The nonprofit GWI released its The Global Wellness Economy: Country Rankings report, the first research to measure the wellness economies of 150 nations. The US is the largest market, at $1.2 trillion—nearly double the second-largest market, China, at $683 billion. In fact, the US accounts for 28% of the entire global wellness market, while the top ten markets represent 71% of the world's total.
This last year, the GWI generated country-level data for all 11 wellness sectors. So now, for the first time, we can answer the question everyone asks: How big is the total wellness market for each country and who ranks highest?" said Ophelia Yeung, GWI senior research fellow. "Which nations are growing, which are shrinking? How do national wellness markets differ and why? This report is the first to answer these questions.
Globally, the wellness economy represents 5.1% of total GDP; roughly 1 in every 20 "dollars" spent by consumers worldwide is on wellness.
Top 20 Wellness Markets:
US - $1.2 trillion China - $683 billion Japan - $304 billion Germany - $224 billion UK - $158 billion France - $133 billion Canada - $95 billion South Korea - $94 billion Italy - $92 billion Australia - $84 billion Brazil - $83 billion India - $78 billion Russia - $71 billion Spain - $63 billion Mexico - $46 billion Netherlands - $41 billion Taiwan - $38 billion Switzerland - $38 billion Indonesia - $36 billion Turkey - $35 billion
Top Wellness Spending Per Capita:
Switzerland - $4,372 Iceland - $3,728 US - $3,685 Austria - $3,568 Norway - $3,346 Australia - $3,771 New Zealand - $2,969 Denmark - $2,958 Hong Kong - $2,943 Aruba - $2,792
“These new rankings reveal the countries that spend the most on wellness—important information for governments and businesses. But the size of a wellness market does not necessarily capture which countries are most 'well': which nations have the best health outcomes or fair access to wellness," said Katherine Johnston, GWI senior research fellow. "There's much research to do. Who is benefitting from the growth of the wellness economy in each country, and who is not? What's the relationship between the wellness market and the health and well-being of a nation's population? What can governments and policymakers do to bring more wellness to more people?”
