WASHINGTON, D.C. — About three in 10 Americans, 31%, expect driverless cars to be commonly used in the U.S. within five years, up from 19% in 2018; but fewer, a steady 19%, say they would personally own or lease one.
At the same time, the already small share viewing fully driverless vehicles as the safest option on U.S. roads has edged down from 18% in 2018 to 13% now. Meanwhile, 10% of U.S. adults report having ever ridden in a driverless car.
The latest findings are from a Gallup poll conducted Oct. 1-16, 2025.
Belief Rises That Driverless Cars Are Coming Soon; Adoption Still Low
The share of Americans who believe driverless cars will be commonly used within five years has grown substantially since Gallup last asked this question in 2018. Currently, 31% of Americans expect this within five years, up 12 percentage points from 2018. Another 34% expect societal adoption within six to 10 years. That means nearly two-thirds of Americans now expect driverless cars to be common on U.S. roads within a decade.
At the same time, Americans’ stated willingness to personally own or use a driverless car has not moved. Nineteen percent say they would own or lease a driverless car if the technology became widely available in the next 20 years, which is identical to the 2018 reading. Meanwhile, 73% say they would prefer to own a car that they personally drive, statistically similar to the 75% reading in 2018.
Expectations of near-term societal adoption are statistically similar across most demographic groups. However, three subgroups stand out as being the most likely to expect driverless vehicles within five years: 30- to 49-year-olds, higher-income adults, and people of color.
Simultaneously, intentions on personal adoption are a bit more varied. Men, college graduates, higher-income adults, people of color and suburban residents are more likely than others to report they would own or lease a driverless car if they become commonly available. Yet large majorities in these groups would still prefer a car they drive themselves.
Americans Still View Human-Operated Vehicles as Safest
Americans generally believe that U.S. roads would be safer with human-operated rather than driverless cars. Nearly six in 10 believe roads would be safest with either all human-operated vehicles (36%) or mostly human-operated vehicles (22%). That is three times the amount who think roads would be safest with all driverless cars (13%) or mostly driverless cars (6%). The remainder think roads would be safest with an equal mix of human-operated and driverless cars (21%) or have no opinion (3%).
Gallup asked the same question in 2018, and since then, there has been an increase in perceived safety of human-operated versus driverless cars. Back then, 47% thought roads would be safest with all (29%) or mostly (18%) human-operated cars, while 28% thought all (18%) or mostly (10%) driverless cars would result in the safest roads.
Current safety perceptions vary by gender, age, education and income. Women (42%) are more likely than men (29%) to say exclusively human-operated vehicles are the safest option. Older Americans 65+ (42%) lean more toward exclusively human-operated cars than do adults aged 18 to 29 (28%). Those without a college degree (41%) are more likely than college graduates (26%) to prefer fully human-operated cars, and rural residents (43%) more so than urban (36%) and suburban (26%) residents. And those with lower incomes (48%) are more likely than those with middle (37%) and higher incomes (22%) to have this view.
Experience With Driverless Cars Is Rare
One in 10 Americans report having ever ridden in a driverless car. Those who have done this are largely men, higher-income, college-educated, aged 18-49, or living in cities or suburbs. The data suggest that those who have ridden in a driverless car are more likely than those who have not to expect such cars to be common within five years, to say they would own or lease one, and to see them as safer.
Bottom Line
As driverless technology becomes more visible on U.S. roads, public expectations of widespread adoption are rising, but skepticism remains entrenched. More Americans now than in 2018 believe driverless cars will be common within five years. Yet confidence in these cars’ safety has declined, and personal willingness to own one has not changed. The findings suggest that broader personal adoption may depend less on technological advancement alone and more on increasing public exposure and trust.
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