Chalssea Kate Echegoyen

Residents walk along a slum area near property developers in Quezon city, January 10, 2017. Jonathan Cellona, ABS-CBN News

Article (news)

ABS-CBN News

<p>MANILA – Around 4 in 10 Filipinos expect their quality of life to improve over the next 12 months, according to a Social Weather Stations (SWS) released Wednesday. </p><p>Out of 1,500 adults polled in late March, 38 percent were “optimists” on their quality of life, while 32 percent expected their lives to remain the same. Sixteen percent believe conditions will worsen, while 14 percent were undecided.</p><p>These figures translate to a net personal optimism score of +23, classified by SWS as “high.” </p><p>However, this marks a significant drop from the “very high” +36 recorded in November 2025 and falls below the 2025 average of +39.</p><p>This is also the lowest since September 2020, when optimism plunged to a “mediocre” +2 during the COVID-19 pandemic, the pollster said. </p><div><br/></div><div><strong>OPTIMISM DECLINES </strong></div><div><br/></div><p>SWS said the decline in optimism was observed in nearly all areas of the country, except in Visayas.</p><p>Luzon areas outside the National Capital Region posted one of the steepest drops, falling from an “excellent” +40 in November 2025 to +22 in March 2026. </p><p>Metro Manila’s score declined from +36 to +28, while Mindanao dropped from +35 to +20. The Visayas region remained relatively stable, slipping slightly from +29 to +27.</p><p>Both rural and urban populations recorded lower optimism levels. Rural areas fell from +36 to +24, while urban areas declined from +37 to +22.</p><p>By gender, optimism decreased among both men and women. Women saw a sharper drop, from +39 to +20, compared to men whose scores declined from +34 to +26.</p><p>Across age groups, younger Filipinos remained the most optimistic. Filipinos aged 18 to 24 posted a “very high” +39, although this was down from +54 in late 2025. Older groups recorded lower scores, with those aged 55 and above at +10, categorized as “fair.”</p><p>Optimism also declined across all educational levels. </p><p>College graduates saw their score fall from an “excellent” +44 to +26, while those with some senior high school education dropped from +44 to +29. Similar downward trends were observed among other educational groups.</p><div><strong><a href="https://www.abs-cbn.com/news/nation/2026/4/24/half-of-filipinos-say-quality-of-life-got-worse-sws-0926">Half of Filipinos say quality of life ‘got worse’ — SWS</a></strong></div><p>SWS noted that since it began tracking personal outlook in 1984, net personal optimism has turned negative only 11 times, hitting a record low of -19 in May 2020 at the height of pandemic lockdowns.</p><p>The March survey used face-to-face interviews with sampling error margins of ±3 percent for national estimates.</p>

<p>About 38 percent of adult Filipinos remain “optimists,” to their quality of life to improve over the next 12 months, according to the latest survey of March 24 to 31 by the Social Weather Stations (SWS).</p>

About 38 percent of adult Filipinos remain “optimists,” to their quality of life to improve over the next 12 months, according to the latest survey of March 24 to 31 by the Social Weather Stations (SWS).

4 in 10 Filipinos expect life to improve — SWS

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4 in 10 Filipinos expect life to improve — SWS

Chalssea Kate Echegoyen,

ABS-CBN News,

Published May 06, 2026 11:27 AM PHT

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SWS

Filipinos

Survey

Quality of life

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