<p>This study revisits the foundations of welfare regime divergence by integrating welfare regime typology, subjective class perceptions, and the Varieties of Capitalism framework. It argues that decommodification remains the key dimension distinguishing contemporary welfare states and that citizens’ subjective class perceptions interact with institutional structures to shape support for decommodifying policies. Using data from 22 advanced OECD economies, the analysis proceeds in two stages. First, a macro-level clustering based on principal component analysis identifies two welfare regime groups distinguished primarily by their level of decommodification. Second, an individual-level analysis using World Values Survey data shows that higher subjective class perception is associated with stronger support for income equality, public ownership, and government responsibility, with this relationship significantly stronger in more decommodified economies. These findings suggest that welfare state evolution is shaped not only by institutional configurations but also by how individuals perceive their social position and their trust in the state’s capacity to mitigate market risks. This study contributes to a more integrated understanding of welfare regime divergence by linking macro-structural variation with micro-level attitudinal dynamics.</p>