placestats

Last European coloniser: United Kingdom · Largest religious group: Buddhists. These are labels that describe the country, not numbers, so they are never compared with other measures. The numbers behind them, such as population shares, are.

Bhutan

Against lower middle income countries, Bhutan ranks 3rd of 47 on environment and 41st of 46 on gender. Each ranking counts only the countries that report that score, so the totals differ and the two ranks can’t be compared directly. Both compare Bhutan with countries of similar wealth. That is the only kind of ranking that tells you something a ranking by income does not already show.

How it has changed

Every measure Bhutan reports, over all the years it has been published. Pick one. Hover or use the arrow keys to read a year. Gaps in a line are years with no data. They are left open, not filled in.

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Scores by area

Each score averages the measures in one area, such as health. Each measure is first put on a common scale and turned so that higher is always better. Zero is the average country in an average year. One point is a typical gap between countries (a standard deviation), so +1 means about one typical gap above average. These are summaries, not measurements. See how the country scores are built and how the topic scores compare with each other.

ScoreValueRank, all countriesRank, similar incomeMostly income?
Governance score 2025+0.6166 of 1799 of 45moderate +0.53
Health score 2024+0.3733 of 1935 of 47moderate +0.32
Education score 2024+0.28134 of 19915 of 46proxy +0.81
Equality score 2022+0.8019 of 1654 of 44high +0.64
Infrastructure score 2024+0.85121 of 2107 of 47proxy +0.90
Gender score 2024-0.49162 of 18641 of 46moderate +0.37
Environment score 2024+1.237 of 2133 of 47moderate -0.33
Labour score 2025-0.03117 of 19517 of 47high +0.79

The last column shows how closely each score just tracks national income. The number is its link with GDP per person (the value of everything a country produces, divided by its people), from −1 to +1. A score marked proxy is mostly a measure of how rich the country is. Its rank among all countries says little that GDP per person does not. That is why the rank among similar-income countries sits beside it.

The measures behind them

Every measure reported for Bhutan, grouped by area. Some measures have no agreed better direction, such as population growth, inflation and military spending. They are listed here but left out of every score, since there is no fair way to say which way is better. Some names use technical terms: PPP means adjusted for what money buys in each country, HDI is a United Nations score combining life expectancy, schooling and income, and a Gini indexmeasures how unequally income is shared. Each measure’s own page explains it.

crime

Conflict deaths0per 100,000 people2025higher is worse
Armed conflict present01 if any conflict, else 02025higher is worse
Homicide rate2.47per 100,000 population2020higher is worse

culture

Religiously unaffiliated0.0437%% of population2020no agreed direction
Christian share0.55%% of population2020no agreed direction
Muslim share0.222%% of population2020no agreed direction
Single-parent households4.91%% of households2010no agreed direction
One-person households6.13%% of households2010no agreed direction
Women in a union62%% of women aged 15-492022no agreed direction

demography

Median age29.4years2023no agreed direction
Age at childbearing29.9years2023no agreed direction
Population796,682people2025no agreed direction
Population growth0.65%% per year2025no agreed direction
Urbanization43.4%% of population2025no agreed direction
Population 65+6.63%% of population2025no agreed direction
Population 0-1420.4%% of population2025no agreed direction
Fertility rate1.45births per woman2024no agreed direction
Birth rate12.5per 1,000 people2024no agreed direction
Net migration455people2025no agreed direction
Migrant share of population7%% of population2024no agreed direction

economy

HDI0.698index, 0 to 12023higher is better
Inequality-adjusted HDI0.478index, 0 to 12023higher is better
GDP per capita (PPP)$16,744international $2025higher is better
GNI per capita (PPP)$14,485international $2024higher is better
GDP per capita (market)$3,989US$2025higher is better
GDP growth8.01%% per year2025no agreed direction
Inflation3.56%% per year2025no agreed direction
Trade openness79.4%% of GDP2024no agreed direction
FDI inflows0.0842%% of GDP2024no agreed direction
Tax revenue12.3%% of GDP2020no agreed direction
Government consumption20%% of GDP2024no agreed direction
Government expense24.1%% of GDP2020no agreed direction
Employment in agriculture42.4%% of employment2025no agreed direction

education

Primary completion93.6%% of children2025higher is better
Expected schooling13.2years2023higher is better
Mean years of schooling5.84years2023higher is better
Education spending5.85%% of GDP2023no agreed direction
Primary enrollment115%% gross2024higher is better
Secondary enrollment86.2%% gross2024higher is better
Tertiary enrollment13%% gross2024higher is better
Adult literacy64.9%% of adults2022higher is better
Out of school, primary10.5%% of primary-age children2024higher is worse
Pupil-teacher ratio34.7pupils per teacher2018higher is worse
Researchers236per million people2024higher is better

environment

CO2 per capita2.01t CO2e per capita2024higher is worse
Forest area71.6%% of land area2023higher is better
Agricultural land13.8%% of land area2023no agreed direction
Protected land51.6%% of land area2025higher is better

gender

Gender Inequality Index0.278index, 0 to 12023higher is worse
Gender Development Index0.958ratio of women's HDI to men's2023no agreed direction
Women's political empowerment0.675index (0-1)2025higher is better
Women ministers11.1%% of ministers2024higher is better
Women in parliament4.26%% of seats2025higher is better
Women in management15.5%% of managers2024higher is better
Married by 189%% of women aged 20-242023higher is worse

governance

Corruption Perceptions Index72index (0-100, higher = cleaner)2024higher is better
Political rights (FH)2rating (1-7, 1 = most free)2025higher is worse
Civil liberties (FH)3rating (1-7, 1 = most free)2025higher is worse
Pre-trial detainee share14.2%% of prisoners2019higher is worse
Refugees originating939per 100,000 people2024higher is worse
Electoral democracy0.566index (0-1)2025higher is better
Liberal democracy0.457index (0-1)2025higher is better
Participatory democracy0.349index (0-1)2025higher is better
Free and fair elections0.865index (0-1)2025higher is better
Regime type2regime category (0-3)2025higher is better
Political corruption0.148index (0-1)2025higher is worse
Freedom of expression0.682index (0-1)2025higher is better
Freedom of association0.609index (0-1)2025higher is better
Political civil liberties0.658index (0-1)2025higher is better
Civil society participation0.694index (0-1)2025higher is better
Birth registration99.9%% of children under 52010higher is better
Control of corruption1.47index (approx. -2.5 to 2.5)2024higher is better
Rule of law0.79index (approx. -2.5 to 2.5)2024higher is better
Government effectiveness0.581index (approx. -2.5 to 2.5)2024higher is better
Regulatory quality-0.0913index (approx. -2.5 to 2.5)2024higher is better
Voice and accountability0.401index (approx. -2.5 to 2.5)2024higher is better
Political stability1.35index (approx. -2.5 to 2.5)2024higher is better

health

Life expectancy73.3years2024higher is better
Infant mortality13.7per 1,000 live births2024higher is worse
Under-5 mortality17.2per 1,000 live births2024higher is worse
Health spending4.42%% of GDP2023no agreed direction
Suicide rate4.9per 100,0002021higher is worse
Hospital beds2.16per 1,000 people2023no agreed direction
Basic water access99.5%% of population2024higher is better
Basic sanitation86.8%% of population2024higher is better
Child stunting17.9%% of children under 52024higher is worse
Adolescent fertility8.71births per 1,000 women aged 15-192024higher is worse
Maternal mortality47per 100,000 live births2023higher is worse
Skilled birth attendance98.9%% of births2021higher is better
Alcohol consumption0.18litres per adult per year2020no agreed direction
Tobacco use19.6%% of adults2024higher is worse
Road traffic deaths16.2per 100,000 population2019higher is worse
Physicians0.553per 1,000 people2022higher is better
DTP3 immunisation98%% of children aged 12-23 months2024higher is better
HIV prevalence0.2%% of adults aged 15-492024higher is worse
Tuberculosis incidence191per 100,000 people2024higher is worse
Premature NCD mortality15.9%% probability, ages 30-702021higher is worse
Anaemia in women33.8%% of women aged 15-492023higher is worse
Out-of-pocket health spending25.5%% of health spending2023higher is worse
Adult obesity13.1%% of adults2024higher is worse
Health coverage index69index, 0 to 1002023higher is better

inequality

Gini index28.5index (0-100)2022higher is worse
Extreme poverty rate0%% of population2022higher is worse

infrastructure

Internet users91.3%% of population2024higher is better
Mobile subscriptions99.8per 100 people2024higher is better
Electricity access100%% of population2024higher is better
Slum share of urban population44.7%% of urban population2022higher is worse
Fixed broadband2.92per 100 people2024higher is better

labor

Unemployment3.23%% of labor force2025higher is worse
Female labor participation56.7%% of women 15+2025no agreed direction
Male labor participation71.8%% of men 15+2025no agreed direction
Youth not in work or study15.3%% of 15 to 24 year olds2025higher is worse
Vulnerable employment69%% of employment2025higher is worse

wellbeing

Life satisfaction5.08score (0-10)2018higher is better

Values are the most recent in 2010–2025, and different measures can come from different years. The year is shown beside each. Nothing here ranks countries by merit. An area score averages whatever measures its publishers happen to collect, and the choice of what to collect is itself a judgement made by someone else. All countries · How the country data works

Countries to compare with Bhutan

Also in South Asia: Bangladesh, India, Maldives, Nepal, Sri Lanka.

Also lower middle income, in other regions: Angola, Benin, Bolivia, Cambodia, Cameroon, Comoros, Congo, Rep., Cote d'Ivoire, Djibouti, Egypt, Arab Rep., Eswatini, Ghana, Guinea, Haiti, Honduras, Kenya, Kiribati, Kyrgyz Republic, Lao PDR, Lebanon, Lesotho, Mauritania, Morocco, Myanmar, Namibia, Nicaragua, Nigeria, Pakistan, Papua New Guinea, Sao Tome and Principe, Senegal, Solomon Islands, Tajikistan, Tanzania, Timor-Leste, Togo, Tunisia, Uzbekistan, Vanuatu, Venezuela, RB, and more on the full list of countries.