What can wellbeing data be used for? Can it help decide an individual on buying a cup of coffee versus mint tea, or buying one house rather than another? Can it help governments decide to buy artillery or frigates, set up vocational schooling or more academic schooling? If not, when is it useful? This
Viewpoint
argues that wellbeing data is particularly useful for setting broad priorities, not fine-grained choices. Wellbeing can advise individuals on the trade-offs between friends and career. The WELLBY gives governments a useful metric to see how far one has come and the broad direction of travel, but not the small steps along the way. The paper gives some examples and discusses important open questions in the field.