Trump 1 in numbers
Donald Trump, first term 2017–2021
Data updated 9 October 2026.
Every number this site has for this term, measured the same way as for every other term. The table comes first. Each topic follows with this term’s own numbers.
Every measure for this term
One row for each measure, in the order of the topics below. Under each row, the value of each year.
| Measure | Period counted | Start | End | On the chart | Term before: Obama 2 | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Unemployment ratechange in points; values in % of the labor force | Jan 2017 to Jan 2021 | 4.7% | 6.4% | +1.7 | −3.3Jan 2013 to Jan 2017 | US Bureau of Labor Statistics (Current Population Survey) |
| Year by yearJan 2017 4.7%Jan 2018 4.0%Jan 2019 4.0%Jan 2020 3.6%Jan 2021 6.4% | ||||||
| Grocery pricesaverage rise a year, in % | Jan 2017 to Jan 2021 | Does not apply | Does not apply | +1.5% | +0.3%Jan 2013 to Jan 2017 | US Bureau of Labor Statistics (CPI-U) |
| Year by yearJan 2017 to Jan 2018 +1.0%Jan 2018 to Jan 2019 +0.6%Jan 2019 to Jan 2020 +0.7%Jan 2020 to Jan 2021 +3.7% | ||||||
| Consumer prices (inflation)average rise a year, in % | Jan 2017 to Jan 2021 | Does not apply | Does not apply | +1.9% | +1.3%Jan 2013 to Jan 2017 | US Bureau of Labor Statistics (CPI-U) |
| Year by yearJan 2017 to Jan 2018 +2.1%Jan 2018 to Jan 2019 +1.6%Jan 2019 to Jan 2020 +2.5%Jan 2020 to Jan 2021 +1.4% | ||||||
| Poverty ratechange in points; values in % of people | 2016 to 2017then2017 to 2020 | 12.7%then12.3% | 12.3%then11.5% | −0.4then−0.8 | −0.5then−2.12012 to 2013then2013 to 2016 | US Census Bureau, Current Population Survey Annual Social and Economic Supplement (CPS ASEC) |
| Year by year2016 12.7%2017 12.3%then2017 12.3%2018 11.8%2019 10.5%2020 11.5% | ||||||
| Homes short of foodchange in points; values in % of homes | 2016 to 2020 | 12.3% | 10.5% | −1.8 | −2.22012 to 2016 | USDA Economic Research Service (data from the Census Bureau's Current Population Survey Food Security Supplement) |
| Year by year2016 12.3%2017 11.8%2018 11.1%2019 10.5%2020 10.5% | ||||||
| Homicide ratechange in deaths per 100,000 residents (crude rate) | 2016 to 2020 | 6.0 | 7.5 | +1.5 | +0.72012 to 2016 | CDC/NCHS National Vital Statistics System, served by CDC WONDER (Underlying Cause of Death, 1999-2020, bridged-race database D76) |
| Year by year2016 6.02017 6.02018 5.82019 5.82020 7.5 | ||||||
| Growth against the G7points a year; each year: US growth per person, in % | 2016 to 2020 | Does not apply | Does not apply | +1.66 | +0.682012 to 2016 | World Bank, World Development Indicators (NY.GDP.PCAP.KD); sources include OECD national accounts |
| Year by year2017 +1.8%2018 +2.4%2019 +2.1%2020 −2.5% | ||||||
| Federal deficit or surplusaverage a year, in % of GDP; a minus is a deficit | FY2016 to FY2020 | −3.1% | −14.5% | −6.6% | −3.1%FY2012 to FY2016 | Office of Management and Budget (OMB), Historical Tables |
| Year by yearFY2016 −3.1%FY2017 −3.4%FY2018 −3.8%FY2019 −4.6%FY2020 −14.5% | ||||||
| Debt held by the publicchange in points of GDP; values in % of GDP | FY2016 to FY2020 | 76.0% | 98.5% | +22.5 | +6.0FY2012 to FY2016 | Office of Management and Budget (OMB), Historical Tables |
| Year by yearFY2016 76.0%FY2017 75.7%FY2018 77.1%FY2019 78.9%FY2020 98.5% | ||||||
| Uninsured ratechange in points; values in % of people under 65 | 2016 to 2018then2019 to 2020 | 10.3%then12.0% | 11.0%then11.5% | +0.7then−0.5 | −6.62012 to 2016 | CDC/NCHS, National Health Interview Survey (Health, United States 2020-2021, Table HINone); CDC/NCHS, National Health Interview Survey (Long-term Trends in Health Insurance Coverage, 1968-2024, Table 1) |
| Year by year2016 10.3%2017 10.7%2018 11.0%then2019 12.0%2020 11.5% | ||||||
| Border Patrol stops at the Mexico bordercount each fiscal year | FY2017 to FY2020 | Each year, below | Each year, below | Each year, below | Each year, below | US Customs and Border Protection, United States Border Patrol, Southwest Border Sectors; US Customs and Border Protection, Southwest Land Border Encounters (Border Patrol) |
| Year by yearFY2017 303,916FY2018 396,579FY2019 851,508FY2020 400,651 (203,608 under immigration law) | ||||||
On the chart is the number each topic’s chart shows for the term; the unit under each measure says what kind of number it is. Start and end are the first and last values a change counts. The column for the term before shows that term’s own number and its period.
Download this term’s data (CSV)Every row the table reads, from the first period to the last, as each agency publishes it.
Did unemployment go up or down?
Trump 1: from 4.7% in Jan 2017 to 6.4% in Jan 2021 is a change of +1.7.
How fast did grocery prices rise?
Trump 1: from Jan 2017 to Jan 2021, grocery prices (food bought in stores to eat at home) rose 6.2% in all, which is 1.5% a year.
How fast did consumer prices rise?
Trump 1: consumer prices rose 7.7% from Jan 2017 to Jan 2021, an average of 1.9% a year.
Did poverty and hunger go up or down?
Trump 1, people in poverty: −0.4 from 2016 to 2017, then −0.8 from 2017 to 2020.
Did the homicide rate go up or down?
Trump 1: from 6.0 in 2016 to 7.5 in 2020 is a change of +1.5.
Did the US grow faster than other G7 countries?
In the Trump 1 term, from 2016 to 2020, US growth was +0.90% a year and the G7 median was −0.76%, so the bar is +1.66 points.
See every term: Did the US grow faster than other G7 countries?
What came from outside the US?
Trump 1, from 2016 to 2020: growth outside the US averaged +1.6% a year, +6.7% in all. Export prices moved +0.4% a year against import prices, +1.8% in all.
How much did the federal government borrow?
Trump 1, top chart: its budget years, Oct 2016 to Sep 2020, averaged a deficit of 6.6% of GDP a year. Bottom chart: its debt went from 76.0% to 98.5% of GDP, a change of +22.5 points.
Did the uninsured rate go up or down?
Trump 1: 10.3% in 2016 to 11.0% in 2018 on the older survey, then 12.0% in 2019 to 11.5% in 2020 on the new one.
How many people did the Border Patrol stop at the Mexico border each year?
The bars of Trump 1, from left to right: 303,916 in FY2017; 396,579 in FY2018; 851,508 in FY2019; 400,651 in FY2020.
See every term: How many people did the Border Patrol stop at the Mexico border each year?
How we measured this term
- Term dates: 20 January 2017 to 19 January 2021.
- Monthly measures count: Jan 2017 to Jan 2021.
- Yearly measures count: 2016 to 2020.
- Budget and border measures count federal fiscal years, October to September: FY2016 to FY2020 (Federal deficit or surplus, Debt held by the public); FY2017 to FY2020 (Border Patrol stops at the Mexico border).
- Measures where the agency changed its method during the term: Poverty rate: two parts, each measured its own way, 2016 to 2017 and 2017 to 2020; Uninsured rate: two parts, each measured its own way, 2016 to 2018 and 2019 to 2020.
- Measures with no number for this term: none.
- Measures that count only part of the term: none.
What came from outside
Numbers about the world this term faced. They give context for the term’s own numbers.
- Recession months inside the term, by NBER’s dates: 2 months (Feb 2020 to Apr 2020).
- How fast the world outside the US grew: +1.6% a year (2017 to 2020).
- US export prices against import prices: +0.4% a year (2016 to 2020).
Every term has the same facts, from the same sources. All terms side by side: What came from outside the US?
These numbers show what happened during each term. Congress, the courts, the states, the Federal Reserve and events abroad also move them.