GDP per Capita is the most popular measure for human welfare or wellbeing. It is fairly straightforward to calculate, using Gross Domestic Product (GDP), the most common measure of output, and Total Population, a basic count of the number of people in the country. This makes it relatively easy to compare across countries.

However, its simplicity is its downside. GDP per Capita doesn't actually reflect how much access the people have to the goods and services being produced. GDP excludes many kinds of economic activity including traditional and household production as well as "black market" activity. "Costs" to production, such as income inequality, pollution, and crime, aren't included. Also missing are "non-economic" factors such as political and religious freedoms, health, education, and sense of personal security.

In response, some alternative measures have been proposed. These include Median Income, Gross Output, Gross National Happiness, Genuine Progress Indicator (GPI), Human Development Index (HDI), Index of Economic Freedom, and Happy Planet Index (HIP). All of these have serious disadvantages: Many countries lack the necessary infrastructure to collect the amount of data these calculations require. Indices require built-in assumptions about which aspects carry more "weight" than others. In addition, some measures rely too much on subjectivity, resulting in more questions and answers.

Use the link: https://www.cia.gov/the-world-factbook/field/real-gdp-per-capita/country-comparison

look up estimates for GDP per Capita for two (2) countries of your choosing. Do not use the United States of America or any of its territories (e.g., American Samoa, Puerto Rico).

Post one (1) comment on this discussion thread summarizing the information that you found. Then answer the following questions: How do the levels of welfare compare? Did these findings surprise you? This comment should be a minimum of three complete sentences long.