The 20 best countries in the world, ranked

                    <img src="https://i.insider.com/6a04a7b17c7e83f26041b4e3?width=700" alt="Aerial view of downtown Geneva in Switzerland.">








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                          Downtown Geneva, Switzerland.

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• Switzerland kept its No. 1 spot on US News & World Report’s list of the best countries in the world.
• The 2026 rankings compared 100 countries across factors like infrastructure, health, and tourism.
• The US didn’t crack the top 10 in this year’s list.

• Summaries are generated by an AI model trained on Business Insider’s articles. AI may make mistakes or provide inaccurate/incomplete information.