Report: Israel ranked top in Digital Quality of Life worldwide
Startup Nation jumped three spots in a year due to its overwhelming score in internet affordability in times of high inflation
The fourth annual edition of the Digital Quality of Life Index has reported that Israel is now ranked at the top of its list, beating out 116 other countries and overtaking Denmark after its two-year lead. The report is conducted after considering five ‘fundamental digital wellbeing pillars’: internet quality, e-government, e-infrastructure, internet affordability, and e-security.
Since last year, mobile internet speed in Israel has improved by 30% (12.2 Mbps), and fixed broadband speed has grown by 15.8% (23.3 Mbps). Israel’s mobile internet is the most affordable in the world: residents can buy 1GB of mobile internet in Israel for as cheap as five seconds of work per month, 58 times less than in the United States. On average, people have to work six minutes more to afford broadband internet in 2022. Last year, the most affordable mobile internet in the world belonged to Denmark, but in this year’s edition it dropped to 9th place. Fixed broadband, however, costs Israeli citizens 19 minutes each month, ranking it 28th.
The quality of Israel’s internet, signaled by its speed, stability, and growth, ranks 21st in the world and is 31% better than the global average. Israel’s worst score out of the five pillars comes in e-government, where it ranks 33rd. E-infrastructure and e-security rank 28th and 32nd, respectively. Its overwhelming high score in affordability has helped it achieve the top overall ranking, despite its modest performance in other pillars.
Global inflation rates this year have caused fixed broadband internet to become less affordable around the world for the second year in a row. This can have devastating effects on countries with a widened economic gap between their citizens, and current inflation is adding pressure on low-income households that need internet. Despite this, Israel can boast the most affordable internet in the world and takes the leading position in the whole of Asia.
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"While countries with a strong digital quality of life tend to be those of advanced economies, our global study found that money doesn't always buy digital happiness," explains Gabriele Racaityte-Krasauske, Head of PR at Surfshark. "That is why, for the fourth year in a row, we continue analyzing the Digital Quality of Life to see how different nations keep up with providing the basic digital necessities for their citizens. Most importantly, our research seeks to show the full picture of the global digital divide that millions of people are suffering from."
Seven of the top 10 countries with a high Digital Quality of Life score are based in Europe. Israel is followed by Denmark, which was knocked off the top spot, Germany, France, and Sweden. Great Britain was ranked 9th and the United States ranked 12th.
The Digital Quality of Life Index is based on the United Nations open-source information, the World Bank, Freedom House, the International Communications Union, and other sources. This year, the report includes seven more countries, most of which are African. Surfshark is a privacy protection toolset to help users control their online presence. Its suite contains a VPN audited by independent security experts, a certified antivirus, a privacy search tool, and a data leak alert system.
