Ukrainians' optimism is falling: how many citizens do not believe that 2026 will be better than the previous year

Ukrainians are looking to the future with hope, but confidence is waning — a recent survey shows a decline in optimistic expectations from 2026 and growing doubts among citizens. Find out how many Ukrainians believe in change, who remains most pessimistic, and what factors influence people's expectations

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Despite the fact that the relative majority of Ukrainians still hope for an improvement in the situation next year, the level of optimism is noticeably declining. While in 2023, 51% of Ukrainians believed that the coming year would bring positive changes, today only 39% hold this view. This is evidenced by the results of the international End of Year Survey (EoY) conducted by Rating Group on behalf of Gallup International Association.

What Ukrainians think about 2026

According to the survey results:

• 39% believe that 2026 will be better

• 27% believe that nothing will change

• 28% expect the next year to be worse

Thus, the share of pessimism is growing, while confidence in improvements is declining.

More positive expectations are more often demonstrated by residents of rural areas and people over 51 years of age. Men aged 18–35 remain the most pessimistic — it is among them that the highest level of distrust in positive changes is recorded.

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Economic expectations

The economic outlook for most Ukrainians looks bleak. 64% of respondents believe that 2026 will be a year of economic hardship.

At the same time:

• 11% expect economic growth and prosperity

• 22% do not expect any changes

Interestingly, the level of economic pessimism has remained virtually unchanged over the year. While 52% of Ukrainians shared negative expectations in 2023, for the second year in a row, the figure has remained within the range of 63–64%. Ukraine is among the top five countries in the world with the highest economic pessimism, alongside Belgium, France, Latvia and Germany.

Expectations for peacetime

Opinions among Ukrainians are almost evenly divided on the issue of security.

• One-third of citizens believe that there will be more peaceful times

• One-third expect the situation to remain unchanged

• One-third predict a decline in security

At the same time, there is a gradual increase in hope. In November 2023, only 26% of Ukrainians expected greater peace.

How the survey was conducted

The survey was conducted from 11 to 14 November 2025. It involved 1,000 respondents aged 18+ from all regions of Ukraine, except for the temporarily occupied territories and areas where there was no mobile communication at the time of the survey.

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