Best for business in the EU - Denmark tops the charts on global competitiveness
The IMD has just released its 2025 edition of the Global Competitiveness Index, the leading measurement of global competitiveness worldwide. Based on a comprehensive assessment across a total of 262 criteria covering four overarching dimensions (economic performance, government efficiency, business efficiency and infrastructure), the new report reaffirms Denmark as a top investment and business location.
Denmark has the highest score among all EU Member States, and comes in fourth globally after Singapore, Switzerland and Hong Kong (SAR). Compared to last year, Denmark has furthermore improved its score slightly.
“This ranking is no coincidence. Denmark’s world-class business environment, digital infrastructure and collaborative public-private mindset make it the obvious choice for companies looking to scale in Europe. We are proud to be recognised as the most competitive economy in the EU.”
Looking at the four overarching dimensions of competitiveness, the IMD report notes in particular that “Business Efficiency remains Denmark’s strongest competitive factor”, with Denmark coming in first among all 69 countries in the Index, and also highlights infrastructure, where Denmark ranks second globally. It also found that Denmark performs “strongly in the overall rankings and exhibits robust commitment to social equity and cohesive governance structures”.
Delving more specifically into the 20 sub-factors in the report, some of Denmark’s many strengths include its excellent digital infrastructure, as well as its management practices (which ranks 2nd worldwide). It also has a formidable labour market, framework conditions and business legislation (ranked 3rd in the world), and delivers a strong showing when it comes to health, environment and education (4th worldwide).
About the measures
The methodology used by the IMD ranks 69 economies worldwide, with a final score calculated by combining the perceptions of executives (based on a survey) with statistical data. The survey was carried out among 6,162 respondents worldwide and formed 92 criteria in the 2025 index, whilst the statistical data comprised 170 criteria. As such, the Global Competitiveness Index utilises 262 criteria, which are divided into four overarching dimensions (economic performance, government efficiency, business efficiency and infrastructure), with each dimension sub-divided into 20 sub-factors (e.g. labour market, education, tax policy etc.).