A CBS News/YouGov poll found most Americans describe the Iran conflict as "uncertain" or "frustrated," expect it to last months or years, and say it has been harder than the Trump administration anticipated.
Anthony Salvanto, CBS News executive director of elections and surveys, said the poll shows many Americans feel the Iran war is not going well and that those feelings are tied to the length of the war, communication about it and its impact on the economy.
The poll said the public's expressed goals have been consistent: opening the Strait of Hormuz, stopping Iran's nuclear program and stopping Iran from threatening the region.
The survey found that a majority still prefers ending the war rather than pressing for more concessions, but after a deal to end the war fell through, comparably fewer people now want the U.S. to end it immediately, a shift driven largely by Republicans.
Republicans who earlier backed the president when a memorandum of understanding for a ceasefire was announced in June now largely say the war should continue, the poll said.
About one-third of respondents want the U.S. to press on for more concessions from Iran, and the poll said those who favor pushing for concessions place special importance on the goals listed above.
The survey reported a generational divide: younger people are far more likely to say the war should end than Americans over 65.
Respondents said they do not feel they are getting a clear understanding of day-to-day developments in the Strait of Hormuz, and most said Mr. Trump makes things sound better than they are, the poll found; on balance, perceptions of how the war is going have ticked down over the course of the conflict.
Perceptions of which side has the advantage were mixed, the poll said, though slightly more people now say the U.S. has the advantage than in May, and approval of the military action overall remains stable and net negative.
The poll found economic concerns persist: a large majority said their incomes still are not keeping up with inflation, most said the president's focus is not enough on lowering prices and too much on tariffs and on making changes to buildings in Washington, and half the country said gas prices are difficult or a hardship.
Those who said their incomes are not keeping up with inflation were overwhelmingly opposed to new tariffs, and the poll said views on the economy continue to be mostly negative but are fairly stable and off their most recent lows.
The president's approval rating on Iran remains about where it has been and is still lower than his overall approval rating, which the poll said has ticked up a point since June; the public also does not clearly see an edge for Democrats over Trump and the Republicans on an approach to Iran, and those who say neither side has an edge or are unsure feel even more uncertain about the conflict.
The CBS News/YouGov survey interviewed a nationally representative sample of 2,193 U.S. adults between July 22-24, 2026; the sample was weighted by gender, age, race and education using the U.S. Census American Community Survey and Current Population Survey and 2024 presidential vote, and the margin of error is ±2.7 points.