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Countries with the Highest HDI

Name the countries with the best quality of life as measured by Human Development Index.
2021/22 HDI report. Data are from the year 2021.
HDI measures income, life expectancy, and education
Hong Kong is given because it is not a sovereign nation
Quiz by mac212121
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Last updated: November 1, 2022
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First submittedApril 18, 2012
Times taken116,580
Average score90.0%
Rating4.96
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HDI
Country
n/a
Monaco
n/a
Vatican City
0.962
Switzerland
0.961
Norway
0.959
Iceland
0.952
Hong Kong
0.951
Australia
0.948
Denmark
HDI
Country
0.947
Sweden
0.945
Ireland
0.942
Germany
0.941
Netherlands
0.940
Finland
0.939
Singapore
0.937
Belgium
0.937
New Zealand
HDI
Country
0.936
Canada
0.935
Liechtenstein
0.930
Luxembourg
0.929
United Kingdom
0.925
Japan
0.925
South Korea
0.921
United States
+2
Level 64
Jul 9, 2012
I'm horrified that the UK didn't make it into the top 20!
+4
Level ∞
Oct 12, 2014
They made it now!
+8
Level 83
Nov 8, 2016
Unlike those filthy Austrians, Belgians, Finns, Taiwanese, Qataris and Luxembourgers... living in squalor. :D If the USA failed to make this list the way they have, you all know what's what people would be saying. Even though it would be no less ridiculous than what I just said.
+25
Level 71
Mar 10, 2018
Those are your words Kalbahamut......... not funny and not clever.
+28
Level 83
Mar 12, 2018
Funny? No, not really. Clever? Debatable. But certainly true. There is a definite double standard, with the US held to a much higher standard than other developed countries. I'm quite sure if, as Kalbahamut says, the US were to narrowly miss out on this list, half the comment section would be crowing. Is it fair? Again, debatable. Perhaps the world's first and only truly democratic superpower should be held to a higher standard. Whatever your answer on that, Kal isn't wrong.
+15
Level 60
Mar 30, 2021
"only true democratic superpower" lmfao sit down. true democracy hardly exists and the US is nowhere near the definition.
+3
Level 83
Mar 30, 2021
Reading comprehension sadly not among the list of super-powers conferred by radioactive spider bites.
+9
Level 74
Jul 18, 2021
Typical snide reply from Jingoist Kal. Nowhere in his comment did Tom evidence lack of comprehension of your words, but all you got is condescending ridicule as a response. Stay murican.
+3
Level 83
Aug 14, 2021
Nothing I've ever said in my life was jingoistic, both you and Tom *clearly* did not understand what I wrote, and you are outing yourself for being the things you hypocritically accuse others of (and throw in a nice little bigoted slur at the end there for good measure, just to make sure we got it). Not a good look. I'd say stay... whatever you are... but... actually, don't. Whatever you represent there should be less of it in the world. Try to change.
+3
Level 33
Nov 29, 2022
Murican is not a slur lmao is that a joke?
+1
Level 83
Dec 1, 2022
It clearly is. And no, it's not a joke. Slur = "a word or grammatical form expressing a negative or a disrespectful connotation, a low opinion, or a lack of respect toward someone or something. It is also used to express criticism, hostility, or disregard." I looked it up for you. You're welcome.
+1
Level 74
Feb 10, 2023
First, I understood perfectly. You constantly belittle other people's intelligence here, don't cry when you get some if you're always dishing it out.

Second, considering you always jump at even the slightest criticism of the US (even if it is valid), or when none is even implied like in the OP, it's perfectly reasonable and accurate to say you're very nationalistic. If you weren't, you wouldn't get butthurt every single time you read even the slightest negative comment about your country.

(continued...)

+1
Level 74
Feb 10, 2023
The problem you seem to have is, like many people in the US, you are blind to it, probably even thinking that you're overall very critical of your country. And maybe you are in some aspects, but the cultural indoctrination is so strong that you just can't see things which are obvious to an outside viewer. This cultural issue, that goes from swearing loyalty to the flag every morning as a kid, to praising your soldiers no matter the justification for the conflicts they're involved in, and includes the need to "defend" your country every single time it receives even the slightest critique, is what I cheekily referred to as "murican". You see, despite what you arrogantly think, I don't talk out of my ass, and when I say something, I have arguments to back it up. "Murican" in this context isn't a slur.

It is obvious from your comments that you look down upon the people you're arguing with, like me. You might want to take some of the advice you're dispensing and get off your high horse.

+1
Level 27
Jul 9, 2012
Surprised the UK isn't on there
+2
Level 68
Jul 9, 2012
Who would have thought that Slovenia would have a higher quality of life than the UK or Ireland?
+2
Level 62
Jul 10, 2012
I'm sure the UK is on here....just done it in Geography and the UK was around 10th......
+3
Level 83
Dec 11, 2013
28th for the quiz year's data. In 2013 they moved up two spots to 26th. Good job.
+3
Level 41
Jul 10, 2012
Go Israel :-)
+1
Level 76
Jul 10, 2012
Ireland has got a higher quality of life...
+4
Level 45
Sep 2, 2020
If that's sarcasm you've obviously never been to Ireland.
+1
Level 32
Jul 10, 2012
The UK isn't there?! Wut?
+1
Level 20
Jul 13, 2012
The UK should be on here - just looked it up, it's listed as #12
+1
Level ∞
Jul 16, 2012
The UK is number 28:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_countries_by_Human_Development_Index

+4
Level ∞
Oct 3, 2018
Now up to number 13! Nice work UK.
+10
Level 27
Jul 17, 2012
Ok I can't take this data serious at all... I'm from Switzerland and can tell that we definitely have a higher "HDI" than Germany and the U.S.... I don't want to express that this has to influence the quality of a single person, but still, the nation is way more richer than the other two
+2
Level 32
Mar 29, 2017
Way richer, not way more richer
+2
Level 65
Feb 19, 2018
Double comparative notwithstanding, Switzerland is higher than Germany and the U.S. as of this date.
+4
Level 77
Dec 10, 2018
According to my German gut, Switzerland ranks higher than Germany as well.
+4
Level 54
Oct 31, 2020
HDI isn't a measure of wealth, and the gaps between these nations are so tiny anyway. You wouldn't notice the difference.
+3
Level 31
Jul 18, 2012
Hey sorry what, I guess little Switzerland is only good at banking, skiing, and eating chocolate. Doesn't fit in with the big leagues
+4
Level 83
Nov 3, 2013
also making watches, yodeling, making cheese, and hiding Nazi gold.
+2
Level 83
Nov 3, 2013
though in fairness pretty much everybody I know who has ever been to Switzerland absolutely loves the country and lists it at the top or near the top on their list of favorite places.... but... agree with some of the sentiment here that it is enjoyable seeing self-important people being taken down a peg.
+21
Level 71
Jul 12, 2018
Self important people.... pot, kettle....
+1
Level 83
Oct 4, 2018
I'm sorry that you are having trouble separating truthfulness from self importance.
+12
Level 55
Jan 4, 2021
He replied, self-importantly.
+2
Level 83
Feb 15, 2021
thanks for chiming in, clueless hypocrite. We were all waiting with baited breath to see what "Teegthebeeg" had to say on the subject.
+11
Level 60
Mar 30, 2021
just as we were all restlessly waiting for kalbahamut to share his opinion?
+1
Level 83
Mar 30, 2021
see comment above about reading comprehension and super powers. Sad. Very sad.
+8
Level 60
Mar 30, 2021
strawmen in the jetpunk comment section! how delightful.
+1
Level 83
Apr 1, 2021
and... you don't know what a strawman argument is, either. Not surprising. Go back to school, Spider-Man.
+1
Level 88
Oct 4, 2018
And making that chocolate in the shape of a prism.
+1
Level 83
Dec 1, 2022
Since leaving the above comment I've been to Switzerland myself. The reputation it has for being beautiful, affluent, well-developed and pristine is clearly deserved. Though it's not a place I'd personally want to live for various reasons not related to HDI. Were they not on the list before? They're #1 now... maybe they weren't ranked previously.
+2
Level 68
Jul 28, 2012
What's sad is that I'm American and I didn't put my country until about 8 or 9 countries in.. I was like "NORWAY SWEDEN SWITZERLAND" bam bam bam lawl

Surprised about the UK though.

+2
Level 85
Dec 3, 2012
Then you're not a true red blooded patriotic 'Merican.
+5
Level 17
Sep 24, 2020
no one cares
+1
Level 83
Jan 6, 2013
Never really agreed with the HDI... or that high HDI = high quality of life... the criteria they use is so narrow and there are much better things for determining quality of life that they don't even consider like climate, entertainment, culture, and the availability of attractive easy women. But I still got all but 3 of these.
+1
Level 83
Nov 3, 2013
a year later I got 100%. I think Slovenia tripped me up before.
+16
Level 57
Aug 8, 2014
I hope this was partially a joke, but I'll post this anyway. I for one agree with HDI very thoroughly.

Everyone has their own taste in climate. I come from Estonia (think of it as Finland) and I can't stand temperatures above 25 Celsius. Below -25 C is just fine for me.

The cultures of countries are different and it'd be offensive to call some cultures better than others.

One more thing, attractive easy women might lead you to bad situations. Plus they don't work as good as their more intelligent counterparts.

+3
Level 76
Dec 1, 2014
So you're saying that all ugly, moral women are intelligent and hard-working?
+3
Level 83
Dec 1, 2014
It wasn't a joke at all. As a species we are designed to want sex almost as much as air and food and water. If it's easier to have it, this will improve your quality of life. In some societies it has become so difficult to obtain that people have become moralistic prudes who spend a lot of their time spitefully condemning Charlie Sheen and Miley Cyrus for having more interesting lives than they themselves have. It's sad, and as this is a product of the cultures that produce those people I would say this is one of many ways we can objectively measure the worth of those cultures, whether it offends somebody or not. As Sam Harris would say, and he's spent a career thinking about and writing on this subject, not all cultures or belief systems are equally good at producing happiness or contentment. Where we can measure the outcomes we don't have to adopt a relativistic stance on the causes. Saudi culture produce a lot of suicidal young women. Australian, not so much.
+6
Level 69
Jun 20, 2016
I'm not jumping into to the discussion of women, but it is true that climate issues are scientifically proven to have actual effects on mental and physical health that are not tied to personal preference. For instance, sunlight is a proven regulator of mood; people who live in sunlight-deprived locales (either due to latitude or to climate issues such as rain or fog) have higher incidences of depression and alcoholism.
+4
Level 83
Mar 24, 2017
^ yes. and suicide.
+5
Level 71
Mar 30, 2021
While I don't think "climate" should be considered part of development, what samiamco says is true. And what I do think should be part of HDI is mental health. It sounds like the index focuses more on physical well-being, and while in most regards that's pretty high in Western countries, mental health certainly isn't. Just take a look at this: mental health disorders are more common in "developed" countries by a fairly significant margin, which isn't surprising given how high-stress our cultures are.

I'm not saying that I'd rather live in a developing country--I'm pretty happy with my life in America. But just because I'm happy doesn't mean I'm not constantly stressed out. It was pretty eye-opening for me when I went to rural Bangladesh and saw how tranquil life is there, despite the high poverty rates. We could maybe learn a thing or two from that.

+2
Level 83
Apr 2, 2021
not development. But the original title of this quiz was "countries by 'quality of life'"... and it should definitely be a major component of that. The title of the quiz has since changed to reflect what it's actually about and several of my above comments no longer make as much sense as they used to.
+26
Level 46
Dec 3, 2014
You're talking about women as if they were a commodity, which is pretty offensive. Women and men should be considered as equals. You also seem to have a pretty heteronormative way of considering "sex": some men and women might not find that "attractive and easy women" is their heart's desire. It's not about being "prude" or "moralistic", it's about treating women the same way you'd treat men. Sex must be a willing act, where both partners consider each other as equals. You'd need to consider "the availability of attractive and easy men" an equal criterion, and I'm not sure most men (as for women) would agree to be categorized that way. Also, how would you define "easy" and "attractive"? These definitions, and also those of entertainment and culture, will differ in every country, as do political, social and religious constructs. Using a global classification process like the HDI can only use a limited number of criteria, and thus can only rely on observable and comparable data.
+3
Level 83
Dec 4, 2014
I'm not doing what you're saying I'm doing. Your comments here are ridiculous. Women are brainwashed by patriarchal male-dominated society, where they are treated as property and commodities only good for marriage and must therefore preserve their sale value by remaining chaste and pure, in many places. By subscribing to the values of those cultures you are more guilty than I could ever be of reducing women to objects. The availability of quality bachelors, or attractive easy men (though, really, where in the world are men NOT easy? That's irrelevant) certainly are valid criteria and should be considered, though this isn't important to me personally.

You've got a point about attractiveness being subjective, though it can still be measured by consensus opinion. Not that that's going to be the best way for an individual. They can make that assessment themselves. Access to fulfilling sexual/dating/romantic opportunities can also be measured, as can sex-aversion/neuroticism.

+11
Level 68
Aug 5, 2016
Weird.
+1
Level 83
Mar 24, 2017
thanks
+7
Level 58
Feb 27, 2021
hey kalbahamut im a big fan, but this was a huge miss :(
+2
Level 83
Mar 30, 2021
Just because it doesn't conform to the ideas you've been programmed by society and culture to understand and accept as valid doesn't mean it was a miss. I stand by what I said.
+3
Level 59
Mar 30, 2021
Jetpunk is so cool. I can literally read arguments from 8 years ago that are still ongoing.
+12
Level 60
Mar 30, 2021
this comment is just as deplorable now as it was 8 years ago and the fact that your stance hasn't changed in that time really says a lot about you personally. for someone who travels around a lot, you sure have a narrow worldview.
+2
Level 83
Mar 30, 2021
person 1 has a view on a topic that is the product of extensive travel, experience, study, and personal enlightenment. One that does not match the conventional "wisdom" of any one place, time, or culture; but rather transcends them all and comes closer to approaching truth than any.

person 2, petty, petulant, adversarial, angry, insecure, the sort who lashes out at others online he disagrees with because of all of the above (or thinks he disagrees with, as he's not especially good at reading), has a view on same topic that is entirely conventional, the product of the time and place he was born, irrevocably shackled to his own culture.

person 2 calls person 1's worldview "narrow"...

smh...

+5
Level 71
Mar 30, 2021
I won't accuse you of having a narrow worldview, but saying that you're closer to the "truth" than anyone else? That's silly. Your views of right and wrong are exactly as important as mine--which is to say they're entirely subjective and only really affect our own consciences in the end. I genuinely respect that you are willing to share your experiences and your knowledge with us--I know I've learned a lot from reading your comments--but please don't act like everything you believe in is automatically true and that people are wrong if they disagree with you.
+3
Level 83
Apr 1, 2021
Fair enough. Am I wrong? Prove me wrong through argumentation. I'm confident that you cannot (on this subject, I'm plenty ignorant on other subjects), but I'm willing to listen if you try. I've been wrong before. On the other hand... call someone's view on a subject "narrow"... when it does not conform to any one time or place and in fact goes against everything that we are indoctrinated to believe from birth onward and thus could only be arrived at through contemplation and protracted synthesis? (when the person issuing this insult obviously has not done that) That will make you look foolish.
+2
Level 83
Apr 1, 2021
I also disagree that right and wrong are subjective. Different argument, though... but I can make a strong case for my opinion.
+2
Level 71
Apr 2, 2021
Fair enough. I disagree with your argument, but I'll also concede that don't have any strong rationale/enough experience to make my case. Since there's no hard data or proven correlation behind attractiveness and quality of life (unless you can find some for me), I'd say this is pretty subjective and based on what people value. Personally, I don't think that sex is the one of the most important requirements for a good life, but I also think that's kinda hard to prove one way or another. And your arguments make sense, even if I don't agree with them.

(Ironically, I'm posting this comment on the same day I'm set to learn about "attractiveness" in my Social Psych class. Maybe I'll learn something!)

+2
Level 62
May 17, 2022
I think Kal phrased his argument in a poor manner but I agree with him. Rather than using "beautiful and easy women" as a metric, perhaps it would be more appropriate to say that cultures that are more liberal when it comes to sex/relationships are happier. Humans are biologically hard wired to be social, part of that involves entering into relationships with people you are attracted to. Looking at countries such as India/Saudi Arabia, where they don't have the same culture regarding sex/relationships, I think it's fair to say that young women aren't very happy with the status quo.
+1
Level 83
Nov 28, 2022
I sometimes enjoy saying observably true things in a way that I know will trigger an emotional, irrational, knee-jerk (but rhetorically indefensible) reaction from people.

I understand how to say the same thing using different words in a way that would be almost universally accepted, even applauded, it's not that I'm bad with words.... but.... I just also think it's silly that people get so worked up over semantics and word connotations without caring about what is true or what the words actually mean, that virtually nobody is capable of logical or rational reflection when they are thus triggered, and that as a result almost none of us can be truly honest and just say what we mean; we have to constantly tiptoe around eggshells trying to find inoffensive and socially acceptable ways to convey some portion of a similar idea. Often tiresome, sometimes amusing.

Probably has something to do with being on the spectrum.

+1
Level 58
Nov 28, 2022
It's not really that deep, its just upsetting that you were talking about women as if they were objectively inferior to men
+1
Level 83
Dec 1, 2022
I assure you I wasn't and never have done this, as it's not something I have ever believed. If anything I used to believe that women were generally superior to men (and have since decided that all humans generally speaking are equally crappy). Anyway, if you read this implication in the above or any other comments I have made, the implication is in your head. Certainly I do not believe that being sexually open or positive makes one inferior (if that's where you got this from)... quite the contrary. Perhaps you should evaluate your own implicit biases when it comes to this subject and how you view people who are.
+1
Level 36
Feb 21, 2013
Missed Leichtenstein and Slovenia...
+1
Level 48
Apr 3, 2013
Take it easy guys, I'm sure this list is not 100% because that's impossible. Also, it would be silly to make generalizations about countries without having lived right throughout the country and making an accurate and objective judgement. Otherwise I'm very glad to see Australia at no.2 :)
+1
Level 34
May 4, 2013
100% Too easy.
+2
Level 54
Oct 31, 2020
Are we supposed to include Nauru and Guinea-Bissau on this list to make it harder?
+4
Level 21
May 31, 2013
The fact that Ireland finally makes it onto an elite list that the UK doesn't... Go Ireland!
+1
Level 56
Jun 2, 2013
I'm so happy the UK isn't on here
+4
Level 77
May 7, 2020
It is now, buster.
+1
Level 53
Sep 22, 2013
got Slovenia but missed Israel :|
+1
Level 35
Nov 29, 2013
Got all with 40 sec left.
+1
Level 78
Jun 1, 2014
I am surprised Finland isn't there. All the other nordic countries are.
+1
Level 36
Mar 26, 2017
Gets Iceland [Tiny Voice] Yaaaaaaaay
+1
Level 66
Nov 11, 2014
How could I miss South Korea?
+1
Level 44
Dec 1, 2014
No Holland for Netherlands? No Korea for South Korea? Just saying.
+3
Level 25
Dec 1, 2014
I understand the Holland one, but there are two Koreas
+1
Level 66
Jan 22, 2019
Why? It is as wrong as calling america 'murica (though the words come from different places, so not comparible in every way, but equally wrong)
+2
Level ∞
Dec 1, 2014
To be consistent with our other quizzes, Holland will work now. (Even though it's wrong).
+7
Level 66
Jan 22, 2019
Why not just scrap it instead if perpetuating this..
+2
Level 54
Dec 1, 2014
I am somewhat concerned that Austria is not there - which is where I live. Maybe the fact that there is STILL no complete smoking ban affects their rating. Honestly there is no excuse.
+1
Level ∞
Dec 1, 2014
Austria is #21. They are #13 in "inequality-adjusted" HDI, while the US falls to #28.
+1
Level 35
Feb 27, 2023
I'm sure Australia fall a long way on that thanks to how the system treats our indigenous inhabitants
+4
Level 33
Dec 1, 2014
Notice how none of the primarily muslim middle eastern countries made the list.
+6
Level 72
Jun 5, 2017
Many Islamic countries aren't poor --- Qatar, Bahrain, Kuwait, UAE are all oil-rich countries. Although they may not be first-world countries, that doesn't mean that they aren't rich. If you really think that countries are being held back because of their religion, then you really have no idea how the world works.
+3
Level 74
Jan 24, 2019
I think you'll find that religion, or more specifically, interpretation of that religion, is a major reason why most Islamic countries don't make lists like these. Some of the oil rich middle eastern nations do have immense wealth, but it is not distributed across the population very equitably. Similar for other criteria like education, healthcare and democratic freedoms (especially for women)
+1
Level 30
Apr 6, 2021
All those countries you mentioned are rich but because they are largely Islamic republics, they do indeed fail to reach a respective HDI due to their staunch wealth distribution and poor democracy, law, and human rights. So yeah, if they are Islamic countries, they do tend do to rather poorly. Of course there are countries with a majority Muslim population that seperate religion from the state to a fair degree like Turkey or Albania but these countries lack wealth and general living standards unfortnuately.
+1
Level 48
Nov 6, 2022
This is pretty untrue. This list is ranking off of base HDI. The highest ranking conservative Muslim country is the UAE with an HDI of 0.911, only 5 spots from being on this list and higher than France and Spain. Other high ranking conservative Muslim countries are Bahrain (0.875), Saudi Arabia (0.875), Qatar (0.855), Kuwait (0.831), Brunei (0.829), and Oman (0.816). If we're talking about inequality adjusted HDI (IHDI), it would be a different story because these countries all have high rates of inequality, which is completely irrelevant to their religion.
+4
Level 25
Dec 1, 2014
I'm quite surprised the USA is so high seeing as they hardly get any holidays from work plus all the foreigners doing cheap labour.
+6
Level 83
Dec 1, 2014
Holidays and number of foreigners are not part of the criteria for determining HDI. Why would the latter matter, anyway? Isn't the fact that the USA attracts millions more immigrants than any other country in the world sort of proof that they have high standards of living there? Other people want to go to the country and live and work there even if it means picking berries. I knew undocumented day workers in Virginia who made upwards of $20-$25 an hour working in the USA. Twelve years ago. Compare that to Saudi Arabia where the average Bengali floor sweeper earns $80 a month, or the average educated and qualified Filipina nurse makes at best $1000 a month, and you can see (part of) why it's such a desirable destination for immigrants.
+1
Level 25
Dec 2, 2014
For things like this they should separate the UK up
+6
Level 82
Nov 22, 2015
If they did that, they would probably have to put all the US states separately as well, seeing as there are probably more differences between some states than there are between the countries of the UK.
+8
Level 52
Mar 28, 2017
Not to mention Australia and Canada. Oh, and Spain and France. Come on, practically every big country has diverse regions.
+2
Level 14
Dec 4, 2014
Yep, Norway! Suck it people! (Only kidding)
+3
Level 35
Dec 28, 2014
HDI and Quality of Life aren't the same things... there are separate rankings for these
+1
Level 66
Jan 22, 2015
Only missed Israel.
+3
Level 27
Feb 25, 2015
Unreal! I simply cannot believe Ireland and Iceland make this list. Both are on the verge of bankruptcy and Ireland in particular has all sorts of social ills, mostly related to religious issues. Japan has a lot of economic issues in recent years, too. I admit to being surprised.

By the way, I had a problem with this quiz. It wouldn't show Norway, even though I tried typing it three times. But after my time was up, it showed I *had* got it. Just a glitch, I guess.

+3
Level 69
Jun 20, 2016
I can't explain Ireland, but I do know that Iceland has something like a 98% literacy rate, and education very heavily weighted in the HDI.
+4
Level 60
Mar 30, 2021
Ireland has a life expectancy of 82 years, a GNI of $70,000, 18 expected years of education. It ranks highly on both the inequality-adjusted HDI as well as the GDI, it's earned its place on this list through recent developments. Not that it's perfect or anything, as the poisons of the Catholic Church still linger in parts of society, particularly among the older generations and our GII is lacking. The efficacy of our education system comes into question too, but Ireland more than meets the criteria for being on this list, hence its (currently) high position, and I'm willing to bet it was reasonably high in 2015 too.
+1
Level 48
Mar 11, 2015
I'm surprised that there is no Austria and Belgium.
+2
Level 86
Nov 18, 2015
Tied for 21 at the moment. Top 30 does not seem to be very stable with countries quite often slipping in and out the top 20.
+4
Level 64
Nov 15, 2015
If you notice, all these countries are American allies or pro-Western in some way. I suppose the USA is in fact not the "Great Satan".
+6
Level 16
Aug 24, 2017
-_- Because Western countries or countries in contact with the west are very modern, they have good life expectancies. People always put down western society as if there's a better society. Sure, there may be some OK countries sprinkled around, but look at Africa, most of Asia, and South America.
+12
Level 49
Aug 6, 2018
That's partly because western countries have exploited others for so long. And also being an American ally has very little to do with it. If, say, Germany, suddenly decided to cut ties with the USA, then their HDI would likely not go down.
+2
Level 84
Nov 17, 2015
What, no Vatican City?
+3
Level 54
Oct 31, 2020
The Popes live in squalor.
+1
Level 22
Jan 27, 2016
I got em all :D
+1
Level 22
Feb 21, 2016
Was totally going to type "Australia" and then thought, "no, not Australia." I'm so mad!
+1
Level 68
Aug 5, 2016
That is madness! Got them all WooHoo.
+2
Level 31
Jun 3, 2016
I'm surprised the USA is so far above and Japan is so low. I guess it is to do with GDP but still....
+2
Level 42
Sep 5, 2016
at 0.892 does Luxembourg not make the list?
+1
Level 73
Nov 8, 2016
Seems the data is a little outdated. The latest table on Wikipedia shows a slightly different ranking and even gives no-UN scores for Monaco and San Marino which would come in at 1 and 7 in the list.
+1
Level 36
Nov 8, 2016
I don't get how Israel beat France
+6
Level 71
Nov 8, 2016
Although interesting, this quiz is nigh on useless as facts go. 0.06 is the difference between first and last. I've lived and worked in six of these countries and have stayed and travelled through many others. There is no country listed that has managed to give the 'Best Quality of Life' to all it's people, on the contrary, where many people live in luxury and with all the chances there are many with nothing for assets and no chance to better themselves.
+2
Level 85
Mar 22, 2017
Wow, this quiz seems to inspire loads of heated commentary. So let me be the first 2017 commenter. What happened to Slovenia this year? I was just there and it's as beautiful, friendly and developed as ever...
+4
Level ∞
Mar 22, 2017
The HDI numbers keep going up. So a country can fall off the list if its HDI doesn't increase as fast as others.
+2
Level 89
Mar 23, 2017
Otherwise known as "List of Countries I Would Have No Qualms About Visiting".
+1
Level 57
Mar 24, 2017
Israel and South Korea higher than Finland?
+3
Level 48
Mar 24, 2017
When it's 2 or 4 thousandths (hundredths?) of a percent does it matter?
+2
Level 67
Mar 24, 2017
Does anyone have any insight into why Monaco is not on this list? Very surprising.
+1
Level 76
Mar 24, 2017
Read the earlier comments. It didn't generate enough data to be included on the list.
+1
Level 72
Mar 24, 2017
Missed Israel :(
+2
Level 65
Mar 24, 2017
Don't see too many religious countries on here...hmmmm....
+6
Level 22
Mar 26, 2017
Or that many black or Arab countries. Makes you wonder.
+4
Level 60
Mar 30, 2021
wonder about the lingering effects of colonialism that took place centuries ago? sure does!
+5
Level 30
Apr 6, 2021
Yeah, Hong Kong and Singapore are really feeling those colonial effects. lol.
+1
Level 61
Nov 28, 2022
Well, obviously some places that were colonized are going to propsper — but the fact is, most former colonies are still feeling the effects of imperialism.
+1
Level 57
Mar 24, 2017
Aussie Aussie Aussie!
+2
Level 74
Mar 24, 2017
Glad to see the UK back on the list.

Why aren't microstates like Monaco/Andorra etc or rich oil states like Qatar/Bahrain on here though? Why doesn't their wealth correlate to their HDI? I'm sure there are reasons, but I don't know enough about these places to guess why.

+2
Level 83
Mar 24, 2017
Bahrain is not very oil rich. Their oil has been exhausted and currently their economy, as far as I can tell, depends mostly on Russian, Chinese, and Moroccan prostitutes servicing the young Saudi men who flood across the causeway every weekend. They've also got some shopping malls and an F1 track but that's about it.

Qatar, Kuwait and the Emirates are more wealthy and have more oil but I think education and life expectancy lag behind wages in these countries, which could negatively impact their HDI score.

+1
Level 74
Mar 25, 2017
Interesting, thanks
+2
Level 83
Oct 4, 2018
I've been told by my friends who are still in Bahrain that some of the most notorious brothotels in Hoora have either closed up shop or gotten rid of the working girls on the premises, and now that they are allowing women to drive in Saudi Arabia and they started opening up movie theaters there, too, Saudi weekend tourism to Bahrain has dropped dramatically. The island nation's economy might be in serious trouble over the next few years.
+4
Level 65
Mar 24, 2017
UK will be back off the list next time...a nation going backwards
+1
Level 79
Mar 10, 2018
That's my guess too, but I hope I'm proved wrong. Either way, it's a good test of the Brexit decision.
+5
Level 77
Feb 12, 2021
On the contrary, the United Kingdom's HDI score has been increasing year-on-year, and now has overtaken the United States'.
+3
Level 5
Mar 24, 2017
Roosa from Finland

This the right order:

1 Norway

2 Australia

3. Denmark

4. Switzerland

5. Canada

6. Sweden

7. New-Zealand

8. Finland

9. United States

10. Iceland

11. Netherlands

+1
Level 61
Mar 24, 2017
That's your opinion. This is based on statistics.

(From Wikipedia) The Human Development Index (HDI) is a composite statistic of life expectancy, education, and income per capita indicators. A country scores higher HDI when the life expectancy at birth is longer, the education period is longer, and the income per capita is higher. It is used to distinguish whether the country is a developed, a developing or an underdeveloped country.

+2
Level 66
Jan 22, 2019
Uhm im pretty sure it is not just her opinion. Too detailed list and not an order you'd expect if someone told their personal preferences.

just because she didnt post her source doesnt mean it is an opinion. (Perhaps it is simply the latest data of the source you quoted, or another place that has more recent data than wikipedia)

+4
Level 55
Jan 4, 2021
See Hitchen's razor...

Hitchens' razor is an epistemological razor expressed by writer Christopher Hitchens. It says that the burden of proof regarding the truthfulness of a claim lies with the one who makes the claim; if this burden is not met, then the claim is unfounded, and its opponents need not argue further in order to dismiss it

+1
Level 71
Mar 26, 2017
Otherwise I'd forget luxembourg and liechtenstein existed.. I'll show myself out ;
+2
Level 60
Jul 4, 2017
Monaco and San Marino have yet to be official scored due to a lack of information, but Monaco is estimated in 2014 to be 1.074 and San Marino is estimated to be around 0.875.
+2
Level 54
Oct 12, 2020
Isn't 1.000 the upper bound?
+2
Level 69
Dec 25, 2020
No it is not, the HDI formula is just adjusted all several years such that it is really hard to exceed 1.000.
+1
Level 38
Sep 29, 2018
GO NORWAY!!!
+4
Level 71
Oct 4, 2018
Since Monaco made the list, I'm assuming that the number of Ferraris and yachts owned per capita figures highly into the HDI.
+5
Level ∞
Oct 30, 2018
If I owned Monaco's soccer team, I'd rename them the Monaco Monocles to reflect the nation's proud culture as a tax haven for the megarich.
+1
Level 68
Oct 30, 2018
Description says 20 but there's 22 answers!
+1
Level ∞
Oct 30, 2018
Removed the number from the description.
+1
Level 64
Dec 10, 2018
I'm used to the EIU report for HDI, surprised to see how different the UN report is!
+2
Level 45
Dec 10, 2018
I'm not completely suprised France isn't here, but I am suprised the UK and US could get in and we couldn't. I'm sure they cheated the test !

(Disclaimer : I am kidding.)

+1
Level 49
Nov 30, 2022
France isn't here because it has quite low mean years of schooling for a developed country. Education is 1/3 of the index. It actually scores higher than the UK in health (life expectancy) and the economy.
+3
Level 65
Dec 10, 2018
Norway, Switzerland and Iceland are all doing nicely without full EU membership. Take note UK.
+4
Level 60
Dec 11, 2018
Yes but Norway and Iceland are in the EEA and Switzerland doesn't do passport check if someone passes through their borders so...take note UK.
+2
Level 30
Sep 6, 2020
Ahem *brexit*
+2
Level 68
Dec 11, 2018
Got them all with no wrong attempts. Good guessing!
+2
Level 57
Jan 27, 2019
Got them all; Great Quiz! Another quiz with Human Capital, check this out, too:

Human Capital Index - Top 25 Nations

+2
Level 48
Mar 23, 2019
Vatican not doing so good?
+2
Level 83
Oct 1, 2019
Since the well-being of children is such an important component of HDI and there aren't any children born in the Vatican I assume they don't even bother ranking them.
+1
Level 43
Oct 6, 2019
Got all except Iceland. Nice play, icy boys
+1
Level 55
May 7, 2020
I am honestly a bit surprised Hong Kong is higher than the Netherlands (and other countries, but I can only speak for HK and the NL). I have lived in both places and I absolutely love both, but just the housing situation alone in HK shouldn't give them such a high spot. A lot of people have to live in really small appartments (whereas they'd live in bigger and better appartments or most probably even houses in the Netherlands), which decreases the quality of life a bit I'd say. I hope the HK government will set up a good housing plan like Singapore did, but as we can see these days they barely care their residents anyways unfortunately :/
+1
Level 55
Jun 2, 2020
I'm so surprised about the placement of a country like Japan relative to Hong Kong- based solely on overcrowding and political disunity in Hong Kong, I would have placed Japan much higher.
+1
Level 49
Nov 26, 2020
Only missed Ireland :)
+2
Level 81
Dec 24, 2020
Haha i never expected Slovenia here. It certainly doesn't translate to happiness 😃
+1
Level 49
Apr 5, 2021
What do you mean with that? Why wouldn't you expect Slovenia here?
+5
Level 85
Dec 24, 2020
So here we are in 2020, and still, the haunting visions of the despairing slums of Luxembourg are keeping them off the list...
+1
Level 84
Dec 24, 2020
Your source puts Liechtenstein above Slovenia.
+1
Level ∞
Dec 24, 2020
Fixed
+2
Level 77
Dec 25, 2020
Interesting fact: 11 out of the 20 countries with the best quality of life are nominally Monarchies. Obviously, it can't be that bad to have a king or queen (or prince or emperor or ...)
+7
Level 76
Dec 25, 2020
There is this saying: A good king is better than a bad democracy.

A bad king, however... Nominally = risk management.

+5
Level 65
Feb 2, 2021
Most of these monarchies the monarchs (head of state) have almost no power. The power lies inside the parliamentary system and most of them are chosen by a plural vote or something very similar.
+1
Level 57
Mar 30, 2021
I typed Monaco 17 times before realizing this is a different quiz.
+3
Level 60
Mar 30, 2021
Really Israel is above Luxembourg???? That's strange
+2
Level 57
Mar 30, 2021
I imagine luxembourg is barely off the list. Israel has a good healthcare system, keep in mind right now they have the highest percent of people vaccinated in the world
+3
Level 20
Apr 2, 2021
isn't isreal the highest?
+1
Level 70
Mar 30, 2021
If you are going to give San Marino, Monaco etc, then either give Liechtenstein as well or remove the others please.
+3
Level 60
Mar 30, 2021
i don't think you understand why they're there.
+3
Level 37
Apr 1, 2021
He's not giving those three, values are not available. Not the same thing.
+5
Level 47
Mar 30, 2021
Norway is #1 in the world, eh? That must explain why they have such a massive illegal immigration problem.
+2
Level 70
Jul 6, 2021
Source?
+4
Level 22
Mar 30, 2021
Northern Europe always be on their A-Game
+1
Level 31
Mar 30, 2021
They're the best when it comes to things like this.
+2
Level 43
Mar 31, 2021
I expect that the quality of life is going to significantly go down for Hong Kong in the coming years. So sad :(
+2
Level 20
Apr 2, 2021
why
+1
Level 61
Dec 4, 2022
China is absorbing Hong Kong
+1
Level 20
Apr 2, 2021
how come luxembourg isnt't in the list?
+1
Level 30
Apr 6, 2021
As someone who has lived in Ireland and Switzerland. Switzerland should be waaay higher. I don't really understand how they did this. Also, no Andorra??
+2
Level 42
May 14, 2022
Andorra is 36th behind Poland.
+1
Level 83
May 17, 2022
This seems bizarre to me. I stopped in Andorra for lunch recently... the whole country seems like Vail or Aspen... how the heck could it have lower HDI than Poland?
+2
Level 45
Sep 9, 2022
I don't really know either, as I am Irish and have been to Switzerland. I saw that in Switzerland everything was beautiful, and all the lakes and rivers were so clean even in the city centre, and everyone seemed happy enough, but it was very expensive so maybe they dropped down because of affordability? Ireland is pretty expensive too though but definitively not as so as Switzerland.
+2
Level 54
Aug 14, 2021
luxembourg ??
+1
Level 64
Aug 14, 2021
My thoughts exactly
+1
Level 64
Aug 14, 2021
Got Switzerland and Iceland with 26 seconds remaining
+1
Level 40
Oct 27, 2022
Lol, I missed out of all countries United States and Israel. I was thinking about both, but assumed that given their security and government stability problems those will be somewhere between 20-30 and did not even bother to type them... :D
+2
Level 40
Oct 27, 2022
And to be honest, I still have difficulties believing, these countries can be there, while Belgium, Luxembourg, South Korea or Estonia are not. The HDI is a bit weird metric.
+1
Level 78
Nov 1, 2022
3 out of those 4 just got added with the latest update.
+1
Level 68
Nov 1, 2022
Well the update made you more correct lol
+2
Level 68
Nov 1, 2022
Wow, the USA has fallen to 20th. I wonder if it will make it to next year's
+1
Level 73
Nov 28, 2022
i hate switzerland
+2
Level 58
Nov 28, 2022
why lol
+1
Level 65
Nov 28, 2022
What’s not to love about mountains and trains?
+4
Level 73
Nov 28, 2022
Is there a quiz for inequality-adjusted HDI? I think that'd be more revealing than this.
+2
Level 50
Nov 28, 2022
Alternate Title: Western Countries
+1
Level 62
Nov 28, 2022
Why not Austria?