Was Joe Biden a good president?

A good presidency can be judged many ways — I'll pull recent assessments of Biden's record to give you a balanced overview.

Whether Joe Biden was a good president depends on what metrics you value, and assessments are sharply divided.

Most analysts describe his presidency as mixed and consequential — combining substantive policy accomplishments with significant failures and political liabilities, with evaluations depending on whether durable legislative/institutional change or immediate crises are weighted more heavily.

Arguments That He Was Effective

Supporters point to several major legislative achievements:

•A trio of legislative victories marked by the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act in 2021, the Inflation Reduction Act in 2022, and the CHIPS Act in 2022. The Bipartisan Infrastructure Law was $1.2 trillion and the CHIPS and Science Act was $280 billion to modernize roads, broadband, and semiconductor manufacturing.

•The Inflation Reduction Act was described as the largest climate investment ever ($370 billion), capping insulin at $35 for seniors and enabling Medicare to negotiate drug prices. It was signed in August 2022 and intends to lower energy costs, reduce carbon emissions, and allow Medicare to negotiate drug prices and cap out-of-pocket costs at $2,000.

•Other achievements often cited include pandemic recovery through the American Rescue Plan, the PACT Act protecting veterans from toxic exposures, gun safety legislation, marriage equality, and student loan forgiveness programs.

•Judicial appointments: Biden surpassed Donald Trump's first-term record with 235 judicial confirmations, appointing more women to the bench than any other president, and appointing Ketanji Brown Jackson, the first Black woman to serve on the U.S. Supreme Court.

•Foreign policy: Supporters credit restoring alliances, NATO enlargement, defending Ukraine and Israel, and strengthening alliances in the Pacific. He was described as the most legislatively successful president since Lyndon Johnson.

This view is reflected in academic rankings. The 2024 Presidential Greatness Project Expert Survey of more than 150 historians and presidential experts ranked Biden 14th best president — ahead of Ronald Reagan — and in the top third of presidents, and 14th overall. The survey was noted as unusually high for a presidency without military victories or institutional expansion. An earlier Siena College Research Institute survey ranked him 19th.

Arguments That He Was Not Effective

Critics point to several liabilities:

•The top answers when voters were asked for the worst things about his presidency were inflation, the state of the southern border, and the botched withdrawal from Afghanistan. Other common criticisms include handling of the economy, inflation and the rising cost of living, border security and immigration policies, and energy policies and government spending.

•Economic perception: While aides noted a rapid jobs rebound and manufacturing upturn early in the term, inflation spiked in 2022 then decelerated, with debate over stimulus size and timing. Analysts noted that inflation's burden on households dwarfed other good that happened on Biden's watch.

Public Opinion

Public approval was volatile:

•Biden exited office with a 42.2% approval rating according to Gallup, down from 57% during his first run.

•His approval averaged 40.7% in his 10th quarter in office, the lowest of recent presidents except Jimmy Carter.

•His highest approval was 63% in mid-2021, with a low of 31% in the summer of 2022, and other polling noted his lowest rating was 35% just ahead of the November presidential election.

Overall, supporters highlight durable investments in infrastructure, climate, semiconductors, health care and alliances; critics highlight inflation, the Afghanistan withdrawal, border politics, and concerns about age and messaging. Because his presidency is recent, historians note that judgment is still in progress and may change as the long-term effects of his legislation become clearer.

Citations (1)

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A Look Back at Biden's Presidency: Accomplishments and Legacy - The Leader
Backs: “The Inflation Reduction Act was described as the largest climate investment ever ($370 billion), capping insulin at $35 for seniors and enabling Medicare to negotiate drug prices. It was signed in August 2022 and intends to lower energy costs, reduce carbon emissions, and allow Medicare to negotiate drug prices and…”