At its inception, the concept of gross domestic product (GDP) was devised as a limited measure of production, constrained to market activities and therefore insufficient not only for measuring well-being but also for accounting all of a country’s economic activities. In addition to the activities that GDP omits —such as domestic and care work that takes place outside the market— there are other activities that, despite being accounted for, are not appraised correctly. Health and education costs and access, environmental impacts and free goods and services are priority issues for people’s well-being and the exercise of their human rights; given the basic principles of aggregate GDP measurement, however, they are recorded only imperfectly. Despite these limitations, as its use became more widespread, GDP became the most important variable for judging economic performance and for public policy decision-making. Economic decisions that prioritize growth over well-being compromise the present and future of society as a whole. Such decisions are taken because of the mismatch between what GDP measures and what societies value.