Many posts have discussed American perceptions of the future.
As the United States approaches its 250th anniversary amid growing partisan divisions and widespread concerns about the country's direction, less than half (46%) of Americans believe everyone in the country has the opportunity to achieve the American Dream. While confidence in the state of the Dream has softened on most measures since 2024, belief that it is important to strive for (78%) has remained resilient. Despite this general decline since 2024, most U.S. adults still believe they will personally achieve the Dream (69%) and agree that the Dream is unfinished (58%).
These findings come from the second wave of the Milken Center for Advancing the American Dream (MCAAD)-Gallup American Dream Study, a nationally representative web and mail survey of more than 6,300 U.S. adults, conducted Jan. 7-March 4, 2026. The survey is part of an ongoing collaboration between Gallup and MCAAD to study how Americans connect to the concept of the American Dream. The research is featured in the center's long-term exhibition, the American Dream Experience, in Washington, D.C.