How would you rank the US presidents, with a brief description of why you put them there?

1. George Washington – it’s close between him and Lincoln, I mean who do you put the one who founded the country and defined the Presidency or the one which saved the country from splitting apart? Tough. But I’ll put Washington a bit ahead, the success of America’s democracy really inspired almost every modern democracy in the world today and we have Washington to thank for that leading by example.
2. Abraham Lincoln – the savior of the Union. There’s just simply no doubt that Lincoln has to be next as the President who navigated the USA through its greatest crisis – the Civil War.
3. Franklin D Roosevelt – Some critics might say he had too much power, but this man brought America from the depths of the Great Depression into emerging as the world’s main superpower after WWII – and all from a wheelchair no less! A very impressive man.
4. Thomas Jefferson – I would say his main lasting achievement as President is the Louisiana Purchase which doubled the size of the USA – that’s no small feat.
5. Teddy Roosevelt – Breaking bad trusts, regulating railroads, establishing national parks and monuments, regulating food and drugs, Panama Canal, etc and probably the most badass American President ever
6. Harry Truman – made the (right) decision to drop atomic bombs on Japan ending WWII, desegregating the army, Marshall Plan to contain communism in Europe. Truman was always underestimated and he always overperformed.
7. Dwight Eisenhower – Negotiated a ceasefire to stop the Korean War, Beginning of Civil Rights legislation, ended McCarthyism, created NASA, Interstate Highway system, and presided over a prospering economy.
8. Lyndon B Johnson – Is it controversial to put LBJ this high? He was the most impactful President on domestic policies since FDR. Medicare, Medicaid, Civil Rights Act, Immigration Act, Apollo space program, these are monumental achievements. Yes he had the Vietnam War which is why he isn’t ranked higher, but domestic agenda wise only FDR accomplished more.
9. Ronald Reagan – A very charismatic and effective communicator. Helped end the Cold War, expanded the war on drugs, and presided over a recovering American economy and helped re-establish American’s faith in the Presidency again after the Nixon/Carter years. Redefined conservatism in the US.
10. James Polk – Yes I’m putting Polk in my top 10. He achieved every single item on his agenda. Under his leadership the US won the Mexican-American war and gained Texas and Oregon territory, expanding the US territory by a third. One of the most underrated US Presidents.
11. James Madison – Strengthened the federal government, was a protectionist enacting the first protective tariffs and creating the Second Bank of the USA. Expanded USA territory through war/treaties with native americans. However his leadership over the War of 1812 is a bit more mixed.
12. James Monroe – Although he didn’t have major policy accomplishments except the Missouri Compromise, I’d say Monroe’s biggest strength is keeping the US relatively peaceful and prosperous – and that’s something that’s not easy to do for 8 years.
13. Woodrow Wilson – Had a massive impact on US domestic policy – the creation of the Fed Reserve, FTC, graduated income tax and labor laws have a lasting impact on the USA and he kept the USA out of WW1 until the war was almost over as well. On the other hand, civil rights went backwards during his administration.
14. Andrew Jackson – A controversial President, I’d say Jackson’s strengths are he was a populist who was the founder of the modern Democratic party, opposed the power of banks and centralized federal power and was the ONLY US President to ever pay off the national debt. However, he continues to be criticized for the Indian Removal Act.
15. John F Kennedy – My personal favorite US President, JFK was charismatic and inspirational to a generation of Americans. Although he was cut down in his prime, his major accomplishments are continuing the Civil Rights legislations, starting the Apollo moon program, creating the Peace Corps and defusing the Cuban Missile Crisis.

This is my top 15 with a brief description.. I’ll just list the rest in my opinion and give reasons only if I think its controversial

16. Bill Clinton – huge peacetime expansion of US economy

17. Barack Obama – recovery from economic recession, killing Bin Laden, Healthcare reform

18. Joe Biden – Sanctioned Russia, helped America recover from COVID recession, withdrew American troops from Afghanistan – although his support of Israel and high inflation under his term are issues

19. Ulysses S Grant

20. John Adams

21. Grover Cleveland

22. William McKinley

23. George H.W Bush

24. William Howard Taft

25. Chester A Arthur

26. Calvin Coolidge

27. Warren Harding – I have an answer here why Harding is unfairly ranked by historians; he should be given much more credit and be ranked just below Coolidge IMO

https://www.quora.com/Are-there-US-presidents-you-like-that-are-generally-ranked-poorly-by-historians/answer/Xitong-Zou-1

28. Richard Nixon – also unfairly ranked because of Watergate, but I think his foreign policy achievements and creation of EPA need to be recognized

29. James A Garfield

30. Benjamin Harrison

31. John Quincy Adams

32. Gerald Ford

33. Zachary Taylor

34. Rutherford B Hayes

35. Jimmy Carter

36. Martin Van Buren

37. William Henry Harrison

38. John Tyler

39. Herbert Hoover

40. Millard Fillmore

41. Donald Trump

42. George W Bush – yes I rank him below Trump because Trump didn’t start any wars or mess up the economy

43. Franklin Pierce

44. Andrew Johnson

45. James Buchanan (but really its a tie between him and Andrew Johnson because who’s worse the guy who didn’t do anything to prevent Civil War or the guy who actively try to bring the nation back into Civil War after it’s already been fought?)