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Societal wellbeing: US vs EU

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‣ GDP (or household income) alone is insufficient to measure wellbeing. Adopting new, distribution- and sustainability-sensitive welfare metrics, fully in line with the provisions of the EU Treaty, could help to shape more inclusive and balanced economic and social policies that also respect planetary boundaries. ‣ A broader look on societal wellbeing can modify the EU-US comparison substantially and yield very different conclusions on the relative performances over time. From 2010 2023, GDP per capita rose 25% in the United States (vs 17% in the EU). Yet the EU’s overall current wellbeing index increased by 9.5 percentage points while the US moved up by only 1.2 points. ‣ In terms of sustainable and inclusive wellbeing, the EU index improved by 4.0 percentage points in 2010-2023, while the US index declined by 0.5, highlighting the importance of factors like resources for the future, societal resilience, nature, inequalities, and institutional quality. ‣ The resources for the future index, however, is much higher in the US than in the EU, helped by the higher economic growth of the US. ‣ When GDP is adjusted for health and inequality, the EU comes out ahead: using an ‘equivalent income’ metric that incorporates life expectancy and income inequality, the EU surpassed the US by 2022

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  • Benczur Peter & Cariboni Jessica & Da Costa Shaun Mark & Giovannini Enrico, 2026. "Societal wellbeing: US vs EU," JRC Research Reports JRC146569, Joint Research Centre.
    • Handle: RePEc:ipt:iptwpa:jrc146569
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    1. Fleurbaey, Marc & Blanchet, Didier, 2013. "Beyond GDP: Measuring Welfare and Assessing Sustainability," OUP Catalogue, Oxford University Press, number 9780199767199.
    2. Koen Decancq & Marc Fleurbaey & Erik Schokkaert, 2015. "Happiness, Equivalent Incomes and Respect for Individual Preferences," Economica, London School of Economics and Political Science, vol. 82, pages 1082-1106, December.
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