Physical Quality of Life Index
The Physical Quality of Life Index (PQLI) is a simple way to gauge how well people in a country live. It combines three indicators: basic literacy (education), life expectancy at age one, and infant mortality. Each indicator is turned into a score from 1 to 100, and the three scores are averaged equally to produce the PQLI.
PQLI was created in the mid-1970s by M. D. Morris as an alternative to using GNP per person to judge development. The idea was to reflect health, education, and living conditions—not just income.
Because it uses only a few indicators, PQLI is a rough guide and has limitations. There can be overlap between life expectancy and infant mortality, and the index may not capture all aspects of well-being. Today, the United Nations Development Index (HDI) is a more widely used measure of well-being.
How to calculate it: measure the three indicators for a country, convert each to a 1–100 scale, and then average the three scores. The three components are education (literacy/education level), life expectancy, and infant mortality rate. A higher PQLI suggests a higher level of development according to this measure, but it is not perfect.
This page was last edited on 3 February 2026, at 05:04 (CET).