- Expansion of the American economic sphere of influence through financial incentives. The United States aimed to increase its economic and political power in the Western Hemisphere and beyond by investing in businesses, infrastructure, and governments of other countries.
- Financial stability and economic progress. The United States wanted to promote stability in the international financial system and encourage economic development in other countries, ensuring access to open markets and sources of raw materials.
- Avoiding the use of direct military force. The United States favored diplomacy and financial interventions over the use of military force to achieve its foreign policy goals.
Critics of Dollar Diplomacy argued that it mainly benefitted American businesses and wealthy elites, neglecting the needs and concerns of the people in the nations where the United States invested and intervened.