What Is GPI?
The Genuine Progress Indicator (GPI) is an alternative to Gross Domestic Product that aims to measure real economic progress.
While GDP simply totals economic activity, GPI adjusts that activity to reflect whether it improves or harms overall well-being.
GPI asks a simple but powerful question: Is economic growth making life better—or worse?
How GPI Improves on GDP
GDP: Counts all spending as positive
GPI: Distinguishes between beneficial and harmful activity
GDP: Ignores inequality
GPI: Adjusts for how income is distributed
GDP: Ignores environmental damage
GPI: Subtracts costs of pollution and resource depletion
GDP: Excludes unpaid work
GPI: Includes value of caregiving, volunteering, and household labor
What GPI Includes
- Income distribution adjustments
- Environmental costs (pollution, climate damage)
- Resource depletion
- Value of household and volunteer work
- Costs of crime and social breakdown
What GPI Reveals
In many countries, GDP has continued to rise while GPI has stagnated or declined. This suggests that economic growth is no longer translating into improved well-being.
Why GPI Matters
By measuring what truly contributes to human well-being, GPI provides a more accurate guide for policy decisions.
It helps shift focus from short-term growth to long-term sustainability and quality of life.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the Genuine Progress Indicator (GPI)?
GPI is an alternative economic measure that adjusts GDP by accounting for inequality, environmental costs, and social factors that affect well-being.
How is GPI different from GDP?
GDP counts all economic activity as positive, while GPI distinguishes between beneficial and harmful activity and adjusts for long-term impacts.
Is GPI used by governments?
Some regions and governments have experimented with GPI or similar measures, but it has not yet replaced GDP at a global scale.
Why isn’t GPI widely adopted?
GPI is more complex to calculate than GDP and requires broader data collection. Institutional inertia and political priorities also play a role.
Does GPI measure happiness?
Not directly. However, it incorporates factors that strongly influence well-being, such as health, environment, and economic security.
Part of a Larger Shift
GPI is one of several approaches aimed at building a more complete picture of progress. Learn more about broader alternatives on our What Should Replace GDP? page.
This work is part of a broader effort to rethink how we measure progress, supported by The Secular Community.