10 Countries with the Best Work-Life Balance for Working Parents

As a working mom, maintaining a healthy work-life balance is often a continual challenge — combining the demands of a career with childcare commitments while trying to find time for yourself can feel like an impossible juggling act, with the latter often getting overlooked altogether.

With working parents making up more than two-thirds of the workforce in English-speaking countries, many moms (and dads) face these challenges daily — meaning there’s a responsibility for employers to support working families through fair policies and inclusive workplace cultures.

Given its restrictive healthcare and parental leave policies, the U.S. is often considered one of the most challenging countries in which to raise a family as a working parent, but many other nations — particularly those in Europe —  are far more generous in their support for working families.

Considering relocating to another country for a better quality of life? Global employment experts Remote conducted a study of 20 leading nations to discover which countries offer the best parental life-work balance — and yes, it should be that way round because life always comes before work.

What is parental life-work balance?

For working parents, life-work balance is about creating harmony between their personal and professional lives. A healthy life-work balance prioritizes life ahead of work, enabling parents to navigate their careers successfully while still being able to spend time with their families and find time to relax and recharge.

Workplace policies such as maternity and paternity leave play a big part in life-work balance for parents, but these aren’t the only important factors — access to affordable childcare, education, and medical care are equally crucial in making families feel supported and allowing them to combine work commitments with raising children.

Why is parental life-work balance important?

Life-work balance is essential for parents because it allows them to excel as employees and as caregivers, not having to sacrifice family commitments due to work responsibilities and vice versa. In fact, there are a number of reasons that parental life-work balance is so important to families and to the companies employing them.

For example, working parents who feel supported are:

• Less likely to experience burnout and be absent from work.
• Likely to be more productive and able to stay focused.
• Less likely to suffer with mental health issues.

Equally, companies who support working parents are:

• More likely to retain their employees for longer.
• Able to attract a more diverse range of candidates to open roles.
• More agile and able to react to personnel challenges.

The best countries for parental life-work balance

Not unexpectedly, the United States placed last of all 20 countries, with parents in the U.S. not entitled to statutory leave and the country’s healthcare system often hitting low-income families the hardest. The United Kingdom finished just outside the top 10, with working families in the U.K. faced with some of the highest childcare costs in the world.

1. Norway

Norway might be known globally as the birthplace of Viking culture, but it’s also considered the most supportive nation for working families. The country has some of the most generous maternity and paternity leave policies in Europe, and offsets a high cost of living with affordable childcare costs and a high state contribution to family-related benefits.

2. Sweden

Sweden not only shares a 1600-mile border with Norway but also a strong commitment to parental support in the workplace. The country famed for producing ABBA promotes gender equality in its policies, allowing both parents to take equal time off following a new arrival, while it also has some of the most accessible and affordable childcare.

3. Denmark

Denmark is often considered to be one of the happiest countries to live in (no wonder, given the Danes brought the concept of ‘hygge’ to the world), while it’s also one of the safest places to raise a family. Denmark’s commitment to life-work balance is anchored by its high expenditure on family benefits, childcare, and education.

4. Spain

With more than 3,000 hours of sunshine every year, it’s not surprising that many Spaniards still take an extended afternoon break known as a ‘siesta’. But the country is also supportive of working parents, with their statutory parental leave among the most generous in the world. It’s also generally quite affordable thanks to a relatively low cost of living for families.

5. New Zealand

New Zealand is undoubtedly one of the most stunningly scenic countries in the world, topping at least one recent poll, but it’s also considered one of the safest for families. Childcare is quite expensive compared to other countries, but workers in New Zealand tend to be paid a lot more than many of their overseas counterparts.

6. Poland

While Poland unfortunately doesn’t recognize the rights of LGBTQ+ couples in the workplace, it is one of the most affordable countries to raise a family — childcare costs are very reasonable and the overall cost of living is lower than many countries in Europe. Poland also operates a shared parental leave policy where 32 weeks of leave can be split between both parents.

7. Italy

Italy is renowned for high art, fashion and exquisite food, but it also has a strong family-first culture where emphasis is placed on spending time together. It’s a surprisingly affordable place to raise a family, while the country also offers a generous parental leave policy which allows each parent to take three months off and then share another three between them.

8. France

As with the Italians, the French are known to enjoy the finer things in life. France has a high cost of living and childcare costs are expensive compared with many other countries, but the French government makes a high contribution to family benefits. The country also has the longest statutory annual leave entitlement of any country in this list.

9. Germany

Germany has one of the largest populations in Europe, and is often associated with efficiency and practicality. However, while the country has a hard-working culture, families are well supported through high public spending on family-related benefits. German parents also have access to some pretty affordable childcare when compared to countries such as France and the U.K.

10. Japan

The Asian nation of Japan is synonymous with hard work and career dedication (meaning many people work long hours) but working parents are helped by a relatively low cost of living and affordable childcare costs. It’s also considered to be one of the safest countries in the world to raise a family, with low crime rates and a generally peaceful society.

So, if you’re thinking about relocating your family to another country to experience a better life-work balance, you might consider one of these 10 destinations. The U.S. remains quite a challenging place to raise a family in 2024, but countries in Europe are leading the way when it comes to supporting working parents and their children.