends (price return only)
That any international comparisons have been made

Data Sources

Real GDP Growth	Bureau of Economic Analysis, NIPA Table 1.1.1
Unemployment Rate	Bureau of Labor Statistics, UNRATE (monthly SA)
CPI Inflation	Bureau of Labor Statistics, CPI-U annual
Stock Markets	DJIA, S&P 500, Nasdaq — inauguration to day before successor
Wage Growth	Bureau of Labor Statistics, AHETPI (from Jan 1964)
Federal Debt % GDP	OMB Table 7.1 — debt held by public only (not gross)
Net Jobs Added	Bureau of Labor Statistics, PAYEMS (Jan→Jan methodology)
Median Household Income	Census Bureau, CPS ASEC (2024 dollars; data from 1967)
Poverty Rate	Census Bureau, Official Poverty Measure (from 1959)
Federal Deficit % GDP	OMB Table 1.2, fiscal year (Oct–Sep)
Consumer Confidence	University of Michigan ICS (from Nov 1952)
Home Ownership Rate	Census Bureau HVS, FRED RHORUSQ156N (from Q1 1965)
Uninsured Rate	CDC/NCHS National Health Interview Survey (reliable from 1997)
Presidential Approval	Gallup Organization — closed series, ended Feb 2026
International Favorability	Pew Research Center Global Attitudes Survey (from 2003)
Historians Survey	C-SPAN Presidential Historians Survey (2000, 2009, 2017, 2021)

Context Flags (⚑)

Context flags mark years or data points where extraordinary events substantially affected the metric — WWII mobilization, COVID-19, the Great Financial Crisis, major oil shocks, or post-war demobilization. These events largely transcend presidential policy choices and are labeled for transparency.

Gallup Note

Gallup ended its presidential approval polling series in February 2026 after more than 80 years. Trump II's data is therefore incomplete. The series from Truman through Biden is now a closed historical record.

Party Comparison Methodology

Term-length weighted averages: each president's contribution is proportional to years served. A president serving 8 years contributes twice the weight of one serving 4 years. Trump II excluded (ongoing).

Update Schedule

Designed for annual updates via Claude Code, which fetches updated data from BLS, BEA, Census Bureau, OMB, University of Michigan, and other primary sources each year.