All of us are thinking about an ideal place to live in, one that would provide optimal conditions for having a quality life, which is why we, at Insider Monkey, created the list of top 25 richest, healthiest, and most advanced countries in the world. In case you are having dilemmas about where to pursue nearly utopian lifestyle, the list should help you decide.
We all know that perfection does not exist. However, some things do come close to being perfect. Such is the case with countries which move forward each day, reminding us every now and then about the progress the human race is capable of making. These countries are not only known for being the epitome of prosperity, but also for creating the conditions in which their citizenry can live high-quality lives. They are undoubtedly an example to look up to, and if other countries were to follow in their footsteps, the world would be a much better place. We have already mentioned some of the countries which continually move forward in the field of medicine in our list of most advanced countries in medicine. This time however, we place our focus on wealth, health and economic performance and offer you the list of top 25 richest, healthiest, and most advanced countries in the world.
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What is prosperous nation definition? What makes one country great? This one is a question that would be fun to ask the current President of the USA. According to Financial Dictionary, advanced country is “characterized by large industrial and service sectors, high levels of gross national product and income per head.” Having this in mind, countries such as the USA, Norway, Germany, Iceland, Israel, and Singapore would make the advanced countries list, as they all have well-developed economies. Emerging and developing countries try to follow the example of advanced countries by adopting the Western model of economic development. However, they have weaker industrial sector and lower GDP than advanced countries and hence do not constitute the same group. Low-income developing countries have a very poor economic performance and as such present a stark contrast to advanced countries. According to International Monetary Fund, Democratic Republic of Kongo, Burundi, and Niger have some of the lowest values of income per capita, which is why they are ranked last on the list of low-income developing countries.
It is not only the statistical data on GDP and GDP per capita that matter when one is discussing the economies of advanced countries. High Index of Economic Freedom also suggests that the country is thriving. The index measures economic freedom based on indicators such as trade freedom, business freedom, investment freedom, and property rights. The index was created having in mind the ideas put forth by Adam Smith, the father of the economic liberal thought. According to the data on 2017 Index of Economic Freedom, most economically independent countries are Hong Kong, Singapore, New Zealand, Switzerland, and Australia. There is no data available to point to the most prosperous countries in the world 2017; however, I believe that not much has changed in one year, so I guess that the data on 2017 most prosperous countries will pretty much resemble the one from 2016. According to the Legatum Prosperity Index, the most prosperous country in 2016 was New Zealand. It is followed by Norway, Finland, Switzerland, and Canada. I have always loved New Zealand because of its link to the Lord of the Rings trilogy; now I am inclined to think that such high prosperity index has something to do with Gandalf’s doing. In the past decade, technology has become an integral part of our lives. One simply cannot imagine living the life without being online. For this reason, technological advancements a country makes are of high importance. Two years ago, we published an article on top 10 most technologically advanced countries in the world, where we established that the most technologically advanced country in the world was Japan. Not surprisingly, Japan was followed by Singapore and USA.
When creating today’s most prosperous countries list, I have taken into account several indicators. The primary data I considered is that concerning countries GDP and GDP per capita provided by Statistic Times and retracted from International Monetary Fund. Furthermore, I have taken into account the data on the Bloomberg Global Health Index and the data on the Legatum Prosperity Index. To estimate how prosperous a country is in terms of technological advancements, I have used the data contained in the report on the Global Creativity Index published by Martin Prosperity Institute. All of these were sufficient for me to create the list of the most advanced countries in the world.
But, before we proceed to our today’s list, check out the Top 21 Strongest Most Powerful Military Nations in the World in 2017. That way you won’t be surprised with rankings on the list of top 25 richest, healthiest, and most advanced countries in the world. After all, military force is an important factor when it comes to the prosperity of a country, right?
25. Belgium
Belgium’s GDP per capita is $40.696, ranking it 21st on the list of the countries with the highest GDP per capita and 25th on our list. The country is ranked 16th in the global technology rankings.
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24. China
China is an industrial power, and it clearly shows if one looks at the GDP worldwide rankings. China is ranked 2nd with GDP of $ 11,795.297.
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23. South Korea
Apart from exporting K-pop, South Korea could also export tips on how to create a prosperous environment. The country is ranked 8th with regards to technological advancements.
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22. Spain
Spain has a lot more to offer than passionate guys, good music, and good food. The country is ranked 21st on Legatum Prosperity Index ranking, and according to Bloomberg Health Index is 6th healthiest in the world.
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21. Ireland
Ireland’s GDP per capita is 6th highest in the world, $ 62.085. In terms of the value of nominal GDP, Ireland is ranked 39th in the world.
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20. Israel
The country has a great potential in terms of technological advancements. Currently, it ranks 4th in the world. Its health grade is 88.14, securing it 9th rank.
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19. New Zealand
The most prosperous country in 2016 is also ranked 19th on Bloomberg Health Index ranking, with a health score of 89.95. New Zealand’s GDP per capita is 20th in the world.
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18. Italy
Italy ranks 18th on our list of top 25 richest, healthiest, and most advanced countries in the world. It is the healthiest country in the world, according to Bloomberg ranking. Italy seems to be doing well in terms of economy as its nominal GDP is 9th in the world, $ 1,807.425.
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17. Austria
Austria has a great potential for innovation in technology. At least that is what the Global Creativity Index data suggests, as Austria is ranked 13th in the world.
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16. United Kingdom
I hope Brexit will not reflect negatively on UK’s economy. The country occupies the 10th position on prosperity index ranking. It has 5th highest GDP in the world, $ 2,496.757.
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15. France
Up next on our list of top 25 richest, healthiest, and most advanced countries in the world is France which is ranked 14th on Bloomberg list, with a health score of 90.93 and health risk penalties indicator of -5.34.
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14. Denmark
Denmark offers its citizens a possibility to live a high-quality life, and this reflects in its GDP per capita value, $ 52,871, securing it 10th position worldwide. The country is also considered to be 9th most prosperous in the world.
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13. Luxembourg
Luxembourg ranks is ranked 10th on Bloomberg list, with a health grade of 87.87, and 12th on the Legatum prosperity list. Such good score is what secured Luxembourg its place on our list of top 25 richest, healthiest, and most advanced countries in the world.
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12. Netherlands
If you happen to move to Netherlands, you are in for more than enjoying its beautiful architecture and riding bike. Netherlands is the 7th most prosperous country in the world according to the Legatum ranking.
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11. Iceland
Iceland has the 5th highest GDP per capita in the world at the moment, $67,570. Furthermore, it is ranked as the 2nd healthiest country in the world with a health grade 92.21.
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10. Singapore
The 4th healthiest country in the world is also ranked 10th with regards to its potential to start a technological revolution worldwide. Singapore might be small in size compared to some other countries, but it definitely has a lot to offer.
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9. Finland
According to the Global Creativity Index data, Finland, the number 9 in our list of top 25 richest, healthiest, and most advanced countries in the world is the greatest technological power in the world. The country is also considered to be the 3rd most prosperous in the world. It only seems logical as prosperity equals technology nowadays.
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8. Canada
If you wonder why Canadians are the kindest people, it is because they live in one of the most advanced countries in the world. Canada is the 5th most prosperous country in the world.
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7. Germany
The first thing that comes to my mind when someone mentions Germany is power. Economic power, of course. The country has 4th nominal GDP in the world of an amazing $3,423.287.
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6. Sweden
Sweden ranks 6th in our list of top 25 richest, healthiest, and most advanced countries in the world. It is ranked 5th in the Global Creativity Index ranking, which suggests it has ideas to offer in terms of technological advancements. Sweden is ranked 8th on Bloomberg health index with the score of 93.78.
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5. Japan
Japan has the 3rd highest nominal GDP in the world, $4,841.221. The country is the 2nd most technologically advanced and 7th healthiest in the world. It’s the most advanced country in Asia.
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4. Australia
Australia ranks 4th in our list of top 25 richest, healthiest, and most advanced countries in the world. It is considered to be the 6th most prosperous country in the world, with a nominal GDP of $1,359.723.
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3. Norway
We are continuing our list of top 25 richest, healthiest, and most advanced countries in the world with Norway, which is the 2nd most prosperous country in the world. It has 3rd highest GDP per capita in the world, $ 73,450 and is ranked 12th in global technology rankings.
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2. The United States of America
It is natural that the country with the highest nominal GDP in the world, $19,417.144, will be among the top three on our list.
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1. Switzerland
Switzerland is the 4th most prosperous country in the world, 3rd healthiest and it has 2nd highest GDP per capita in the world, $78,245. Such good score is what secured Switzerland its place on the top of our list as the richest, healthiest and most advanced country in the world.
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This was Insider Monkey’s list of top 25 richest, healthiest, and most advanced countries in the world.
