Most Filipino adults (38%) said their quality of life remained unchanged over the past year, while 32% believed it worsened (losers), according to a Social Weather Stations (SWS) survey.
In the latest survey, results showed that only 30% of Filipino adults said their quality of life was better (gainers) than twelve months before.
Across major areas, Net Gainers score highest in Mindanao at high +3, followed by the Visayas at high +1, Balance Luzon at fair -4, and Metro Manila at fair -8.
The SWS noted that the nationwide Net Gainers score fell by 14 points from June 2025 to September 2025 due to declines in all areas.
Compared to June 2025, Net Gainers dropped from very high to fair in Mindanao, down by 13 points from +16.
It also dropped from excellent to fair in the Visayas, down by 21 points from +22, figures decreased from very high to fair in Metro Manila, down by 18 points from +10, and slipped from high to fair in Balance Luzon, down by 10 points from +6.
The survey also revealed that compared to June 2025, Net Gainers fell from very high to fair in urban areas, down by 15 points from +10 to -5. At the same time, it fell from very high to high in rural areas, down by 13 points from +14 to +1.
According to SWS, since 1983, the survey question regarding the respondents’ assessment of their change in quality of life over the past 12 months has been asked 163 times.
They said that Net Gainers score was generally negative until 2015, when it turned positive, only to decline sharply during the COVID-19 pandemic lockdowns.
It recovered to near pre-pandemic levels in June 2023 and remained stable from June 2024 to December 2024, but then fell to single-digit levels from January 2025 to April 2025 before bouncing back to double-digit levels in June 2025.
The nationwide survey was conducted from September 24 to 30, with 1,500 respondents aged 18 and above, and has a margin of error of ±3% for national percentages.
