Surfshark’s 5th annual Digital Quality of Life Index (DQL) ranks Georgia 65th in the world, improving by two places from last year. Out of the Index’s 5 pillars, Georgia performed best in e-security, claiming 43rd place, while facing challenges in internet quality, ranking 102nd. The nation ranks 48th in internet affordability, 55th in e-infrastructure, and 80th in e-government. In the overall Index, Georgia surpasses Armenia (69th) and Azerbaijan (74th). In Asia, Georgia takes 20th place, with Singapore the leader in the region.
“In many nations, ‘digital quality of life’ has merged into the broader concept of overall ‘quality of life’. There’s no other way to look at it now that so many daily activities, including work, education, and leisure, are done online. That’s why it’s crucial to pinpoint the areas in which a nation’s digital quality of life thrives, and where attention is needed, which is the precise purpose of the DQL Index,” says Gabriele Racaityte-Krasauske, Surfshark’s spokeswoman.
Georgia’s internet quality is 27% lower than the global average
Fixed internet averages 30 Mbps in Georgia. To put that into perspective, the world’s fastest fixed internet, Singapore’s, is 300 Mbps. Meanwhile, the slowest fixed internet in the world, Yemen’s, is 11 Mbps.
Mobile internet in Georgia averages 44 Mbps. The fastest mobile internet, the UAE’s, is 310 Mbps, while the world’s slowest mobile internet, Venezuela’s, is 10 Mbps.
Compared to Armenia, Georgia’s mobile internet is 22% faster, while fixed broadband is 58% slower. Since last year, mobile internet speed in Georgia has improved by 9%, while fixed broadband speed has grown by 6%.
The internet is affordable in Georgia compared to other countries
Georgians have to work 1 hour 57 minutes a month to afford fixed broadband internet. While this is less than average, it is 7 times more than in Romania, which has the world’s most affordable fixed internet (Romanians have to work 18 minutes a month to afford it).
Georgians have to work 1 hour 4 minutes 45 seconds a month to afford mobile internet. This is 4 times more than in Luxembourg, which has the world’s most affordable mobile internet (Luxembourgers have to work 16 minutes a month to afford it).
Georgia is 43rd in the world in e-security, 9 places higher than last year
The e-security pillar measures how well a country is prepared to counter cybercrime, as well as how advanced a country’s data protection laws are. In this pillar, Georgia outperforms Armenia (74th) and Azerbaijan (64th). Georgia is prepared to fight against cybercrime, and the country has some data protection laws.
Georgia is 55th in e-infrastructure and 80th in e-government
Advanced e-infrastructure makes it easy for people to use the internet for various daily activities, such as working, studying, shopping, etc. This pillar evaluates how high internet penetration is in a given country, as well as its network readiness (readiness to take advantage of Information and Communication Technologies). Georgia’s internet penetration is high (91%, 37th in the world), and the country ranks 74th in network readiness.
The e-government pillar shows how advanced a government’s digital services are and the level of Artificial Intelligence (AI) readiness a country demonstrates. Georgia’s e-government is below the global average.
Globally, the internet is more affordable than last year
Fixed internet is 11% more affordable than last year: On average, people have to work 42 minutes less a month to afford it.
Mobile internet is 26% more affordable than last year. People have to work 41 minutes less to afford it.
METHODOLOGY
The DQL Index 2023 examined 121 nations (92% of the global population) based on five core pillars that consist of 14 indicators. The study is based on the United Nations’ open-source information, the World Bank, and other sources. This year’s study includes four more countries than DQL 2022, reaffirming Surfshark’s commitment to global representation. Georgia’s full profile in the 2023 Digital Quality of Life report and an interactive country comparison tool can be found here: https://surfshark.com/dql2023?country=GE
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Surfshark is a cybersecurity company focused on developing humanized privacy and security solutions. The Surfshark One suite includes one of the very few VPNs audited by independent security experts, an officially certified antivirus, a private search tool, and a data leak alert system. Surfshark is recognized as the Independent’s Editor’s Choice for Best Value VPN 2023. Visit our research hub at: surfshark.com/research
