Switzerland ranks fourth in global prosperity index

(CONNECT) Norway ranks as the world’s most prosperous country for the first time, scoring 77.65 points out of a possible 100, according to the HelloSafe Prosperity Index 2026. Ireland is in second place (75.06) and Luxembourg (74.39) is ranked third. Switzerland (72.46) takes fourth place. The first non-European country in the ranking is Singapore (66.43) in sixth place. Germany (50.41) is ranked in 12th place, Austria (43.46) in 16th and France (38.12) in 20th.

According to its own information, HelloSafe developed this Prosperity Index in order to measure the real prosperity of nations: “not what a country produces, but what its inhabitants actually experience day to day”. Unlike rankings based solely on gross domestic product (GDP), this index integrates aspects such as quality of life, income distribution and the capacity of an economy to translate its wealth into concrete improvements in the living standards enjoyed by its inhabitants.

The five assessment criteria go beyond GDP because this is the “easiest to manipulate”, as HelloSafe explains. Ireland is said to be the best example of this, as a large portion of the GDP – 70,000 US dollars per capita to be precise – belongs to companies such as Apple, Google and Pfizer, and “not to Irish households”. To avoid this distortion, the HelloSafe Prosperity Index incorporates not only GDP but also the World Bank’s Gross National Income per capita (GNI) index, the UN’s Human Development Index, the Gini coefficient for income and wealth inequality and the relative poverty rate. These five indicators were applied to 31 economies. Together with the regional rankings for Africa, Latin America and Asia, a total of 50 countries were evaluated.

Ireland ranks seventh for GNI. Iceland, ranked in fifth, boasts the best Human Development Index in the world and the lowest relative poverty rate. In contrast, Qatar (11th), has the lowest Human Development Index in the world and significant income inequality. The USA is ranked in 17th place, with Canada one place below in 18th, which as HelloSafe explains, reflects “genuine economic strength but weaker results on inequality and social indicators”. The rankings are said to prove that being the richest country in the world “is not just about income or GDP, but about how wealth translates into quality of life, social cohesion and long-term development. ce/mm