The 19 countries with the highest standard of life

The countries with the highest quality of life have been announced by the think-tank Social Progress Imperative.Scandinavian nations scored highly in the "Social Progress Report," but more surprising are the very large countries which came lower down the listsuggesting that a strong GDP per capita is not the only gauge for a high standard of living.Despite this, all of the top 19 countries are developed nationsso having a strong economy clear has an impact.The "Social Progress Report" collates the scores of three main indexes:Basic Human Needs, which includes medical care, sanitation, and shelter.Foundations of Wellbeing, which covers education, access to technology, and life expectancy.Opportunity, which looks at personal rights, freedom of choice, and general tolerance.The index then adds the three different factors together, before giving each nation a score out of 100.You cansee the countries with the highest quality of life below.19. United States '84.62. The US scraping into the top 20 may surprise some, and the report does call it a "disappointment," saying the country's huge economy does not translate into social progress for many of its citizens.18. France '84.79. For many France is a liberal bastion, but it scored low on "tolerance and inclusion" in the report, while a poor score in "opportunity" keeps it further down the list than it perhaps should be.17. Spain '85.88. One of the most popular holiday destinations in Europe, Spain has a strong welfare system and work life balance, but high youth unemployment has hurt the standard of life for many of its citizens.See the rest of the story at Business Insider
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