This paper explores the relationship between populist attitudes and democratic values using original survey data collected in Argentina, Brazil, Spain, Greece, Italy, and Poland (N > 10,000). Acknowledging the complexity of both concepts, we propose a Multidimensional Populist Attitudes Scale (MPAS) that distinguishes three dimensions of populism: anti-systemic, personalistic leadership, and identitarian. These dimensions are examined in relation to trust in democratic institutions, support for a liberal conception of democracy, traditional values, and the perceived importance of living in a democracy. Results suggest that populist attitudes are far from homogeneous, with different dimensions showing varying associations with democratic values. While anti-systemic attitudes are linked to distrust in institutions, they also exhibit a positive correlation with the importance of democracy, particularly when controlling for other political factors. Conversely, identitarian populism appears more strongly associated with illiberal values and traditionalist views, while the personalistic dimension shows mixed results across contexts. These findings reveal important cross-country variations, suggesting that national political and cultural factors shape the relationship between populist attitudes and democratic values. The study highlights the limitations of unidimensional populism measures and demonstrates the utility of a multidimensional approach for capturing the nuances of populist attitudes. Overall, this research contributes to ongoing debates on populism’s implications for democracy, emphasizing that populist citizens may simultaneously express dissatisfaction with the liberal-democratic model while maintaining support for democratic principles in general.