A scorecard for the new connected world

This index of 73 countries, representing 84 per cent of global GDP and 97 per cent of all Internet users, rates nations according to their ability to flourish in the new connected world.

The rankings, updated quarterly, come from Net Figures, Net Profit’s uniquely robust statistical database, and is derived from 10 weighted metrics. Two (R&D and proportion of young adults) are macro indicators; the next five (fixed-telephone line, PC, Internet and mobile phone penetration plus e-commerce revenue) measure current preparedness. The last three indicators – broadband and web-enabled mobile device penetration and m-commerce – are more heavily weighted "advance indicators". These tell us which countries are adopting emerging technologies most quickly, and explain why South Korea heads the table while the UK lags Estonia.

Use the links on the left to view the HTML version of the Advantage Index, or download the PDF and Excel files.