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The annual global Prosperity results are in! A huge survey, conducted by the Legatum Institute, a think-tank based in London, ranked the 'most prosperous' countries in the world. The survey considered many variables, from traditional indicators like GDP per capita, to the number of people in full time work, and the more interesting statistics like the number of secure internet servers a country has, to how well-rested people feel on a day to day basis. These variables were then split up into eight sub-indices: Economy, Entrepreneurship & Opportunity, Governance, Education, Health, Safety & Security, Personal Freedom, Social Capital. Here are the results: |
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26. Czech Republic: Up by three places this year, Czech Republic was rated highly (13th) in the Economy sub-index. Results showed that it performed badly in the index's social capital ranking. |
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Prague, Czech Republic Source |
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25. Slovenia: Education scored highly in Slovenia. But, as it finished 58th (from the 142 countries that were tested) in the economy index, this year, Slovenia fell by one place. |
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Lake Bled, Slovenia Source |
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24. Spain: This popular holiday destination, scored pretty well across the board. Spain scored especially well in terms of its education and personal freedom. |
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Zamora, Spain Source |
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23. Malta: Malta has retained its same position as last year. It didn't rank as well in its education system, placing 42nd, but in other sub-indices, Malta did pretty well. |
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Fungus Rock, Dwejra, Malta Source |
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22. France: Falling one place from last year, France's health score was eighth overall, however, its low social capital pushed it outside of the top 20 - the first time in four years. |
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Languedo C Roussillan, France Source |
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21. Taiwan: This island nation was given a big boost by a strong performance in the safety and security index - it ranked sixth! |
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Taipei, Taiwan |
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20.Hong Kong: When it comes to safety and security, Hong Kong is top of the pile. It also ranked among the top ten for entrepreneurship and opportunity. |
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Hong Kong |
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19. Japan: According to the Prosperity Index, citizens in Japan are the seventh-healthiest on earth. But, in terms of personal freedom, the country ranked 33rd, lowering its overall ranking. |
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Tokyo, Japan |
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18. Belgium: This year, Belgium has fallen by one place. However, it ranked inside the top 25 in every subindex, winning its best score for health, a category in which it ranked tenth. |
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Brussels Plaza City, Belgium |
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17. Singapore: Singapore swapped places with Belgium in this year's index - this was helped by finishing first in the economy subindex. |
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Financial District, Singapore |
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16. Austria: Despite sliding down one place this year, Austria did rank inside the top 10 in two categories - health, and entrepreneurship and opportunity. |
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Vienna, Austria |
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15. United Kingdom: This year, Britain fell two places - partly due to finishing outside the top 20 in education and safety indexes. |
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Eastbourne, UK |
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14. Germany: Germany has the fifth-best economy in the world, helping it stay 14th for the fourth year running. |
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Heidelberg, Germany |
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13. Luxembourg: Last year, Luxembourg ranked 16th. Its citizens high level of personal freedom and health, as well as strong governance and a good economy, have helped pushed the country higher in this year's rankings. |
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Luxembourg Source |
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12. Iceland: Iceland ranks among the top five in three subindexes: personal freedom, safety and security, as well as entrepreneurship and opportunity. It has, however, fallen one place from last year's index. |
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Skaftafellssysia, Iceland |
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11. United States: While the U.S. did score high in its health category, its citizens are among the least safe and secure on the list, having scored 33rd in this subindex. |
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Seattle, U.S. |
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10. Ireland: This year, Ireland jumped two places - thanks to finishing fourth in safety and security. |
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Dublin, Ireland Source |
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9. Finland: In terms of its economy, Finland ranked below the 25 mark, coming in at number 33. It did however , score well in the subindex of governance, ranking at number 5. |
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Helsinki, Finland |
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8. Netherlands: The Netherlands ranked high in education, health and personal freedom. |
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Amsterdam, Netherlands |
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7. Australia: For the past three years, Australia has ranked in seventh place. It scored especially high in the education subindex - in fact, according to the Prosperity index, Australia has the world's best education system. |
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Sydney, Australia |
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6. Canada: Canada is considered to be the true land of the free. Its citizens enjoy the highest levels of personal freedom of any nation surveyed. |
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Ottaoutais River, Canada |
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5. Sweden: Having gained one place in this year's index, Sweden is blessed with the world's highest levels of entrepreneurship and opportunity. |
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Stockholm, Sweden Source |
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4. New Zealand: New Zealand has the best level of social capital on earth, having strong social cohesion and community engagement. |
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New Zealand, Lake Gunn |
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3. Denmark: The Danes can enjoy great governance, top-level education and a high social-capital score. The country may have likely topped the whole index had it not been for its relatively poor health score, which ranked at number 16. |
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Copenhagen, Denmark |
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2. Switzerland: For the past three consecutive years, Switzerland has ranked second place. It ranks at the top in governance and has the second-highest-rated economy. |
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Zurich, Switzerland |
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1. Norway: Coming in at number one, for the seventh time in a row, Norway is the best country to live in - ranking in the top 10 in every subindex. |
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Fjord, Norway |
