Approximately 40% of Americans have never left the United States.
Posted by REAL AF with Andy Frisella, Checked
- Sources
- 4 contradict3 support2 context
- Said
- 1 time·
- Confidence
- 50%
REAL AF with Andy FrisellaOct 28, 2026
The claim's 40% figure matches a 2019 OnePoll/Victorinox survey (The Hill, Forbes) and a 2025 Preply survey (42%), but Pew Research's 2023 data puts nontravelers at 23%, and other polls report about 14%. The figure falls within a wide range of competing survey estimates that depend on survey method and definition, so the claim is partly supported and partly contradicted.
A detail. The sources confirm the gist; the verdict faults a detail such as a date, number or wording.
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What was said
… You know, they don't know the talk, right? No, you don't know. You gotta read this book I read. Yeah, it just wasn't done right. About eleven to 16% of Americans have never left their state. About 54% of Americans have visited ten states or fewer, and about 40% of Americans have never left the United States. Yeah, it's a big problem. It's a big problem. Yeah, and I think you've been everywhere. You've been all over the world. I mean, what's your take? Going going to different countries gives you such a different perspective on so many different levels. …
REAL AF with Andy Frisella · · from the transcriptPost →What we found
Contradicts. Pew Research Center's 2023 analysis reports that about 23% of Americans have not traveled internationally, a much lower share than 40%.[1][2]
Contradicts. A 2021 Conference Board-era poll cited by StudyFinds and Yahoo/OnePoll found about 14% of Americans have never left the United States, far below 40%.[3][4]
Supports. A 2019 OnePoll survey of 2,000 U.S. adults, commissioned by Victorinox, found 40% of respondents said they had never left the country.[5][6]
Supports. A 2025 Preply survey of over 1,500 U.S. adults found 42% of Americans have never been abroad, which is close to the claimed figure.[7]
Context. The 40% figure is widely repeated in later coverage, but those pieces trace back to the same 2019 OnePoll survey and do not independently verify it.[8][9]
Sources
9 sources: 7 not rated, 1 tier 1, 1 tier 2
- 1Travel Tips for Globetrotters - Providence Wealth Advisorsprovidencewealth.com · not rated · cited for: contradicts
- 2Americans who travel abroad have more interest, knowledge of ...pewresearch.org · not rated · cited for: contradicts
- 3Nearly 1 in 6 people have never traveled outside their own state!studyfinds.com · not rated · cited for: contradicts
- 4A New Survey Reveals That One in Six Americans Have ...yahoo.com · not rated · cited for: contradicts
- 5Survey: 11 percent of Americans have not traveled outside ...thehill.com · tier 1 · cited for: supports
- 6Percentage Of Americans Who Never Traveled Beyond The State ...forbes.com · tier 2 · cited for: supports
- 7Nearly Half of Americans Have Never Left the Countrytimeout.com · not rated · cited for: supports
- 8What percentage of Americans have left the country?studycountry.com · not rated · cited for: context
- 9SURVEY: MANY AMERICANS DON’T TRAVEL – MORNING SIDEKICKmorningsidekick.com · not rated · cited for: context
Where this claim was made
Said in 1 published post