The 10 countries with the best quality of life in the world

The Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development just released its annual Better Life Index of countries with the best quality of life.

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To do this, the OECD studied 34 countries across different parameters of well-being, including work-life balance, financial wealth, and quality of the environment.

These are the 10 countries that scored the highest.

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Stockholm, Sweden. Simon Bajada
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Gathered from country-level government data and public opinion surveys, the organization's index explores 23 indicators of well-being across 11 categories.

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Skye Gould/Tech Insider

10. Denmark — The country ranks high in paid vacation time, averaging 5 weeks off per year. Only 2% of Danish people say they work long hours, compared to the OECD's average of 13%, a percentage that increases every year.

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Slette Strand Beach in Denmark. Stig Nygaard
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9. New Zealand — Greenhouse emissions are relatively low in New Zealand, mainly due to its low population and close proximity to the sea.

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New Zealand. TripAdvisor

8. Netherlands — This country boasts one of the highest literacy rates in the world. The OECD found that adults in the Netherlands score above-average in math and reading comprehension tests.

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Leiden University, the oldest university in the Netherlands. Wikipedia Commons
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7. Sweden — People in Sweden have a high level of civic engagement. Last year, 86% of its residents turned out to vote for its parliament.

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Voter ballots from last year's election. Reuters

6. Canada — This country ranks high in housing standards. In Canada, the average home contains 2.5 rooms per person, the highest rate in the OECD study.

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The Markham suburbs in Toronto. Wikipedia Commons
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5. US — Jumping two spots from last year's Index, the United States comes out on top in areas of housing, income, and wealth. The average household disposable income is $41,355 per year, nearly twice the average of the countries in the study.

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New York City commuters. Flickr User Barn Images

4. Australia — Although the country ranked as number one for the last two years, it fell to fourth in 2015's Index. The OECD found that people feel a strong sense of community in Australia. 92% of Australians believe that they know someone they could rely on.

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Sydney, Australia. Will Choi
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3. Switzerland — The unemployment rate in Switzerland hovers around 3.5%, one of the lowest in the world.

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Zurich, Switzerland. Shutterstock / Andreas Zerndl

2. Iceland — The country jumped nine spots from last year's Index. Since 2013, Iceland's unemployment rate and its pollution level has dropped. Home to glaciers, warm springs, and the 197-foot Skogafoss Waterfall, Iceland enjoys the cleanest tap water in the world.

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Skogafoss Waterfall in Iceland. Andrés Nieto Porras
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1. Norway — The country moved from second to first place since last year. People are living their best lives in Norway, where a majority have paid jobs, a high level of education, and live an average of 82 years.

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Oslo, Norway. Flickr/mimamoe
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