For the better part of a decade, most Americans have had negative views of China. This is still the case, but the share with a favorable view has ticked up, according to a Pew Research Center survey conducted in March.
| Date | Label | Phone trend Favorable | Phone trend Unfavorable | ATP Favorable | ATP Unfavorable |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 3/1/2005 | Spring 2005 | 43% | 35% | ||
| 3/1/2006 | Spring 2006 | 52% | 29% | ||
| 3/1/2007 | Spring 2007 | 42% | 40% | ||
| 3/1/2008 | Spring 2008 | 40% | 42% | ||
| 3/1/2009 | Spring 2009 | 49% | 38% | ||
| 3/1/2010 | Spring 2010 | 49% | 37% | ||
| 3/1/2011 | Spring 2011 | 52% | 36% | ||
| 3/1/2012 | Spring 2012 | 41% | 40% | ||
| 3/1/2013 | Spring 2013 | 36% | 51% | ||
| 3/1/2014 | Spring 2014 | 35% | 55% | ||
| 3/1/2015 | Spring 2015 | 38% | 54% | ||
| 3/1/2016 | Spring 2016 | 37% | 55% | ||
| 3/1/2017 | Spring 2017 | 43% | 47% | ||
| 3/1/2018 | Spring 2018 | 38% | 48% | ||
| 3/1/2019 | Spring 2019 | 26% | 60% | ||
| 3/1/2020 | Spring 2020 | 27% | 66% | ||
| 7/1/2020 | Summer 2020 | 22% | 73% | ||
| 3/1/2020 | March 2020 | 19% | 79% | ||
| 3/1/2021 | Spring 2021 | 21% | 77% | ||
| 3/1/2022 | Spring 2022 | 16% | 82% | ||
| 3/1/2023 | Spring 2023 | 14% | 83% | ||
| 3/1/2024 | Spring 2024 | 16% | 81% | ||
| 3/1/2025 | Spring 2025 | 21% | 77% | ||
| 3/1/2026 | Spring 2026 | 27% | 71% |
Today, 27% of Americans have a positive opinion of China. That has risen 6 percentage points since last year and nearly doubled since 2023. And it’s part of a modest softening of Americans’ opinion of China on multiple fronts:
- Confidence in Chinese President Xi Jinping to do the right thing regarding world affairs has gone up 4 points since last year and roughly doubled since 2023.
- When asked whether China is a partner, enemy or competitor of the United States, fewer Americans call China an enemy now than in 2025. But most Americans still see it as a competitor.
- Slightly fewer say now than last year that China is benefiting from trade at the expense of the U.S. (For more on Americans’ views of trade, read “How Americans view Trump’s handling of trade and tariffs.”)
How are views of China changing?
| Date | Label | Phone trend Rep/Lean Rep | Phone trend Dem/Lean Dem | ATP Rep/Lean Rep | ATP Dem/Lean Dem |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 3/1/2005 | Spring 2005 | 46% | 40% | ||
| 3/1/2006 | Spring 2006 | 54% | 53% | ||
| 3/1/2007 | Spring 2007 | 39% | 44% | ||
| 3/1/2008 | Spring 2008 | 41% | 41% | ||
| 3/1/2009 | Spring 2009 | 43% | 55% | ||
| 3/1/2010 | Spring 2010 | 44% | 55% | ||
| 3/1/2011 | Spring 2011 | 48% | 55% | ||
| 3/1/2012 | Spring 2012 | 35% | 47% | ||
| 3/1/2013 | Spring 2013 | 29% | 41% | ||
| 3/1/2014 | Spring 2014 | 30% | 40% | ||
| 3/1/2015 | Spring 2015 | 28% | 45% | ||
| 3/1/2016 | Spring 2016 | 29% | 42% | ||
| 3/1/2017 | Spring 2017 | 38% | 48% | ||
| 3/1/2018 | Spring 2018 | 37% | 40% | ||
| 3/1/2019 | Spring 2019 | 20% | 30% | ||
| 3/1/2020 | Spring 2020 | 23% | 30% | ||
| 7/1/2020 | Summer 2020 | 15% | 25% | ||
| 3/1/2020 | March 2020 | 15% | 22% | ||
| 3/1/2021 | Spring 2021 | 13% | 25% | ||
| 3/1/2022 | Spring 2022 | 10% | 20% | ||
| 3/1/2023 | Spring 2023 | 10% | 18% | ||
| 3/1/2024 | Spring 2024 | 9% | 21% | ||
| 3/1/2025 | Spring 2025 | 16% | 26% | ||
| 3/1/2026 | Spring 2026 | 18% | 34% |
The increase in favorability toward China comes largely from Democrats and Democratic-leaning independents. The share of Democrats who view China positively is up 8 points from last year. Opinion among Republicans and Republican leaners is largely unchanged.
Still, favorability has increased markedly in both parties since 2023.
| Date | Label | Total | Rep/Lean Rep | Dem/Lean Dem |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 3/1/2021 | Spring 2021 | 34% | 53% | 20% |
| 1/1/2022 | January 2022 | 35% | 52% | 22% |
| 3/1/2022 | Spring 2022 | 25% | 42% | 12% |
| 3/1/2023 | Spring 2023 | 38% | 53% | 27% |
| 3/1/2024 | Spring 2024 | 42% | 59% | 28% |
| 3/1/2025 | Spring 2025 | 33% | 45% | 22% |
| 1/1/2026 | January 2026 | 28% | 44% | 14% |
Americans’ views of the United States’ relationship with China are also shifting, according to a Center survey from January. Fewer call China an enemy of the U.S. now than in 2025 (28% vs. 33%), while more call it a competitor (60% vs. 56%). In both years, about one-in-ten have said China is a partner of the U.S.
Like with favorability, that movement comes mostly from Democrats: 14% of Democrats say China is an enemy, down from 22% in 2025 and 28% in 2024. A large majority of Democrats (72%) still view China as a competitor.
How views of China differ by age
| Group | Party | Age | Enemy | Competitor | Partner |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Rep/Lean Rep ages 18-49 | Rep/Lean Rep | 18-49 | 32% | 57% | 10% |
| Rep/Lean Rep 50+ | Rep/Lean Rep | 50+ | 55% | 41% | 2% |
| Dem/Lean Dem ages 18-49 | Dem/Lean Dem | 18-49 | 10% | 73% | 15% |
| Dem/Lean Dem 50+ | Dem/Lean Dem | 50+ | 18% | 71% | 9% |
Younger Americans have more positive views of China than older adults do. About a third of adults under 50 (34%) have a favorable opinion of China. Just 19% of those ages 50 and older agree.
Americans under 50 are also much less likely than those 50 and older to say China is an enemy of the U.S. (20% vs. 38%). Republicans of different ages particularly diverge on this:
- Republicans younger than 50 are 23 points less likely than Republicans 50 and older to think China is an enemy.
- Among younger and older Democrats, the gap is just 8 points.
How do Americans see the way Trump and Xi handle foreign affairs?
| Date | Label | A lot/Some confidence | Not too much/No confidence at all | Very/somewhat confident in Trump | Not too/Not at all confident in Trump |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 3/1/2023 | Spring 2023 | 8% | 77% | ||
| 3/1/2024 | Spring 2024 | 9% | 79% | ||
| 7/1/2024 | July 2024 | 48% | 49% | ||
| 3/1/2025 | Spring 2025 | 13% | 75% | ||
| 8/1/2025 | August 2025 | 45% | 55% | ||
| 3/1/2026 | Spring 2026 | 17% | 71% | 39% | 60% |
As U.S. President Donald Trump prepares to meet with Xi Jinping at a May summit, Americans’ confidence in Trump to make good policy decisions toward China is slipping. About four-in-ten (39%) express confidence today, down from 45% last August.
However, there are stark differences by party on this question: 71% of Republicans, but only 11% of Democrats, think Trump can make good decisions about China. Confidence has fallen by 7 points among Republicans, while Democrats’ views are largely unchanged.
Younger adults have less confidence in Trump than older ones do. This is particularly the case for Republicans: 64% of those under 50 and 78% of those 50 and older express confidence in Trump on this issue.
Americans evaluate Trump’s ability to make good decisions about policy toward China similarly to his ability to make policy toward other countries, including North Korea, Cuba and Venezuela. For more, read “Do Americans think Trump can make good decisions about various foreign policy issues?”
Americans also broadly lack confidence in Xi to do the right thing regarding world affairs – though confidence in him has grown 4 points over each of the last two years. As is the case with overall views of China, Democrats and younger adults continue to have more confidence in Xi than their counterparts do.
Note: Here are the survey questions used for this analysis, the detailed responses, and the methodologies for the March and January surveys.
