Was Joe Biden's presidency a good one? I'll gather a balanced look at his record — accomplishments, criticisms, and how historians and polls rate him.
Whether Joe Biden was a "good" president is subjective and depends heavily on political perspective, but his record can be assessed on achievements, failures, and how historians and the public have rated him.
Legislative and Domestic Achievements
Supporters point to a significant legislative record:
•As president, he oversaw legislative achievements including the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, the CHIPS and Science Act, and the Inflation Reduction Act.
•More specifically, his major legislative achievements include the American Rescue Plan ($1.9T COVID relief), the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law ($1.2T), the CHIPS Act ($52B semiconductor investment), and the Inflation Reduction Act ($369B climate - the largest climate legislation in US history).
•A similar summary notes the $1.9 trillion American Rescue Plan addressed COVID-19 economic damage; the $1.2 trillion Bipartisan Infrastructure Law was the largest infrastructure investment in decades; the CHIPS Act committed $52 billion to domestic semiconductor manufacturing; and the Inflation Reduction Act ($369 billion in climate and clean energy investment) became the largest climate legislation in US history.
•He also appointed the first Black woman to the US Supreme Court, Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson.
Analyses from the Council on Foreign Relations argue that against a fractured domestic and international backdrop, his presidency has been one of remarkable accomplishment, that he healed an economy that had been distressed by the pandemic and put the nation on a path of sustainable growth, and that he successfully guided through a divided legislature major domestic investments aimed at promoting economic growth.
Foreign Policy
•Abroad, Biden restored the United States as the anchor of the free world while leading the successful effort to help Ukraine defend itself against Russian aggression. The United States' image abroad, particularly among allies, sharply rebounded.
•He unified NATO and marshaled over $100 billion in Western military aid for Ukraine following Russia's 2022 invasion.
•NATO today is strong and unified, with two-thirds of its members now meeting the benchmark of spending at least 2 percent of GDP on defense, up from only one-third in 2020, and Finland and Sweden have joined the alliance.
Criticisms and Unfinished Business
Critics point to several major drags on his presidency:
1.Inflation and Economy: Inflation peaked at 9.1% in June 2022 — the highest in 40 years — and proved the defining drag on his approval ratings for the remainder of his term. Inflation peaking at 9.1% in June 2022 was the primary sustained drag.
2.Afghanistan Withdrawal: He completed the U.S. withdrawal from Afghanistan that resulted in the death of 13 U.S. service members, an effort that was widely criticized. The Council on Foreign Relations described it as a necessary move given that the mission was failing to keep the Taliban at bay, even if the exit itself was disorderly and bloody. The images of the chaotic Kabul airport withdrawal, where 13 US troops were killed in a bombing, inflicted lasting damage on his approval.
3.Border / Immigration: The border crisis reached historic levels, with over 7 million illegal crossings. Patrols encountered some 2.2 million migrants crossing the southern border illegally in 2022, an all-time high. He initially increased refugee quotas and reinstated previous asylum procedures, but the southern border was soon overwhelmed.
4.Age and Fitness: His final year was dominated by concerns about age. He dropped out of the presidential race under intense pressure following his disastrous June 27 debate performance against Trump, in which he appeared visibly confused and struggled repeatedly to finish sentences. His approval peaked at 57% in early 2021, then fell after the Afghanistan withdrawal in August 2021 to 43% and never fully recovered.
While Joe Biden saw approval ratings above 50% during his first six months in office, rising inflation, illegal immigration, and the wars in Ukraine and Gaza contributed to a decline in his approval ratings.
How He Is Ranked
Public opinion polling during and after his term was weak:
•Across multi-year aggregates, Gallup reported that Biden averaged 42.2% job approval across his four years, placing him as the second-lowest average in Gallup's post-World War II history, and his 13th-quarter average of 38.7% ranked near the bottom of presidential quarters historically (277th of 314).
•He left office on January 20, 2025, with a 38% approval rating according to Gallup — the lowest exit approval since Jimmy Carter.
•Gallup's December survey found 54% expect Biden to be rated "below average" or "poor," producing a –35 net score comparable to Richard Nixon's –42.
•A Rasmussen late-December/early-January poll found 48% saying Biden is one of the worst presidents.
Historian and expert surveys are more favorable:
•154 historians and presidential experts rate Biden in the top third of U.S. presidents, while Trump ranks dead last.
•The 2024 edition of the Presidential Greatness Project Expert Survey has Biden in 14th place, just ahead of Woodrow Wilson and Ronald Reagan, and also has Biden in 14th place, just ahead of Woodrow Wilson and Ronald Reagan while Trump comes in 45th.
Summary
In short, supporters credit Biden with restoring alliances, leading the Western response to Russia's invasion of Ukraine, and passing transformational domestic legislation on infrastructure, semiconductors, and climate. Critics cite high inflation, the chaotic Afghanistan exit, a historic surge at the southern border, and concerns about his age and decision to run for re-election at 81.
As one overview noted, his legacy will long be contested between two competing narratives: the president who restored democratic norms and passed transformational legislation on one side, and the candidate whose stubbornness and declining faculties cost his party the White House on the other.