The U.S. ranks 26th in child well-being

According to UNICEF, the United States ranks twenty-sixth out of twenty-nine developed countries in terms of the overall well-being of children. Here is a list of the top ten countries in child well-being:

1. Netherlands
2. Norway
3. Iceland
4. Finland
5. Sweden
6. Germany
7. Luxembourg
8. Switzerland
9. Belgium
10. Ireland

The U.S. ranks 12th in prosperity

According to the Legatum Institute, the United States ranks twelfth in prosperity, out of one hundred forty-two countries ranked in that category. Norway ranks first. The eleven countries more prosperous than the United States are:

1. Norway
2. Denmark
3. Sweden
4. Australia
5. New Zealand
6. Canada
7. Finland
8. Netherlands
9. Switzerland
10. Ireland
11. Luxembourg

The U.S. ranks 2nd in beef exports

According to the International Trade Centre, in 2010 the United States exported $1,876,306,000 worth of  “meat of bovine animals, fresh or chilled,” or 10.4% of all the fresh or chilled beef exports in the world. That is enough to make the United States rank second in that category. Netherlands ranks first, exporting $2,172,798,000 (or 12.0%) of the world’s beef.

The U.S. ranks 11th in happiness

According the the Earth Institute at Columbia University, the United States ranks eleventh in the “Average Cantril Ladder,” a measure of happiness. Denmark ranks first. The top ten countries are:

1. Denmark
2. Finland
3. Norway
4. Netherlands
5. Canada
6. Switzerland
7. Sweden
8. New Zealand
9. Australia
10. Ireland

The U.S. ranks 3rd in human development

According to the United Nations’ 2011 Human Development Index, the United States has a human development score of 0.910, which makes the United States tied for third with Netherlands in that category. Norway ranks first, with a human development score of 0.943.

The indicators that the United Nations considers when building its index are health, education, and income.

The U.S. ranks 17th in credit worthiness

According to Standard & Poor’s, the U.S. has a credit rating of AA+, which makes the U.S. rank seventeenth in the world in that category. Sixteen economies rank higher, at AAA. They are: Australia, Austria, Canada, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Isle of Man, Luxembourg, Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway, Singapore, Sweden, Switzerland, and United Kingdom.

The U.S. ranks 23rd in Women’s Index

According to Save the Children’s publication, State of the World’s Mothers 2010, the United States ranks twenty-third out of forty-three “more developed countries” in the “Women’s Index” ranking. The top ten countries are:

1. Australia
2. Norway
3. New Zealand
4. Denmark
5. Iceland
6. Finland
7. Sweden
8. Ireland
9. Netherlands
10. United Kingdom

The U.S. ranks 28th in Mothers’ Index

According to Save the Children’s publication, State of the World’s Mothers 2010, the United States ranks twentieth eighth out of forty-three “more developed countries” in its “Mothers’ Index” ranking. The top ten countries are:

1. Norway
2. Australia
3. Iceland
4. Sweden
5. Denmark
6. New Zealand
7. Finland
8. Netherlands
9. Belgium
10. Germany (tie with Belgium)

The U.S. ranks 11th in televisions

According to the World Bank, 98% of U.S. households had a television in 2005, which makes the United States tied for eleventh with Ireland, Malta, Poland, Latvia, Iceland, Turkey, Netherlands, Hungary, and Lithuania. Greece and Portugal tied for first, both with 100% of households having at least one television.

The U.S. ranks 20th in press freedom

According to Reporters Without Borders, the U.S. has a press freedom score of 6.75 which makes the United States rank twentieth out of one-hundred seventy-eight ranked countries. Several countries tied for first, with a score of 0.0, including Finland, Iceland, Netherlands, Norway, Sweden, and Switzerland.