According to the OECD 2016 Better Life report, the Czech Republic performs well in many measures of well-being in the Better Life Index. The Czech Republic ranks above average in personal security, education and skills, social connections, subjective well-being, and work-life balance. It ranks below average in jobs and earnings, housing, health status, income and wealth, and civic engagement.

 In the Czech Republic, the average household net-adjusted disposable income per capita is USD 18 953 a year, less than the OECD average of USD 29 016 a year. But there is a considerable gap between the richest and poorest – the top 20% of the population earn nearly four times as much as the bottom 20%.

In terms of employment, some 69% of people aged 15 to 64 in the Czech Republic have a paid job, higher than the OECD employment average of 66%. 6% of employees work very long hours, below the 13% OECD average.

Social and economic status can affect voting rates; voter turnout for the top 20% of the population is an estimated 68% and for the bottom 20% it is an estimated 49%, a considerably wider gap than the OECD average gap of 13 percentage points, and points to shortcomings in the political mobilisation of the worst-off. Find out more about the scores for the Czech Republic (in English).

Read the press release and more about the Index (in English).

Click also on World Economic Forum's article Which nationalities have the best quality of life? The Quality of Nationality Index ranked 161 nationalities by looking at the strength of each country's economy, health, education, standard of living, and level of peace and stability. The report differentiates nationality from country by considering how easy it is for citizens to travel without a visa and live and work abroad. the Czech Republic ranks 15th (2015). 

Also, according to a recent survey conducted by the CVVM agency, 66% of Czechs were very satisfied (15%) or rather satisfied (51%) with their lives. The results have been stable in the past 12 months, with 62-67% of respondents being happy with their lives. Read details in Czech.