Increasing water stress has become a global concern as it has severe consequences for the quality of human life. The available studies suggest links between water and quality of life, but do not provide empirical evidence. Particularly, empirical evidence using the global panel data approaches is ignored. This study fills this gap by analytically exploring and empirically testing the effect of safely managed water on the quality of life for 71 United Nation member countries over the period 1990-2017. The data is extracted from the World Bank (2018) and United Nations Development Program (2018). The results based on cross-sectional and panel data approaches suggest that safely managed drinking water significantly improves the quality of life. The study offers important policy implications.