Human Development & Quality of Life in the United States
HDI 0.938 · UNDP rank 17 · latest published data
A 2023 HDI of 0.938 puts United States at UNDP rank 17, classified as very high human development. More revealing for this profile, Gender development sits close to parity on the GDI measure at 1.009 (UNDP group 1). At the same time, distribution materially changes the headline, with IHDI 0.832 and a 11.3% loss from HDI.
What sits inside United States' HDI
On this page, the United States' 2023 HDI inputs include life expectancy of 79.3, expected schooling of 15.9, mean schooling of 13.9, and GNI per capita of $73,650 in 2021 PPP dollars. Together they explain the headline index without turning any single input into a separate ranking.
Inequality changes the headline
United States' IHDI discounts the HDI for unequal distribution across health, education and income. The gap is a distribution adjustment, not a separate quality-of-life score.
Gender and planetary-pressure adjustments
Alongside the headline HDI, the published data for the United States include GDI 1.009, GII 0.169, PHDI 0.686. Their scopes differ, which is why the page presents them side by side rather than blending them.
Quality-of-life coverage is conditional
For United States, the page has no verified OECD life-satisfaction observation to report. When using this figure elsewhere, do not infer an unstated comparison so the source year is not silently treated as the publication year.
What United States' numbers say together
Taken alongside HDI, the United States' profile includes IHDI 0.832 with a 11.3% loss; PHDI 0.686 after a 26.9% adjustment; GDI 1.009. Each measure has a different definition, so they are not combined.
For 2023, United States records HDI 0.938 and rank 17 in the UNDP table. The result should be read as a composite of health, schooling and income outcomes.
The IHDI is 0.832, and UNDP reports an overall loss of 11.3% relative to the headline index.
The GDI value is 1.009 in group 1; it should be read alongside, not merged into, HDI.
The PHDI is 0.686, with a 26.9% adjustment from the HDI value in UNDP's 2023 table.
Frequently asked questions
What is United States' HDI?
United States' Human Development Index was 0.938 for 2023 in UNDP's Human Development Report 2025, with rank 17.
How does inequality affect United States' HDI?
The UNDP inequality adjustment gives United States an IHDI of 0.832, with an overall loss of 11.3% from the unadjusted HDI.
Why is there no life satisfaction score on this page?
For this comparison, a subjective well-being figure for the United States is published only when the source supplies a usable observation. A missing source value is shown as unavailable.
Is HDI the same as quality of life?
No. The HDI calculation does not include every aspect of quality of life. Life satisfaction adds a different perspective and is therefore not folded into HDI. For the evidence on this page, avoid turning the indicator into a general country score so the limitation remains visible to the reader.
Sources & methodology
Sources for the development indicators and definitions shown above.
View sources used for this page
Primary source for 2023 HDI and its components, plus IHDI, GDI, GII and PHDI where reported.
Report edition underlying the 2023 human-development indices and ranking.
Data note: Reference years are shown with each indicator; unavailable observations remain unfilled.