Singapore tops the list in the 2025 Global Talent Competitiveness Index by INSEAD and Portulans Institute.
Calvin Chan Wai Meng | E+ | Getty Images
Singapore has claimed the top position in the 2025 Global Talent Competitiveness Index (GTCI) for the first time, bolstered by its robust education systems, sound governance and a proactive approach to sustaining an adaptive, innovation-ready workforce in the age of artificial intelligence.
In its 11th edition this year, the index — produced by business school INSEAD and in partnership with D.C.-based think tank Portulans Institute — measured how countries grow, attract and retain talent across all income groups.
This year’s report, themed “resilience in the age of disruption,” ranked 135 economies globally on 77 indicators such as soft skills and AI talent concentration across six pillars.
This report comes at a time when “rapid technological change, geopolitical uncertainty and profound societal transitions make dependable talent metrics more essential than ever,” said Rafael Escalona Reynoso, CEO of Portulans Institute.
While historians can give us more perspective, it certainly feels as if we are living in a period of maximum disruption and anxiety.
Lily Fang
Dean of research and innovation, INSEAD
“While historians can give us more perspective, it certainly feels as if we are living in a period of maximum disruption and anxiety,” said INSEAD’s dean of research and innovation, Lily Fang. “Geopolitical uncertainty poses massive challenges to the resilience of global commerce and markets, while artificial intelligence presents both amazing opportunities to enhance human potential — but also unfathomable risks.”
Here are the top 10 countries in the 2025 Global Talent Competitiveness Index:
- Singapore
- Switzerland
- Denmark
- Finland
- Sweden
- Netherlands
- Norway
- Luxembourg
- United States
- Australia
Notably, Switzerland was leapfrogged by Singapore and fell from its top position for the first time in the history of the GTCI. However, the country records multiple top-five results across the study’s framework, including internet access in schools (1st), government effectiveness (2nd), and AI skills migration (4th).
High-income European countries continue to dominate the ranking, accounting for seven of the top ten positions.
Switzerland, Denmark and Finland closely follow each other in the top ten, “suggesting a shared focus on enabling and retaining talent through favorable conditions and access to opportunities,” according to the report. These three countries consistently rank near the top in enabling and retaining talent.
Several Nordic countries have jumped places in the top ten since the last GTCI in 2023. Denmark moved up one position to 3rd this year from 4th in the 2023 report, Finland jumped two places from 6th to 4th, and Sweden jumped four places from 9th in rank in 2023 to 4th this year.
Meanwhile, the United States fell from third place in 2023 to ninth in this year’s report — its weakest showing since 2013.
Although the U.S. scored strongly in areas such as enabling and growing talent, “slight declines in the categories of openness and lifelong learning” pushed the country down to ninth place in 2025, according to the report.
Singapore takes the lead
Singapore’s rise marks a big milestone for both the country and the wider region in the competition for talent, the report said.
The city-state “ranks in the top ten across four of the six pillars and has made notable improvements in its ability to retain talent, rising seven positions,” according to the report. The Southeast Asian country also leads globally in enabling and retaining talent, which is supported by the country’s regulatory landscape and high standards of living.
The country also ranked first globally in formal education and “Generalist Adaptive Skills,” which spans soft skills, digital literacy, and innovation-oriented thinking.
A key driver of Singapore’s jump this year is a sharp improvement in its ability to retain talent, jumping seven places from 38th in 2023 to 31st this year. The report pointed to gains in areas such as physician density, personal rights, personal safety and more.
“Economies that cultivate adaptable, cross-functional and AI-literate workforces tend to be better positioned to convert disruption into opportunity and sustain long-term competitiveness,” says Paul Evans, emeritus professor of organisational behaviour at INSEAD and co-editor of the report.
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