A developed country, or advanced country, is a sovereign state that has a high quality of life, developed economy, and advanced technological infrastructure relative to other less industrialized nations. Most commonly, the criteria for evaluating the degree of economic development are the gross domestic product (GDP), gross national product (GNP), the per capita income, level of industrialization, amount of widespread infrastructure and general standard of living. Which criteria are to be used and which countries can be classified as being developed are subjects of debate. Different definitions of developed countries are provided by the International Monetary Fund and the World Bank; moreover, HDI ranking is used to reflect the composite index of life expectancy, education, and income per capita. In 2024, 40 countries fit all three criteria, while an additional 20 countries fit two out of three.
World map showing country classifications per the IMF and the UN (last updated April 2023). "Developed economies" according to this classification scheme are shown in blue. The map does not include classifications by the World Bank.
Developed countries have generally more advanced post-industrial economies, meaning the service sector provides more wealth than the industrial sector. They are contrasted with developing countries, which are in the process of industrialisation or are pre-industrial and almost entirely agrarian, some of which might fall into the category of Least Developed Countries. As of 2023[update], advanced economies comprise 57.3% of global GDP based on nominal values and 41.1% of global GDP based on purchasing-power parity (PPP) according to the IMF.
Definition and criteria
Economic criteria have tended to dominate discussions. One such criterion is the income per capita; countries with the high gross domestic product (GDP) per capita would thus be described as developed countries. Another economic criterion is industrialisation; countries in which the tertiary and quaternary sectors of industry dominate would thus be described as developed. More recently, another measure, the Human Development Index (HDI), which combines an economic measure, national income, with other measures, indices for life expectancy and education has become prominent. This criterion would define developed countries as those with a very high (HDI) rating. The index, however, does not take into account several factors, such as the net wealth per capita or the relative quality of goods in a country. This situation tends to lower the ranking of some of the most advanced countries, such as the G7 members and others.
According to the United Nations Statistics Division:
There is no established convention for the designation of "developed" and "developing" countries or areas in the United Nations system.
And it notes that:
The designations "developed" and "developing" are intended for statistical convenience and do not necessarily express a judgement about the stage reached by a particular country or area in the development process.
Nevertheless, the UN Trade and Development considers that this categorization can continue to be applied:
The developed economies broadly comprise Northern America and Europe, Israel, Japan, the Republic of Korea, Australia, and New Zealand.
Similar terms
Terms linked to the concept developed country include "advanced country", "industrialized country", "more developed country" (MDC), "more economically developed country" (MEDC), "Global North country", "first world country", and "post-industrial country". The term industrialized country may be somewhat ambiguous, as industrialisation is an ongoing process that is hard to define. The first industrialized country was the United Kingdom, followed by Belgium. Later it spread further to Germany, United States, France and other Western European countries. According to some economists such as Jeffrey Sachs, however, the current divide between the developed and developing world is largely a phenomenon of the 20th century.
Mathis Wackernagel calls the binary labeling of countries as "neither descriptive nor explanatory. It is merely a thoughtless and destructive endorsement of GDP fetish. In reality, there are not two types of countries, but over 200 countries, all faced with the same laws of nature, yet each with unique features."
A 2021 analysis proposes the term emerged to describe markets, economies, or countries that have graduated from emerging market status, but have not yet reached the level equivalent to developed countries. Multinational corporations from these emerging markets present unique patterns of overseas expansion and knowledge acquisition from foreign countries.
Economy lists by various criteria
Human Development Index (HDI)
- Very high
- High
- Medium
- Low
- No data
- ≥ 0.950
- 0.900–0.950
- 0.850–0.899
- 0.800–0.849
- 0.750–0.799
- 0.700–0.749
- 0.650–0.699
- 0.600–0.649
- 0.550–0.599
- 0.500–0.549
- 0.450–0.499
- 0.400–0.449
- ≤ 0.399
- Data unavailable
The UN HDI is a statistical measure that gauges an economy's level of human development. While there is a strong correlation between having a high HDI score and being a prosperous economy, the UN points out that the HDI accounts for more than income or productivity. Unlike GDP per capita or per capita income, the HDI takes into account how income is turned "into education and health opportunities and therefore into higher levels of human development."
Since 1990, Norway (2001–2006, 2009–2019), Japan (1990–1991 and 1993), Canada (1992 and 1994–2000) and Iceland (2007–2008) have had the highest HDI score.
The following countries in the year 2022 are considered to be of "very high human development":
| Rank | Δ | Country or territory | HDI | % annual growth (2010–2022) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 |  |  Switzerland | 0.967 |  0.24% |
| 2 |  (1) |  Norway | 0.966 | 0.25% |
| 3 | |  Iceland | 0.959 | 0.28% |
| 4 | (2) |  Hong Kong | 0.956 | 0.38% |
| 5 | (1) |  Denmark | 0.952 | 0.35% |
| |  Sweden | 0.38% | ||
| 7 | (8) |  Ireland | 0.950 | 0.38% |
| (3) |  Germany | 0.19% | ||
| 9 | (1) |  Singapore | 0.949 | 0.25% |
| 10 | (1) |  Netherlands | 0.946 | 0.26% |
| (1) |  Australia | 0.20% | ||
| 12 | (2) |  Liechtenstein | 0.942 | 0.23% |
| (3) |  Belgium | 0.26% | ||
| |  Finland | 0.27% | ||
| 15 | (3) |  United Kingdom | 0.940 | 0.24% |
| 16 | (7) |  New Zealand | 0.939 | 0.13% |
| 17 | (19) |  United Arab Emirates | 0.937 | 1.04% |
| 18 | (5) |  Canada | 0.935 | 0.22% |
| 19 | (3) |  South Korea | 0.929 | 0.36% |
| 20 | (1) |  Luxembourg | 0.927 | 0.14% |
| (5) |  United States | 0.10% | ||
| 22 | (1) |  Slovenia | 0.926 | 0.33% |
| (1) |  Austria | 0.21% | ||
| 24 | (4) |  Japan | 0.920 | 0.16% |
| 25 | (1) |  Israel | 0.915 | 0.26% |
| (3) |  Malta | 0.50% | ||
| 27 | |  Spain | 0.911 | 0.40% |
| 28 | (3) |  France | 0.910 | 0.28% |
| 29 | (3) |  Cyprus | 0.907 | 0.45% |
| 30 | |  Italy | 0.906 | 0.24% |
| 31 | (2) |  Estonia | 0.899 | 0.33% |
| 32 | (6) |  Czech Republic | 0.895 | 0.22% |
| 33 | (3) |  Greece | 0.893 | 0.18% |
| 34 | (3) |  Bahrain | 0.888 | 0.80% |
| 35 | (3) |  Andorra | 0.884 | 0.20% |
| 36 | (2) |  Poland | 0.881 | 0.35% |
| 37 | (2) |  Latvia | 0.879 | 0.51% |
| (2) |  Lithuania | 0.32% | ||
| 39 | (6) |  Croatia | 0.878 | 0.53% |
| 40 | |  Qatar | 0.875 | 0.45% |
| (6) |  Saudi Arabia | 0.70% | ||
| 42 | |  Portugal | 0.874 | 0.42% |
| 43 | (10) |  San Marino | 0.867 | 0.32% |
| 44 | |  Chile | 0.860 | 0.47% |
| 45 | (9) |  Turkey | 0.855 | 1.10% |
| (5) |  Slovakia | 0.14% | ||
| 47 | |  Hungary | 0.851 | 0.22% |
| 48 | (6) |  Argentina | 0.849 | 0.15% |
| 49 | |  Kuwait | 0.847 | 0.36% |
| 50 | (1) |  Montenegro | 0.844 | 0.38% |
| 51 | (2) |  Saint Kitts and Nevis | 0.838 | 0.49% |
| 52 | (8) |  Uruguay | 0.830 | 0.47% |
| 53 | (3) |  Romania | 0.827 | 0.14% |
| 54 | (1) |  Antigua and Barbuda | 0.826 | 0.18% |
| 55 | (7) |  Brunei | 0.823 | 0.02% |
| 56 | (3) |  Russia | 0.821 | 0.25% |
| 57 | (3) |  Bahamas | 0.820 | 0.21% |
| (5) |  Panama | 0.47% | ||
| 59 | (7) |  Oman | 0.819 | 0.22% |
| 60 | (3) |  Trinidad and Tobago | 0.814 | 0.30% |
| (4) |  Georgia | 0.54% | ||
| 62 | (2) |  Barbados | 0.809 | 0.18% |
| 63 | (6) |  Malaysia | 0.807 | 0.41% |
| 64 | (5) |  Costa Rica | 0.806 | 0.39% |
| 65 | (3) |  Serbia | 0.805 | 0.39% |
| 66 | (6) |  Thailand | 0.803 | 0.65% |
| 67 | (1) |  Seychelles | 0.802 | 0.30% |
| (4) |  Kazakhstan | 0.38% | ||
| 69 | (11) |  Belarus | 0.801 | 0.12% |
WESP developed economies
According to the United Nations Department of Economic and Social Affairs' World Economic Situation and Prospects report, the following 37 countries are classified as "developed economies" as of January 2024:
31 countries in Europe:
two countries in Northern America:
four countries in Asia and the Pacific:
World Bank high-income economies
According to the World Bank, the following 85 sovereign states and territories across are classified as high income economies, having a nominal GNI per capita in excess of $14,005 as of 2024:
Unsovereign Territories are denoted with an asterisk (*).
American Samoa*
Andorra
Antigua and Barbuda
Aruba*
Australia
Austria
The Bahamas
Bahrain
Barbados
Belgium
Bermuda*
British Virgin Islands*
Brunei
Bulgaria
Canada
Cayman Islands*
Channel Islands*
Chile
Croatia
Curaçao*
Cyprus
Czech Republic
Denmark
Estonia
Faroe Islands*
Finland
France
French Polynesia*
Germany
Gibraltar*
Greece
Greenland*
Guam*
Guyana
Hong Kong*
Hungary
Iceland
Ireland
Isle of Man*
Israel
Italy
Japan
South Korea
Kuwait
Latvia
Liechtenstein
Lithuania
Luxembourg
Macau*
Malta
Monaco
Nauru
Netherlands
New Caledonia*
New Zealand
Northern Mariana Islands*
Norway
Oman
Palau
Panama
Poland
Portugal
Puerto Rico*
Qatar
Romania
Russia
San Marino
Saudi Arabia
Seychelles
Singapore
Sint Maarten*
Slovakia
Slovenia
Spain
Saint Kitts and Nevis
Saint Martin*
Sweden
Switzerland
Taiwan
Trinidad and Tobago
Turks and Caicos Islands*
United Arab Emirates
United Kingdom
United States
Uruguay
United States Virgin Islands*
Development Assistance Committee members
There are 29 OECD member countries and the European Union—in the Development Assistance Committee (DAC), a group of the world's major donor countries that discusses issues surrounding development aid and poverty reduction in developing countries. The following OECD member countries are DAC members:
25 countries in Europe:
two countries in the Americas:
two countries in Asia:
two countries in Oceania:
IMF advanced economies
According to the International Monetary Fund, 41 countries and territories are officially listed as "advanced economies", with the addition of 7 microstates and dependencies modified by the CIA which were omitted from the IMF version:
29 countries and dependencies in Europe classified by the IMF, 6 others given by the CIA:
Andorra
Austria
Belgium
Croatia
Cyprus
Czech Republic
Denmark
Estonia
Finland
France
Germany
Greece
Iceland
Ireland
Italy
Latvia
Lithuania
Luxembourg
Malta
Netherlands
Norway
Portugal
San Marino
Slovakia
Slovenia
Spain
Sweden
Switzerland
United Kingdom
Plusd
seven countries and territories in Asia:
three countries and territories in the Americas classified by the IMF, one territory given by the CIA :
Canada
Puerto Rico
United States
Bermuda d
two countries in Oceania:
d The CIA has modified an older version of the IMF's list of 38 Advanced Economies, noting that the IMF's Advanced Economies list "would presumably also cover the following nine smaller countries of Andorra, Bermuda, Faroe Islands, Guernsey, Holy See, Jersey, Liechtenstein, Monaco, and San Marino[...]". San Marino (2012) and Andorra (2021) were later included in the IMF's list.
Paris Club members
There are 22 permanent members in the Paris Club (French: Club de Paris), a group of officials from major creditor countries whose role is to find coordinated and sustainable solutions to the payment difficulties experienced by debtor countries.
15 countries in Europe:
A developed country or advanced country is a sovereign state that has a high quality of life developed economy and advanced technological infrastructure relative to other less industrialized nations Most commonly the criteria for evaluating the degree of economic development are the gross domestic product GDP gross national product GNP the per capita income level of industrialization amount of widespread infrastructure and general standard of living Which criteria are to be used and which countries can be classified as being developed are subjects of debate Different definitions of developed countries are provided by the International Monetary Fund and the World Bank moreover HDI ranking is used to reflect the composite index of life expectancy education and income per capita In 2024 40 countries fit all three criteria while an additional 20 countries fit two out of three Developed countries IMF Developing countries IMF Least developed countries UN Data unavailable World map showing country classifications per the IMF and the UN last updated April 2023 Developed economies according to this classification scheme are shown in blue The map does not include classifications by the World Bank Developed countries have generally more advanced post industrial economies meaning the service sector provides more wealth than the industrial sector They are contrasted with developing countries which are in the process of industrialisation or are pre industrial and almost entirely agrarian some of which might fall into the category of Least Developed Countries As of 2023 update advanced economies comprise 57 3 of global GDP based on nominal values and 41 1 of global GDP based on purchasing power parity PPP according to the IMF Definition and criteriaEconomic criteria have tended to dominate discussions One such criterion is the income per capita countries with the high gross domestic product GDP per capita would thus be described as developed countries Another economic criterion is industrialisation countries in which the tertiary and quaternary sectors of industry dominate would thus be described as developed More recently another measure the Human Development Index HDI which combines an economic measure national income with other measures indices for life expectancy and education has become prominent This criterion would define developed countries as those with a very high HDI rating The index however does not take into account several factors such as the net wealth per capita or the relative quality of goods in a country This situation tends to lower the ranking of some of the most advanced countries such as the G7 members and others According to the United Nations Statistics Division There is no established convention for the designation of developed and developing countries or areas in the United Nations system And it notes that The designations developed and developing are intended for statistical convenience and do not necessarily express a judgement about the stage reached by a particular country or area in the development process Nevertheless the UN Trade and Development considers that this categorization can continue to be applied The developed economies broadly comprise Northern America and Europe Israel Japan the Republic of Korea Australia and New Zealand Similar terms Terms linked to the concept developed country include advanced country industrialized country more developed country MDC more economically developed country MEDC Global North country first world country and post industrial country The term industrialized country may be somewhat ambiguous as industrialisation is an ongoing process that is hard to define The first industrialized country was the United Kingdom followed by Belgium Later it spread further to Germany United States France and other Western European countries According to some economists such as Jeffrey Sachs however the current divide between the developed and developing world is largely a phenomenon of the 20th century Mathis Wackernagel calls the binary labeling of countries as neither descriptive nor explanatory It is merely a thoughtless and destructive endorsement of GDP fetish In reality there are not two types of countries but over 200 countries all faced with the same laws of nature yet each with unique features A 2021 analysis proposes the term emerged to describe markets economies or countries that have graduated from emerging market status but have not yet reached the level equivalent to developed countries Multinational corporations from these emerging markets present unique patterns of overseas expansion and knowledge acquisition from foreign countries Economy lists by various criteriaHuman Development Index HDI The world map representing Human Development Index categories based on 2022 data published in 2024 Very high High Medium Low No dataWorld map of countries or territories by Human Development Index scores in increments of 0 050 based on 2022 data published in 2024 0 950 0 900 0 950 0 850 0 899 0 800 0 849 0 750 0 799 0 700 0 749 0 650 0 699 0 600 0 649 0 550 0 599 0 500 0 549 0 450 0 499 0 400 0 449 0 399 Data unavailable The UN HDI is a statistical measure that gauges an economy s level of human development While there is a strong correlation between having a high HDI score and being a prosperous economy the UN points out that the HDI accounts for more than income or productivity Unlike GDP per capita or per capita income the HDI takes into account how income is turned into education and health opportunities and therefore into higher levels of human development Since 1990 Norway 2001 2006 2009 2019 Japan 1990 1991 and 1993 Canada 1992 and 1994 2000 and Iceland 2007 2008 have had the highest HDI score The following countries in the year 2022 are considered to be of very high human development Rank D Country or territory HDI annual growth 2010 2022 1 Switzerland 0 967 0 24 2 1 Norway 0 966 0 25 3 Iceland 0 959 0 28 4 2 Hong Kong 0 956 0 38 5 1 Denmark 0 952 0 35 Sweden 0 38 7 8 Ireland 0 950 0 38 3 Germany 0 19 9 1 Singapore 0 949 0 25 10 1 Netherlands 0 946 0 26 1 Australia 0 20 12 2 Liechtenstein 0 942 0 23 3 Belgium 0 26 Finland 0 27 15 3 United Kingdom 0 940 0 24 16 7 New Zealand 0 939 0 13 17 19 United Arab Emirates 0 937 1 04 18 5 Canada 0 935 0 22 19 3 South Korea 0 929 0 36 20 1 Luxembourg 0 927 0 14 5 United States 0 10 22 1 Slovenia 0 926 0 33 1 Austria 0 21 24 4 Japan 0 920 0 16 25 1 Israel 0 915 0 26 3 Malta 0 50 27 Spain 0 911 0 40 28 3 France 0 910 0 28 29 3 Cyprus 0 907 0 45 30 Italy 0 906 0 24 31 2 Estonia 0 899 0 33 32 6 Czech Republic 0 895 0 22 33 3 Greece 0 893 0 18 34 3 Bahrain 0 888 0 80 35 3 Andorra 0 884 0 20 36 2 Poland 0 881 0 35 37 2 Latvia 0 879 0 51 2 Lithuania 0 32 39 6 Croatia 0 878 0 53 40 Qatar 0 875 0 45 6 Saudi Arabia 0 70 42 Portugal 0 874 0 42 43 10 San Marino 0 867 0 32 44 Chile 0 860 0 47 45 9 Turkey 0 855 1 10 5 Slovakia 0 14 47 Hungary 0 851 0 22 48 6 Argentina 0 849 0 15 49 Kuwait 0 847 0 36 50 1 Montenegro 0 844 0 38 51 2 Saint Kitts and Nevis 0 838 0 49 52 8 Uruguay 0 830 0 47 53 3 Romania 0 827 0 14 54 1 Antigua and Barbuda 0 826 0 18 55 7 Brunei 0 823 0 02 56 3 Russia 0 821 0 25 57 3 Bahamas 0 820 0 21 5 Panama 0 47 59 7 Oman 0 819 0 22 60 3 Trinidad and Tobago 0 814 0 30 4 Georgia 0 54 62 2 Barbados 0 809 0 18 63 6 Malaysia 0 807 0 41 64 5 Costa Rica 0 806 0 39 65 3 Serbia 0 805 0 39 66 6 Thailand 0 803 0 65 67 1 Seychelles 0 802 0 30 4 Kazakhstan 0 38 69 11 Belarus 0 801 0 12 WESP developed economies According to the United Nations Department of Economic and Social Affairs World Economic Situation and Prospects report the following 37 countries are classified as developed economies as of January 2024 31 countries in Europe Austria Belgium Bulgaria Croatia Cyprus Czech Republic Denmark Estonia Finland France Germany Greece Hungary Iceland Ireland Italy Latvia Lithuania Luxembourg Malta Netherlands Norway Poland Portugal Romania Slovakia Slovenia Spain Sweden Switzerland United Kingdom two countries in Northern America Canada United States four countries in Asia and the Pacific Australia Japan South Korea New Zealand World Bank high income economies High income economies of the world as classified by the World Bank 2023 According to the World Bank the following 85 sovereign states and territories across are classified as high income economies having a nominal GNI per capita in excess of 14 005 as of 2024 Unsovereign Territories are denoted with an asterisk American Samoa Andorra Antigua and Barbuda Aruba Australia Austria The Bahamas Bahrain Barbados Belgium Bermuda British Virgin Islands Brunei Bulgaria Canada Cayman Islands Channel Islands Chile Croatia Curacao Cyprus Czech Republic Denmark Estonia Faroe Islands Finland France French Polynesia Germany Gibraltar Greece Greenland Guam Guyana Hong Kong Hungary Iceland Ireland Isle of Man Israel Italy Japan South Korea Kuwait Latvia Liechtenstein Lithuania Luxembourg Macau Malta Monaco Nauru Netherlands New Caledonia New Zealand Northern Mariana Islands Norway Oman Palau Panama Poland Portugal Puerto Rico Qatar Romania Russia San Marino Saudi Arabia Seychelles Singapore Sint Maarten Slovakia Slovenia Spain Saint Kitts and Nevis Saint Martin Sweden Switzerland Taiwan Trinidad and Tobago Turks and Caicos Islands United Arab Emirates United Kingdom United States Uruguay United States Virgin Islands Development Assistance Committee members Member nations of the Development Assistance Committee There are 29 OECD member countries and the European Union in the Development Assistance Committee DAC a group of the world s major donor countries that discusses issues surrounding development aid and poverty reduction in developing countries The following OECD member countries are DAC members 25 countries in Europe Austria Belgium Czech Republic Denmark Estonia Finland France Germany Greece Hungary Iceland Ireland Italy Lithuania Luxembourg Netherlands Norway Poland Portugal Slovakia Slovenia Spain Sweden Switzerland United Kingdom two countries in the Americas Canada United States two countries in Asia Japan South Korea two countries in Oceania Australia New Zealand IMF advanced economies Countries described as Advanced Economies by the IMF According to the International Monetary Fund 41 countries and territories are officially listed as advanced economies with the addition of 7 microstates and dependencies modified by the CIA which were omitted from the IMF version 29 countries and dependencies in Europe classified by the IMF 6 others given by the CIA Andorra Austria Belgium Croatia Cyprus Czech Republic Denmark Estonia Finland France Germany Greece Iceland Ireland Italy Latvia Lithuania Luxembourg Malta Netherlands Norway Portugal San Marino Slovakia Slovenia Spain Sweden Switzerland United Kingdom Plusd Faroe Islands Guernsey Holy See Jersey Liechtenstein Monaco seven countries and territories in Asia Hong Kong Israel Japan Macau Singapore South Korea Taiwan three countries and territories in the Americas classified by the IMF one territory given by the CIA Canada Puerto Rico United States Bermuda d two countries in Oceania Australia New Zealand d The CIA has modified an older version of the IMF s list of 38 Advanced Economies noting that the IMF s Advanced Economies list would presumably also cover the following nine smaller countries of Andorra Bermuda Faroe Islands Guernsey Holy See Jersey Liechtenstein Monaco and San Marino San Marino 2012 and Andorra 2021 were later included in the IMF s list Paris Club members Permanent members of the Paris Club There are 22 permanent members in the Paris Club French Club de Paris a group of officials from major creditor countries whose role is to find coordinated and sustainable solutions to the payment difficulties experienced by debtor countries 15 countries in Europe Austria Belgium Denmark Finland France Germany Ireland Italy Netherlands Norway Russia Spain Sweden Sw
