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HDI 2021

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Human Development Index (HDI) by Country 2024

Snapshot

  • The HDI measures countries' achievements in health, education, and standard of living, showing a global upward trend but recent declines due to COVID-19.

  • Countries with high HDI scores, like Switzerland and Norway, exhibit stable governments, quality education and healthcare, and strong economies.

  • Least-developed countries, with low HDI scores, face challenges like unstable governments, poverty, and lack of healthcare and education.

The Human Development Index, or HDI, is a metric compiled by the United Nations Development Programme and used to quantify a country's "average achievement in three basic dimensions of human development: a long and healthy life, knowledge, and a decent standard of living." The HDI was first launched in 1990 and has been released annually ever since, with the exceptions of 2012 and 2020/21. While HDI tends to trend upward globally over time, more than 90% of the 191 countries analyzed for the 2021/22 HDI report suffered a decline in overall HDI in either 2020 or 2021. These declines were largely attributed to the COVID-19 pandemic and its lingering effects.

A country's Human Development Index value is determined by aggregating the country's scores in a vast assortment of indicators including life expectancy, literacy rate, rural populations' access to electricity, GDP per capita, exports and imports, homicide rate, multidimensional poverty index, income inequality, internet availability, and many more. These indicators are compiled into a single number between 0 and 1.0, with 1.0 being the highest possible human development. HDI is divided into four tiers: very high human development (0.8-1.0), high human development (0.7-0.79), medium human development (0.55-.70), and low human development (below 0.55).

Countries with the Highest Human Development Index (HDI)

Country
HDI 2021
Switzerland0.962
Norway0.961
Iceland0.959
Hong Kong0.952
Australia0.951
Denmark0.948
Sweden0.947
Ireland0.945
Germany0.942
Netherlands0.941

Most developed countries have an HDI score of 0.8 or above, landing them in the very high human development tier. These countries have stable governments, widespread affordable education and healthcare, high life expectancies and quality of life, and growing, powerful economies.

In contrast to this are the world's least-developed countries (LDCs), which tend to have HDI scores below 0.55, in the "low human development" category. LDCs face unstable governments, widespread poverty, lack of access to healthcare, and poor education. Additionally, these countries have low income and low life expectancies, coupled with high birth rates. This illustrates the fundamental purpose of the HDI: to help the United Nations determine which countries (especially which least-developed countries) are most in need of assistance.

10 Countries with the Lowest Human Development Index (HDI)

Country
HDI 2021
South Sudan0.385
Chad0.394
Niger0.400
Central African Republic0.404
Burundi0.426
Mali0.428
Mozambique0.446
Burkina Faso0.449
Yemen0.455
Guinea0.465

Emerging concerns in the Human Development Index 2021/22

The 2021/22 version of the HDI report outlined what it called an emerging "new uncertainty complex", in which three rising factors: widespread and intensifying politcal and societal polarization, dangerous planetary climate change, and sweeping societal industrial transformation (such as increasing automation), were generating new and unpredictable types of uncertainty. The report offers the COVID-19 pandemic and the 2022 war in Ukraine as example manifestations of this new uncertainty complex.

Download Table Data

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Country
HDI Tier
HDI 2021
HDI 2020
HDI 2019
HDI 2010
SwitzerlandVery High0.9620.9560.9620.942
NorwayVery High0.9610.9590.9610.941
IcelandVery High0.9590.9570.9600.902
Hong KongVery High0.9520.9490.9520.907
AustraliaVery High0.9510.9470.9410.923
DenmarkVery High0.9480.9470.9460.913
SwedenVery High0.9470.9420.9470.910
IrelandVery High0.9450.9430.9420.904
GermanyVery High0.9420.9440.9480.926
NetherlandsVery High0.9410.9390.9430.917
FinlandVery High0.9400.9380.9390.911
SingaporeVery High0.9390.9390.9430.910
BelgiumVery High0.9370.9280.9360.912
New ZealandVery High0.9370.9360.9370.922
CanadaVery High0.9360.9310.9370.911
LiechtensteinVery High0.9350.9330.9400.913
LuxembourgVery High0.9300.9240.9270.912
United KingdomVery High0.9290.9240.9350.912
JapanVery High0.9250.9230.9240.898
South KoreaVery High0.9250.9220.9230.890
United StatesVery High0.9210.9200.9300.911
IsraelVery High0.9190.9170.9210.894
SloveniaVery High0.9180.9130.9210.890
MaltaVery High0.9180.9110.9150.861
AustriaVery High0.9160.9130.9190.902
United Arab EmiratesVery High0.9110.9120.9200.835
SpainVery High0.9050.8990.9080.868
FranceVery High0.9030.8980.9050.877
CyprusVery High0.8960.8940.8970.857
ItalyVery High0.8950.8890.8970.882
EstoniaVery High0.8900.8920.8960.861
Czech RepublicVery High0.8890.8920.8970.870
GreeceVery High0.8870.8860.8890.869
PolandVery High0.8760.8760.8810.841
Saudi ArabiaVery High0.8750.8700.8730.816
LithuaniaVery High0.8750.8790.8840.842
BahrainVery High0.8750.8770.8820.808
PortugalVery High0.8660.8630.8670.829
LatviaVery High0.8630.8710.8710.824
CroatiaVery High0.8580.8550.8610.821
AndorraVery High0.8580.8480.8730.848
ChileVery High0.8550.8520.8610.813
QatarVery High0.8550.8540.8590.834
San MarinoVery High0.8530.8450.862
SlovakiaVery High0.8480.8570.8620.840
HungaryVery High0.8460.8490.8530.828
ArgentinaVery High0.8420.8400.8520.834
TurkeyVery High0.8380.8330.8420.749
MontenegroVery High0.8320.8260.8370.808
KuwaitVery High0.8310.8220.8390.813
RussiaVery High0.8290.8300.8450.796
BruneiVery High0.8290.8300.8300.828
RomaniaVery High0.8210.8240.8320.807
OmanVery High0.8160.8270.8390.788
BahamasVery High0.8120.8150.8160.812
KazakhstanVery High0.8110.8140.8190.767
Trinidad and TobagoVery High0.8100.8180.8210.790
Costa RicaVery High0.8090.8160.8190.772
UruguayVery High0.8090.8210.8210.787
BelarusVery High0.8080.8070.8170.790
PanamaVery High0.8050.8010.8170.773
MalaysiaVery High0.8030.8060.8100.769
SerbiaVery High0.8020.8040.8110.767
GeorgiaVery High0.8020.8020.8100.759
MauritiusVery High0.8020.8040.8170.755
ThailandVery High0.8000.8020.8040.737
AlbaniaHigh0.7960.7940.8100.754
BulgariaHigh0.7950.8020.8100.790
GrenadaHigh0.7950.7920.8000.782
BarbadosHigh0.7900.7880.7990.788
Antigua and BarbudaHigh0.7880.7880.8000.790
SeychellesHigh0.7850.7930.8020.776
Sri LankaHigh0.7820.7800.7780.737
Bosnia and HerzegovinaHigh0.7800.7810.7830.725
Saint Kitts and NevisHigh0.7770.7790.7830.759
IranHigh0.7740.7770.7830.745
UkraineHigh0.7730.7750.7860.764
North MacedoniaHigh0.7700.7740.7840.738
ChinaHigh0.7680.7640.7620.691
Dominican RepublicHigh0.7670.7640.7710.708
MoldovaHigh0.7670.7660.7740.730
PalauHigh0.7670.7730.7760.773
CubaHigh0.7640.7810.7880.780
PeruHigh0.7620.7620.7800.725
ArmeniaHigh0.7590.7570.7780.746
MexicoHigh0.7580.7560.7790.746
BrazilHigh0.7540.7580.7660.723
ColombiaHigh0.7520.7560.7680.726
MaldivesHigh0.7470.7340.7550.688
AlgeriaHigh0.7450.7360.7480.721
AzerbaijanHigh0.7450.7300.7610.727
TurkmenistanHigh0.7450.7410.7420.711
TongaHigh0.7450.7450.7440.713
EcuadorHigh0.7400.7310.7600.736
MongoliaHigh0.7390.7450.7460.701
EgyptHigh0.7310.7340.7350.675
TunisiaHigh0.7310.7370.7450.720
FijiHigh0.7300.7370.7460.714
SurinameHigh0.7300.7430.7550.723
UzbekistanHigh0.7270.7210.7260.673
JordanHigh0.7200.7230.7270.725
DominicaHigh0.7200.7220.7290.711
LibyaHigh0.7180.7030.7220.739
ParaguayHigh0.7170.7300.7320.685
PalestineHigh0.7150.7160.7270.687
Saint LuciaHigh0.7150.7230.7350.728
GuyanaHigh0.7140.7210.7080.656
South AfricaHigh0.7130.7270.7360.675
JamaicaHigh0.7090.7130.7190.704
SamoaHigh0.7070.7120.7150.713
LebanonHigh0.7060.7260.7450.770
GabonHigh0.7060.7100.7090.664
IndonesiaHigh0.7050.7090.7160.664
VietnamHigh0.7030.7100.7030.663
PhilippinesMedium0.6990.7100.7180.674
BotswanaMedium0.6930.7130.7170.660
BoliviaMedium0.6920.6940.7170.662
KyrgyzstanMedium0.6920.6890.6980.664
VenezuelaMedium0.6910.6950.7210.755
IraqMedium0.6860.6790.6960.640
TajikistanMedium0.6850.6640.6760.636
MoroccoMedium0.6830.6790.6820.603
BelizeMedium0.6830.6900.7050.707
El SalvadorMedium0.6750.6720.6830.659
NicaraguaMedium0.6670.6540.6640.614
BhutanMedium0.6660.6680.6710.581
Cape VerdeMedium0.6620.6620.6760.644
BangladeshMedium0.6610.6550.6440.553
TuvaluMedium0.6410.6390.6350.616
Marshall IslandsMedium0.6390.6390.640
IndiaMedium0.6330.6420.6450.575
GhanaMedium0.6320.6320.6310.574
MicronesiaMedium0.6280.6290.6330.625
GuatemalaMedium0.6270.6350.6420.605
KiribatiMedium0.6240.6230.6300.589
HondurasMedium0.6210.6210.6320.597
Sao Tome and PrincipeMedium0.6180.6190.6220.554
NamibiaMedium0.6150.6330.6390.585
LaosMedium0.6070.6080.6100.551
VanuatuMedium0.6070.6080.6110.591
NepalMedium0.6020.6040.6110.543
EswatiniMedium0.5970.6100.6150.503
Equatorial GuineaMedium0.5960.5990.6050.579
CambodiaMedium0.5930.5960.5980.540
ZimbabweMedium0.5930.6000.6010.512
AngolaMedium0.5860.5900.5950.510
MyanmarMedium0.5850.6000.5980.510
SyriaMedium0.5770.5770.5840.660
CameroonMedium0.5760.5780.5830.513
KenyaMedium0.5750.5780.5810.545
Republic of the CongoMedium0.5710.5740.5700.561
ZambiaMedium0.5650.5700.5750.529
Solomon IslandsMedium0.5640.5650.5670.550
Papua New GuineaMedium0.5580.5600.5600.499
ComorosMedium0.5580.5620.5600.520
MauritaniaMedium0.5560.5560.5630.510
Ivory CoastMedium0.5500.5510.5500.473
TanzaniaLow0.5490.5480.5480.493
PakistanLow0.5440.5430.5460.505
TogoLow0.5390.5350.5350.477
NigeriaLow0.5350.5350.5380.482
HaitiLow0.5350.5400.5430.433
RwandaLow0.5340.5320.5340.489
UgandaLow0.5250.5240.5250.502
BeninLow0.5250.5240.5300.492
LesothoLow0.5140.5210.5240.467
MalawiLow0.5120.5160.5190.456
SenegalLow0.5110.5130.5130.468
DjiboutiLow0.5090.5100.5120.458
SudanLow0.5080.5100.5140.486
MadagascarLow0.5010.5010.5100.492
GambiaLow0.5000.5010.5030.460
EthiopiaLow0.4980.4980.4980.412
EritreaLow0.4920.4940.4950.463
LiberiaLow0.4810.4800.4840.460
DR CongoLow0.4790.4790.4820.429
AfghanistanLow0.4780.4830.4880.448
Sierra LeoneLow0.4770.4750.4800.427
GuineaLow0.4650.4660.4670.415
YemenLow0.4550.4600.4610.510
Burkina FasoLow0.4490.4490.4520.372
MozambiqueLow0.4460.4530.4560.402
MaliLow0.4280.4270.4330.404
BurundiLow0.4260.4260.4310.405
Central African RepublicLow0.4040.4070.4110.372
NigerLow0.4000.4010.4060.338
ChadLow0.3940.3970.4030.362
South SudanLow0.3850.3860.3930.430
Total0.7220.7230.7290.691
showing: 188 rows

Which country has the highest HDI?

Switzerland has the highest Human Development Index with a rating of 0.962.

Which country has the lowest HDI?

South Sudan has the lowest Human Development Index, earning a 0.385.

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