A new report explains why Scandinavians live so well, and why their passports are the most powerful. [View all]

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https://www.travelandleisure.com/scandinavia-sweden-norway-denmark-best-quality-of-life-in-world-8772070?

Every Single Country in This European Region Ranks High for Quality of Life—Here's Why

A new report explains why Scandinavians live so well, and why their passports are the most powerful.

Published on April 9, 2025


Scandinavians sure do know how to live well. Not only do Denmark, Norway, and Sweden often rank among the happiest nations on Earth, but they're also the top spots for the best quality of life and are among the top 10 most powerful passports in the world.

In 2024, Global Citizen Solutions (GCS) released its Global Passport Index, which put Sweden in the top spot, Denmark in eighth, and Norway rounding out the top 10. But beyond this list, it also ranked nations on their quality of life—with all four again ranking among the top 10. In that list, Sweden took home No. 1, Denmark in fourth, and Norway in eighth. (Finland, a geographic neighbor to these countries but not technically in Scandinavia, came in at No. 3 in the GCS index and No. 2 for quality of life.)

As Laura Madrid Sartoretto, the lead researcher at GCS, explained to Travel + Leisure, there's a reason these nations always come out on top. "They [Scandinavian countries] rank well in the Global Passport Index, in general, but they do even better when we talk about quality of life," Sartoretto told T+L. "We have prosperity and equity. Those are countries that have very strong social welfare systems."

According to Sartoretto, Scandinavian countries have created people-first nations, investing heavily in universal health care and education, along with family-friendly policies like their lengthy parental leave programs, which in Sweden can also be split between parents. Health care policies in these countries also ensure citizens have access to a variety of mental and physical health programs.

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