What is the best country to live in for older people?

The UK has plenty of accessible attractions to visit for those who use a stair lift, but overall, how does the UK compare to other countries as a place to live for older people? When answering such a question, there’s a lot to consider, from the quality of health care to how high the life expectancy is.

By using a combination of different datasets, including the cost of living and the retirement age, a definitive ranking of each nation has been made.

Read on below to see how the UK ranks and to discover which is the best country for older people to live in.

Key findings

• Norway is the best country for older people to live in.
• Qatar, Finland, Malaysia, Sweden, and Japan rank in the top five (including ties).
• The UK is the 35^th best country for older people to live in.

What is the best country for older people to live in?

What are the best countries to live in for older people?

What are the five best countries to live in for older people?

1. Norway

2. Qatar

=3. Finland

=3. Malaysia

4. Sweden

5. Japan

Norway has been crowned as the best country to live in for older people. Contributing factors towards the country gaining the number one spot is that it boasts one of the best healthcare index scores and longest life expectancies in the world.

Qatar ranks as the second-best country to live in for older people as it has one of the best property price-to-income ratios in the world. It also received one of the best healthcare index scores.

Finland, which came out on top in a previous iteration of the study, came joint-third in the rankings, alongside Malaysia, as they both scored strongly across all the categories.

The Nordic countries performed well – perhaps something that won’t surprise all that many, with Sweden ranking fourth to become the third country from the region in the top five.

Japan rounded off the top five after its healthcare system and life expectancy were among the best in the world.

The movers and shakers

When the study was originally conducted in 2020, Finland took the top spot, and it was the only country that remained in the top five this time around.

The latest winner, Norway, was in eighth place in the original study, jumping up several places. Qatar moved from 14^th position in 2020 to second this time around, Japan went from 19^th place to fifth, and Sweden went from 12^th to fourth. Malaysia was the biggest mover after it went from 37^th position to joint-third.

In the 2020 study, Denmark, Netherlands, Switzerland, and Australia were among the top five best countries for older people to live in, but their rankings have now dropped. Below are their previous positions compared to their current ranking.

• Denmark was second, now 17^th.
• Netherlands was third, now 15^th.
• Switzerland was fourth, now 16^th.
• Australia was fifth, now 37^th.

What are the five worst countries for older people to live in?

1. Botswana

2. Ethiopia

3. Cameroon

4. Zimbabwe

5. Hong Kong

Coming in last place as the worst country to live in for older people is Botswana, a country that is known for having high poverty rates. It finished near the bottom for life expectancy and happiness.

Ethiopia, Cameroon, Zimbabwe, and Hong Kong performed poorly across most of the categories.

In the previous study back in 2020, Iraq, Kenya, Ukraine, Venezuela, and Cambodia were the five worst countries.

Methodology

The datasets* used to create a ranking of each country were: life expectancy, health care index score, societal safety score (Global Peace Index), happiness index score, cost of living index score, property prices index score, and the retirement age for men and women.

Certain countries were not included in the ranking if data did not exist for six or more categories. Where data was missing for a category, the score is marked as ‘no data’ and the final rankings take this into account.

As 112 countries qualified, the first position in each category was given 112 points, and the last position was given 1 point. If countries finished in the same position, they were given the same number of points.

Each country was allocated a maximum possible score based on the number of categories for which data was present. The nations were then ranked by the percentage of that maximum possible score. For example, Norway had a maximum score of 896 points, and its final score was 599. Therefore, the percentage of the maximum possible score is 66.85%.

All data can be found here.

Sources: WorldOMeter (Life expectancy), Numbeo (Health Care Index), Vision of Humanity (Global Peace Index), World Happiness Report, Numbeo (Cost of Living Index), Numbeo (Property Prices Index), Trading Economics (Retirement Age)

*The table included in this article indicates how the different datasets should be viewed, such as high life expectancy = good and low cost of living score = good.

How does the UK compare to other countries?

The United Kingdom finished in 35^th place overall, which was in the top half of the table and among some of the best countries in the world when it comes to places to live for older people.

However, the UK’s ranking has fallen from 17^th place in 2020, which shows that there is room for improvement.

The UK finished above countries like Germany, Australia, Ireland, Italy, and the United States, but it was below countries such as France, Japan, Spain, Belgium and the Netherlands.

The United Kingdom performed well in categories such as health care, happiness and property prices compared to other countries in the world, but it performed poorly in categories such as cost of living and retirement ages for both men and women.

Heather Cowper, a seasoned traveller from the over-50s travel blog Heather on Her Travels, has noticed a difference in how the UK treats its older populace compared to other nations:

“I feel that in the UK, we don't have so much respect for our elders as in some other countries, and there's definitely a difference in mindset about how they should be cared for as elders become infirm. In the Mediterranean countries, it seems more likely for elderly relatives to be cared for at home within the extended family, and the idea of older relatives living in a care home is seen as a failure or less loving solution.”

What country has the highest life expectancy?

Hong Kong has the best life expectancy at 85.8 years old. The average life expectancy for both sexes around the world is 73.3 years.

Below are the top five countries with the highest life expectancy:

1. Hong Kong
2. Macao
3. Japan
4. Switzerland
5. Singapore

Which country has the best health care?

Taiwan has the best healthcare index score after it received a score of 85.9. The average health index score around the world is 63.8.

Below are the top five countries which have the best health care:

1. Taiwan
2. South Korea
3. Japan
4. France
5. Netherlands

What is the safest country to live in?

Iceland is the safest country to live in after it received a score of 1.124 (the lower the score, the safer the country). The average peace score for countries around the world is 2.080.

Below are the safest countries to live in:

1. Iceland
2. Denmark
3. Ireland
4. New Zealand
5. Austria

What country has the happiest population?

Finland is the happiest country in the world, as it gained a happiness index score of 7.804. The average score for countries around the world is 5.539.

Below are the top five countries with the happiest population:

1. Finland
2. Denmark
3. Iceland
4. Israel
5. Netherlands

What country has the cheapest cost of living?

Pakistan is the country with the lowest cost of living after it scored 17.6. The average cost of living index score around the world is 48.47.

The five countries with the cheapest cost of living are below:

1. Pakistan
2. Egypt
3. India
4. Nigeria
5. Libya

What country has the most affordable property prices?

Saudi Arabia has the best property price-to-income ratio in the world, with a ratio of 2.9. The average property price-to-income ratio across the world is 14.6.

The top five countries with the best property price-to-income ratio in the world are:

1. Saudi Arabia
2. Oman
3. South Africa
4. United Arab Emirates
5. United States

What country has the earliest retirement age for men?

Indonesia has the earliest retirement age for men, which is just 58 years old. The average retirement age for men around the world is 62 years old.

The countries with the earliest retirement age for men are:

1. Indonesia
2. Bangladesh
3. 47 countries have a retirement age for men of 60

What country has the earliest retirement age for women?

At 55 years old, China, Mongolia, Uzbekistan, Nicaragua and El Salvador have the earliest retirement ages. The average retirement age for women around the world is 61.5 years old.

The five countries with the earliest retirement age for women are:

1. China
2. Mongolia
3. Uzbekistan
4. Nicaragua
5. El Salvador

The best places for older adults to live

Well, there you have it. The answer to which country is the best to live in for older people has been revealed. The results are conclusive, with Norway and Qatar taking the top two places.

It will be interesting to see how the rankings will change over time and where the UK ranks in future iterations of the study.

This article was brought to you by Handicare, working with Age Co, who provide a range of home mobility products such as stairlifts, homelifts and bathing solutions. For more information about how they can help make your home more accessible, please get in touch.

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