The bond between American and Israeli Jews has strengthened significantly over the past five years, with a growing number of Americans now viewing Israelis as an extension of their own family, according to a recently commissioned survey by the Jewish Federations of North America.

The survey, conducted alongside a parallel poll of Israeli Jews, found that 62% of American Jews now view Israeli Jews as extended family or part of their community, up from 46% in an American Jewish Committee survey in 2021. Among Israeli Jews, 53% now view American Jews as extended family or part of their community, up from 45% in 2021.

The U.S. survey was conducted in May and June 2026, and included 2,836 Jewish respondents. The  Israeli survey included 1,323 Jewish adults and was conducted in May of this year. 

The findings capture how American and Israeli Jews view their connection during a turbulent period marked by the Oct. 7, 2023, terrorist attacks, the war in Gaza and rising global antisemitism. 

The new JFNA survey also found that the share who feel they have a lot in common with Israelis has risen to 29% — up from 19% in a 2020 Pew Research Center survey asking the same question. Among Israeli Jews, 43% say they have a lot in common with American Jews, and 44% say they have some things in common.

While American and Israeli Jews share a strong sense of identity, they differ on how much obligation comes with it. While 78% of Israeli Jews agreed that Jews around the world share a common fate and must act accordingly, 56% of American Jews said the same. 

Both communities also expressed support for Jewish life in the Diaspora. Nearly three-fourths of both American and Israeli Jews (72% of both populations) agreed that the Diaspora is a legitimate form of Jewish life, rather than a problem to be solved.

American Jewish philanthropy remains an important symbol of solidarity with Israel, according to the surveys, with 79% of Israeli Jews saying that American Jewish philanthropy in Israel is still important to Israeli society. Among American Jews, 67% agreed with that statement.

The surveys also examined whether giving after the Oct. 7, 2023, Hamas attacks made Israelis feel that Diaspora Jews genuinely cared about Israel. Sixty-eight percent of Israeli respondents agreed that it did, compared with 50% of American Jewish respondents. Views were more divided on whether American Jewish financial support was critical to Israeli rebuilding, with 40% of Israelis and 49% of American Jews agreeing with that assessment.

Travel to Israel was strongly associated with American Jews’ sense of shared identity with Israelis, with those who had visited the country once being 1.7 times as likely to feel they had things in common with Israeli Jews as those who had never visited. Respondents who had traveled to Israel more than once were 3.8 times as likely to report that connection, while those who had lived there were 11.2 times as likely.

The findings also suggest that direct experiences with Israelis may shape how American Jews understand their relationship with the Jewish state and its people. Among American Jews, 91% of those with more engaged contact with Israeli Jews reported feeling they had things in common, compared with 70% of those with more distant contact and 42% of those with no contact.