A Social Weather Stations (SWS) survey conducted from June 23 to July 1 found that 39 percent of adult Filipinos believe their quality of life is better than 12 months ago, 23 percent say it has worsened, and 37 percent claim it is the same.

The results of the nationwide survey were released on Thursday, Sept. 19.

For this survey round, the figures translate into a net gainers score of +15 (percentage of “gainers” minus percentage of “losers”), which is classified by SWS as “very high” (+10 to +19).

SWS defines “gainers” as those who believe their quality of life has improved, “losers” as those who think their quality of life has worsened, and “unchanged” as those who say it has stayed the same.

In its report, SWS said the June 2024 net gainer score is 10 points up from “fair” +5 in March 2024 and December 2023.

Moreover, it is just three points below the net gainers score of +18 in December 2019, before the Covid-19 pandemic.

The classifications of net gainers scores are as follows: “excellent” applies to scores of +20 and above; “very high” to scores between +10 and +19; “high” to scores between +1 and +9; “fair” to scores between -9 and zero; “mediocre” to scores between -19 and -10; “low” to scores between -29 and -20; “very low” to scores between -39 and -30; “extremely low” to scores between -49 and -40; and “catastrophic” to scores of -50 and below.

SWS explained that the rise in the nationwide net gainers scores between March 2024 and June 2024 was due to increases in all areas, particularly Mindanao.

Net gainers in Balance Luzon improved from a very high score of +14 in March 2024 to an excellent score of +26 in June 2024.

In Metro Manila, the score improved from high to very high (from +9 to +16), while in Mindanao, it rose from fair to high (from -8 to +7).

In the Visayas, the score also increased from fair to high (from -2 to +1).

Meanwhile, net gainers among college graduates rose from high to excellent, increasing by 11 points from +10 to +21.

Among junior high school graduates, the score remained very high, although it improved by seven points from +12 to +19.

For elementary graduates, net gainers rose from fair to very high, increasing by 18 points from -4 to +14.

In contrast, the score for non-elementary graduates stayed fair, hardly moving from -1 to net zero.

The Second Quarter 2024 Social Weather Survey was conducted through face-to-face interviews with 1,500 adults aged 18 and above nationwide.

The sampling error margins are ±2.5 percent for national percentages, ±4 percent for Balance Luzon, and ±5.7 percent each for Metro Manila, the Visayas, and Mindanao.