Backed by more than twice the research and citations, the second edition of the Investing in Health Pays Back report establishes well-being as a definitive business imperative, featuring an extensive body of evidence showing how prioritizing health fuels productivity, strengthens retention and recruitment and enhances real estate value.
NEW YORK, NY / ACCESS Newswire / September 16, 2025 / The International WELL Building Institute (IWBI) today released the second edition of its landmark report, Investing in Health Pays Back: The Business Case for Healthy Buildings and Healthy Organizations, offering a singular resource that brings together the largest collection of research to date that links investments in health and well-being to measurable economic returns.
The new report, released as the second edition, more than doubles the research and citations from the original, integrating academic studies, industry data and real-world case studies. This report offers a clear answer to a pressing question facing practitioners today: how should future projects be shaped to elevate human health while unlocking significant economic value? Collectively, it also makes a powerful case to policymakers, real estate leaders and institutional investors that investing in people is not just the right thing to do-it's one of the smartest economic strategies organizations can pursue.
"We've gathered and distilled into one indispensable resource the strongest global evidence to date linking healthy buildings with human well-being and performance," said IWBI President and CEO Rachel Hodgdon. "Whether you're an investor, developer, architect, engineer or advocate, by giving you the data and insights you need to make the case for healthier buildings and the value of WELL, together we're building the foundation for a healthier future."
Among the report's key findings:
Investing in holistic employee health could generate nearly $12 trillion in global economic value and boost global GDP by up to 12%, according to a McKinsey Health Institute study.
Improved ventilation can increase employee productivity up to $7,500 per person per year, according to a study led by Harvard researchers.
Certified healthy buildings command rent premiums of 4% to7%, according to two independent studies, one from MIT researchers and another from researchers at the University of Cambridge.
WELL Certified buildings report significantly higher employee satisfaction compared to non-certified buildings, including 18% more satisfied with access to sunlight, 17% more satisfied with acoustical privacy, 16% more satisfied with connection to the outdoor environment, 12% more satisfied with lighting, 11% more satisfied with thermal comfort and 10% more satisfied with both indoor air quality and air movement.
Occupants in WELL Certified buildings are 39% more likely to report satisfaction with the building compared to those in green-certified buildings.
"With this report, we're equipping everyone across IWBI's global community with the data they need to drive faster adoption of healthy building practices," said Dr. Jason Hartke, the lead author and IWBI's Executive Vice President for External Affairs and Global Advocacy. "The message is clear: prioritizing health delivers measurable returns across productivity, talent retention, real estate value and operational resilience."
The report also explores the rising importance of social sustainability, showing how health-related metrics are being embedded into sustainable finance vehicles-including green, social and sustainability-linked bonds-and reshaping investment decisions at scale. To date, WELL has been incorporated in 13 different types of financial instruments-including green bonds, social bonds and sustainability-linked bonds and loans-and featured in sustainable finance frameworks, regulatory guides, reports and case studies in 29 countries, spanning five continents.
Read the full report at: https://www.wellcertified.com/health-pays-back/
Quotes from the Report:
"Buildings-the places where each of us spends roughly 90% of our lives - must be at the heart of the solution to foster wellness and deliver positive health outcomes at scale, not to mention the many economic benefits for organizations implementing these science-backed strategies," said Dr. Richard Carmona, 17th Surgeon General of the United States.
"What we see now-more clearly than ever-is that investing in healthy buildings and organizations is one of the smartest, most immediate returns we can make," said Professor Alessandro Miani, Italian Society of Environmental Medicine (SIMA) and University of Milan. "It not only protects and enhances human health, but also creates a host of powerful economic benefits, such as increasing real estate value, boosting productivity, and improving efforts to attract and retain top talent. Investing in health has clearly become a business imperative."
"Transforming the health and well-being of the places and spaces where we live, work and gather presents an unprecedented opportunity to improve public health-while unlocking incredible economic value for organizations," said Rick Fedrizzi, Executive Chairman, IWBI. "After all, people are the single largest investment of any organization, accounting for 90% of expenses. By linking healthier environments to measurable gains in productivity, satisfaction and retention, the findings enable organizations to move beyond intuition and make data-driven decisions that enhance their human capital strategy."
"Employers increasingly recognize that accommodating individuals who think differently can provide a huge competitive advantage," said Kay Sargent, author of Designing Neuroinclusive Workplaces.
About the International WELL Building Institute
The International WELL Building Institute (IWBI) is a public benefit corporation and the global authority for transforming health and well-being in buildings, organizations and communities. In pursuit of its public-health mission, IWBI mobilizes its community through the development and administration of the WELL Building Standard (WELL), WELL for residential, WELL Community Standard, its WELL ratings and management of the WELL AP credential. IWBI also translates research into practice, develops educational resources and advocates for policies that promote people-first places for everyone, everywhere. More information on WELL can be found here.
International WELL Building Institute, IWBI, the WELL Building Standard, WELL v2, WELL Certified, WELL AP, WELL EP, WELL Score, The WELL Conference, We Are WELL, the WELL Community Standard, WELL Health-Safety Rated, WELL Performance Rated, WELL Equity Rated, WELL Equity, WELL Coworking Rated, WELL Residence, Works with WELL, WELL and others, and their related logos are trademarks or certification marks of International WELL Building Institute pbc in the United States and other countries.
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media@wellcertified.com
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SOURCE: International WELL Building Institute (IWBI)
View the original press release on ACCESS Newswire:
https://www.accessnewswire.com/newsroom/en/business-and-professional-services/new-iwbi-report-underscores-the-powerful-business-case-for-healt-1074267
