Methodology

Every weight, source, goalpost, and equation. Transparency is the whole point — the index is only "non-political" if you can check it.

Comparison set

The index covers the ~41 OECD members and partner economies for which all six wellbeing pillars are available. Countries are compared with their actual peers — rich democracies — not a global average. Years covered: 2015–2024.

1. Normalize each indicator (0–100, fixed goalposts)

Each indicator is scaled to 0–100 against fixed goalposts (a floor and ceiling set once from the observed range, not recomputed per year), so real absolute change registers rather than only movement relative to peers:

norm = 100 × (value − floor) / (ceiling − floor),  clamped to [0,100]

For "lower is better" indicators (infant mortality, homicide, PM2.5, poverty, long hours, hours worked) the score is inverted: 100 − norm. Goalposts are v1-provisional.

2. Pillar score

Each pillar score is the arithmetic mean of its normalized indicators.

3. Wellbeing composite (W)

W is the geometric mean of the six pillar scores, so a country can't mask a collapse in one pillar by acing another — imbalance is penalized:

W = exp( (1/6) × Σ ln(pillar_p) )

User-adjustable weights recompute W in your browser: W = exp( Σ w_p · ln(pillar_p) ).

4. Wealth denominator (M)

M is median household disposable income — not GDP per capita (a mean the top end inflates). OECD publishes it only in national currency, so it is converted to international PPP dollars using the World Bank private-consumption PPP factor (income_ppp = income_xdc / factor). Median income is the denominator only — it is excluded from the economic-security pillar to avoid circularity.

5. Conversion score (the headline)

For each year, across all countries, W is regressed on log income; the residual is the conversion score:

W_c = α + β · ln(M_c) + ε_c     conversion_c = ε_c

Positive = delivers more wellbeing than its wealth predicts; negative = less. Because it is measured relative to what peers achieve at the same wealth, it is defensible rather than editorial.

6. Time alignment & momentum

Indicators report on different cadences, so each year's cross-section uses each country's latest value as of that year (within a 6-year window). Momentum is the change in the conversion residual over the window, with both endpoints re-fit over the same peer set.

Cross-check

Subjective life satisfaction (Cantril ladder) is displayed beside the computed scores as a gut-check, but is not scored into the composite.

Indicators & sources

Health

Time & work–life

Economic security

Safety

Social connection

Environment

Wealth (denominator)

Cross-check (not scored)

Source: OECD (incl. How's Life / Better Life and the Income Distribution Database); WHO Global Health Observatory; World Bank (PPP, PM2.5). Some OECD wellbeing measures derive from the Gallup World Poll as published by the OECD. Used under each provider's terms.