What countries do Americans think are gaining and losing influence in today’s world?
APRIL 28, 2026
Americans believe the global influence of several nations is shifting, including the influence of the United States itself, according to a March survey of 3,507 U.S. adults.
To better understand how Americans view the global power landscape, we asked if each of 12 countries’ influence in the world has been getting stronger, getting weaker or staying about the same in recent years.
- China is the only country that a majority of Americans say is getting stronger, though a 45% plurality also say Israel is getting stronger.
- On balance, Americans think U.S. influence is getting weaker rather than stronger. Still, the share who think its influence is strengthening has grown in recent years, especially among Republicans. (Read the first section of this report for more on how Americans view their country’s role in the world.)
- Around four-in-ten (41%) believe Iran’s global influence is waning, up from 28% last year. (The survey was conducted about three weeks after the Iran war began.)
- While evaluations of Russia are currently split – about one-third each see its influence getting stronger, getting weaker and staying the same – the share of those who say it is weakening has increased since last year.
- Most see the influence of France, Germany and the United Kingdom staying about the same, but more say these European powers are getting weaker than getting stronger.
- Majorities also describe the influence of India, Saudi Arabia and South Korea as staying about the same, but more say they are strengthening than weakening.
- Around half of Americans (51%) say Canada’s influence is staying about the same, while roughly a quarter each think it’s getting stronger and getting weaker.
How have ratings of global influence changed over time?
The survey highlights significant changes in the way Americans think about the influence of several countries, including those that they most often
name as global superpowers: the U.S., China and Russia.
The most common stance on the U.S. is that its influence has been getting weaker, but the share saying this is down 11 percentage points since 2025. At the same time, the share saying U.S. influence is getting
stronger has grown. This is the result of shifting views among Republicans, who are
now far more likely to say U.S. influence is getting stronger and far less likely to say it is getting weaker than at any point since we first asked the question in 2022.
When it comes to China, fewer Americans say its influence has been getting stronger than said so last year, though this is still the majority opinion (held by 62%).
Similarly, Americans are now 13 points less likely to say Russia’s influence is growing. This marks a significant change in pattern: Where Americans were more likely to see Russia’s influence getting stronger than anything else in 2025, about one-third each now say its influence is getting stronger, weaker and staying the same.
Read our recent reports on Americans’ overall opinions of
China and
Russia for more.
There have been additional shifts in opinion since last year:
- More Americans see Iran getting weaker now than last year (41% vs. 28%) making this the plurality opinion for the first time since we began tracking these views in 2024.
- A growing share say Israel’s global influence is strengthening: 45%, up 7 points from last year. Simultaneously, Americans’ overall opinion of Israel is getting more negative.
- The share of those who say the U.K. is getting stronger has dropped 7 points, while the share who see it getting weaker has grown 6 points.
- Germany’s influence is perceived to be leveling off: Just 13% say it’s getting stronger, down 8 points from last year, while the share who see it staying about the same is up 9 points.
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