Israel ranked last in the Anholt-Ipsos Nation Brands Index (NBI) for two consecutive years, placing 50th out of 50 in both the 2024 and 2025 editions.
What the Nation Brands Index measures
The NBI is a large-scale international public opinion survey designed to measure how countries are perceived rather than their “objective” performance. It evaluates national reputation across six dimensions: tourism, people, culture, governance, exports, and immigration/investment (the labels vary slightly across the write-ups, but the framework is consistent across both articles).
2024 Results
In the 2024 Nation Brands Index, Israel ranked 50th out of 50 countries, placing last in the global standings. The survey was conducted in July-August 2024 and included more than 40,000 respondents worldwide.
The findings indicated a sharp deterioration in Israel’s international image, with respondents widely viewing Israel as a destabilizing force in global affairs. The reputational decline was described as extending beyond criticism of government policy to broader perceptions of the country itself.
Particular concern was raised regarding the economic dimensions of the index, including attitudes toward Israeli exports and products. Reporting on the results suggested growing reluctance among global consumers to engage economically with Israel, raising warnings about potential long-term effects on trade, tourism, and investment.
Following the 2024 ranking, BrandIL representatives characterized the results as a severe reputational setback and announced a proposed $100 million nation-branding initiative to rebuild Israel’s global image. The effort was intended to focus especially on younger demographics and key Western markets.
2025 Results
The 2025 Nation Brands Index, conducted in August–September 2025, again ranked Israel 50th out of 50, marking a second consecutive year at the bottom of the index.
Israel’s overall score declined by 6.1%, the largest single-year drop in the index’s history. The deterioration was especially pronounced in the “people” dimension, which measures perceptions of trustworthiness, warmth, and empathy toward a country’s citizens. In this category, Israel ranked last, reflecting what analysts described as a significant erosion of goodwill toward Israeli society itself.
The decline was reported to be particularly sharp among Generation Z respondents, especially in Western countries. According to reporting on the findings, global audiences increasingly framed Israel in highly negative ideological terms, with distinctions between government policy and Israeli society described as largely disappearing in public perception.
Israel also ranked last in perceptions related to exports and products in the 2025 survey, reinforcing concerns that reputational damage could translate into broader economic consequences.
Analysts noted a growing divergence between Israel’s strong objective indicators, such as GDP per capita, technological innovation, and educational attainment, and its global reputational standing. The consecutive last-place rankings intensified debate over the strategic implications of sustained brand erosion for diplomacy, economic resilience, and public diplomacy.
“Israel ranked as most destabilizing country according to Global National Brands Index,” Jerusalem Post, (February 4, 2025).
Sarah Ben-Nun, “Israel ranks last again in global Nation Brands Index amid sharp perception decline,” Jerusalem Post, (December 25, 2025).
Zvi Zerahia, “Israel’s global image collapses despite strong economic fundamentals,” Calcalist, (December 25, 2025).