U.S. News & World Report recently released its first ranking of the countries of the world, in conjunction with BAV Consulting and the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania. Countries were ranked based on how they are seen on a global scale, taking into consideration such criteria as economic power, military power, quality of life, tourism, historic preservation, sustainability and more. The study was performed using data gathered from more than 16,200 surveyed individuals.

“Globalization has made the world a competitive place for business, influence and the quality of life. Just as we have done with universities, hospitals and other institutions, our Best Countries portal will be a global homepage for stories and data to help citizens, business leaders and governments evaluate performance in a rapidly changing world,” says Mortimer B. Zuckerman, chairman and editor-in-chief, U.S. News.

So which country reigned supreme? Germany came in at the overall top spot, due to the citizenship benefits, entrepreneurial success, global power and quality of life the country offers. Canada came in at second overall, but was first in quality of life, citing the country’s economic stability, job market, safety, political stability, income equality, public education system and public healthcare. Following were the United Kingdom, at third, and the United States, at fourth. However, the United States did rank first in global power. First place in other sub-categories went to countries further down on the overall list as well, including India for an up-and-coming economy and Brazil for tourism.