Kazakhstan tops Central Asia in 2026 Legatum Prosperity Index
Kazakhstan has secured the top position among Central Asian nations in the 2026 Legatum Prosperity Index, achieving a global ranking of 66th out of 161 countries in the most recent evaluation of national prosperity.
The Legatum Institute’s Prosperity Institute publishes this index, which assesses national prosperity using over 130 indicators categorized into three main areas: development, freedom, and society.
For its 2026 edition, a revised methodology was implemented, emphasizing a more balanced performance across all domains. This adjustment limits the degree to which exceptional results in one category can compensate for weaker performance in another.
Kazakhstan achieved a global ranking of 52nd in the Development domain and 45th in Society. It also placed 47th for Integrity of Society. The nation's strongest performance was in education, where it ranked 32nd worldwide. Additionally, Kazakhstan secured 30th place for Integrity of Families and 53rd in the Standard of Living category.
Within Central Asia, Kazakhstan surpassed Kyrgyzstan, which ranked 87th globally, and Uzbekistan, which came in 94th. Tajikistan was placed 129th, while Turkmenistan ranked 150th. Kazakhstan also outranked its neighbor Russia, which held the 103rd overall position.
Globally, Switzerland led the 2026 index, followed by Norway, Ireland, Denmark, and Finland. The report indicates that Switzerland attained the top spot due to its consistently strong performance across all pillars of the index, without any significant weaknesses in major areas.
The 2026 Legatum Prosperity Index encompasses 161 countries, representing approximately 98% of the global population. This assessment is built upon more than 615,000 data points gathered from 35 different sources.
Previously, Kazakhstan was ranked 82nd out of 193 countries in the 2026 Global Soft Power Index, earning 35.9 points. This ranking highlighted the country's increasing international influence, though it trailed behind regional powers such as Russia, Turkiye, and India, as well as neighboring Uzbekistan.