1. Sweden is deemed the best place in the world to grow old – the north European country ranked highly for welfare and pensions, employment and education.
2. Norway narrowly missed the top spot.
3. Germany, the largest economy in Europe, came third.
4. The Netherlands comes in fourth. (Thinkstock)
5. Canada is the only non-European country in the top five. Like its neighbour the United States, the North American country ranked poorly for income. (Photo by John Moore/Getty Images)
6. Switzerland came top in the health ranking with a high healthy life expectancy for those over 60. (Photo by Harold Cunningham/Getty Images)
7. New Zealand came seventh.
8. The United States came second in the employment and education rankings but fell down in other categories – particularly income. (Photo by Matt McClain/ The Washington Post via Getty Images)
9. Another Nordic country – Iceland.
10. Japan was the only Asian country in the top ten. The next Asian country on the list was China, at 35. (Photo by Keith Tsuji/Getty Images)
11. Austria narrowly missed out on the top ten because of its poor rating in employment and education.
12. Ireland edged out its neighbour the UK by one spot. The country particularly excelled in enabling older people to live independently, through access to public transport and involvement in communities. (PA)
13. The UK was placed above France, Spain and Australia – but did not feature in the top 10 because the employment and educational status and opportunities of and for Britons over the age of 60 lagged behind other countries (Getty Images)
14. Australia was bested by its neighbour New Zealand by seven places. (Photo by David Rogers/Getty Images)
15. Finland just squeezed into the top 15.
