Americans’ approval of capitalism has plunged to a record low, while their support for socialism has ticked up slightly in recent years, a new Gallup poll shows.
Only 54% of US adults surveyed said they have a positive image of capitalism, the lowest level Gallup has recorded since it began asking the question 15 years ago.
That’s down sharply from 60% support in 2021.
Their support of socialism has meanwhile grown slightly recently, from 38% in 2021 to 39% in 2025. Despite the small uptick, a majority of Americans still view socialism negatively, at 57%.
Much of the erosion of Americans’ positive image of capitalism comes from a decline among Independent and Democratic voters, with Republican support largely remaining steady.
Democrats’ view of capitalism dropped from 50% positive in 2021 to 42%. That’s the first time the group’s approval amount dipped below 50%.
Independents’ perspective also went from 59% positive in 2021 to 51% in 2025.
But Republicans’ love of capitalism increased from 72% in 2021 to 74%, though it is still below the record high of 78% Gallup recorded in 2019.
Gallup had asked respondents to opine on capitalism “just off the top of your head.”
Over the years, Americans’ perspective on capitalism has on been largely stable. When Gallup first posed the question in 2010, 61% said they had a positive view. Nearly a decade later, when Gallup asked the question, 60% had a favorable perspective.
As for socialism, US adults’ perspective rose from 36% positive in 2010 to 39% in 2025 and has hovered in that range during the 15 years since Gallup posed the question.
The boost for socialism comes amid the rise of lefty Democratic socialists such as Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.), Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY), and New York City mayoral hopeful Zohran Mamdani (D).
All three liberal pols have cultivated a loyal base of support by railing against “oligarchs” and driving home a message to voters about the economy being rigged against them.
Gallup sampled 1,094 US adults between Aug. 1 to 20 with a margin of error of plus or minus 4 percentage points for its latest survey.
