Developed country
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A developed country, or advanced country,[1][2] is a country 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.[3] 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 United Nations Department of Economic and Social Affairs, the World Bank, the Development Assistance Committee, the International Monetary Fund, the Paris Club, moreover, HDI ranking is used to reflect the composite index of life expectancy, education, and income per capita.
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. Template:As of, advanced economies constitute 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.[4]
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.[5][6]
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.[7]
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.[8]
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.[9]
Similar terms
Template:See also 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.[10]
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."[11]
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.[12] 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)
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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 2023 are considered to be of "very high human development":[13]
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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 2026:[14]
31 countries in Europe: Template:Columns-list
two countries in North America: Template:Columns-list
four countries in Asia and the Pacific: Template:Columns-list
World Bank high-income economies
According to the World Bank, the following sovereign states and territories across are classified as high-income economies, having a nominal GNI per capita in excess of $13,935. as of the 2025 fiscal year:[15]
Non-sovereign Territories are denoted by an asterisk (*).
Development Assistance Committee members
There are 32 OECD member countries and the European Union—in the Development Assistance Committee (DAC),[16] a group of the world's major donor countries that discusses issues surrounding development aid and poverty reduction in developing countries.[17] The following OECD member countries are DAC members:
26 countries in Europe: Template:Columns-list
two countries in the Americas: Template:Columns-list
two countries in Asia: Template:Columns-list
two countries in Oceania: Template:Columns-list
one associate member: Template:Columns-list
IMF advanced economies
According to the International Monetary Fund, 41 countries and territories are officially listed as "advanced economies",[19][20] with the addition of 7 microstates and dependencies modified by the CIA which were omitted from the IMF version:[21]
29 countries and dependencies in Europe classified by the IMF, 6 others given by the CIA: Template:Columns-list
seven countries and territories in Asia: Template:Columns-list
three countries and territories in the Americas classified by the IMF, one territory given by the CIA : Template:Columns-list
two countries in Oceania: Template:Columns-list
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.[21]
Paris Club members
There are 22 permanent members in the Paris Club (Template:Langx), 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: Template:Columns-list
three countries in the Americas: Template:Columns-list
three countries in Asia: Template:Columns-list
one country in Oceania: Template:Columns-list
UNIDO high-income industrial economies
According to the United Nations Industrial Development Organization (UNIDO) Industrial Development Report 2026 report[22], 48 countries and territories are categorized as "high-income industrial economies". This classification is assigned to economies that have achieved a high national income through a development path resulting in high levels of industrialization. UNIDO determines this status by evaluating three core dimensions of the manufacturing sector: value added (manufacturing value added per capita), historical employment share, and the quality of exports (average exports of medium- and high-technology products).[23]
34 countries and territories in Europe: Template:Columns-list
Six countries and territories in Asia: Template:Columns-list Three countries and territories in North America: Template:Columns-list
Three countries in Oceania: Template:Columns-list
Two countries in South America: Template:Columns-list
Comparative table (2025)
Comparative table of countries with a "very high" human development (0.800 or higher), according to UNDP; "developed" economies, according to the World Economic Situation and Prospects report by UNDESA; "high-income" economies, according to the World Bank; DAC members; "advanced" economies, according to the IMF; Paris Club members. In bracket year of joining.
See also
- Developed market
- Developing country
- Digital divide
- D-10 Strategy Forum
- First World privilege
- Globalization
- G7
- List of countries by wealth per adult
- Median income
- World Bank high-income economy
Notes
References
External links
- Template:Wikiquote-inline
- IMF (advanced economies)
- The World Factbook Template:Webarchive (developed countries)
- United Nations Statistics Division (definition)
- List of countries, United Nations Statistics Division (developed regions)
- World Bank (high-income economies)
Template:GDP country lists Template:Global economic classifications Template:Quality of life country lists Template:Authority control
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- ↑ Developed Economy Definition Template:Webarchive. Investopedia (16 April 2010). Retrieved 12 July 2013.
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- ↑ Peer reviews of DAC members – Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development Template:Webarchive. Oecd.org. Retrieved 22 October 2013.
- ↑ DAC website >> "The DAC in Dates" Template:Webarchive, On the DAC's self-description, see the introductory letter. On other events, refer to the relevant section by date.
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