The annual World Happiness Report has again ranked Finland and other Scandinavian countries the most cheerful nations on Earth. Costa Rica and Kuwait entered the top 20 in place of the United States and Germany.
Finland has remained the happiest country in the world for the seventh year a row with nordic neighbors Sweden, Denmark and Iceland also retaining their places in the top 10, according to the annual World Happiness Report published on Wednesday.
But rising unhapiness especially among young people has seen other Western countries drop down the UN-sponsored index, with the United States and Germany dropping out of the top 20 for the first time since the report’s first edition more than a decade ago.
Taking their place were Costa Rica and Kuwait at 12 and 13 respectively, while Eastern European countries Serbia, Bulgaria and Latvia reported the biggest increases in happiness.
Afghanistan, plagued by a humanitarian catastrophe since the Taliban regained control in 2020, remained in last place.
Ukrainians are less happy than Iranians.
The full list (in reverse order, because the document is weird):
- Afghanistan (1.721)
- Lebanon (2.707)
- Lesotho (3.186)
- Sierra Leone (3.245)
- Congo (Kinshasa) (3.295)
- Zimbabwe (3.341)
- Botswana (3.383)
- Malawi (3.421)
- Eswatini (3.502)
- Zambia (3.502)
- Yemen (3.561)
- Comoros (3.566)
- Tanzania (3.781)
- Ethiopia (3.861)
- Bangladesh (3.886)
- Sri Lanka (3.898)
- Egypt (3.977)
- India (4.054)
- Jordan (4.186)
- Togo (4.214)
- Madagascar (4.228)
- Mali (4.232)
- Liberia (4.269)
- Ghana (4.289)
- Cambodia (4.341)
- Myanmar (4.354)
- Uganda (4.372)
- Benin (4.377)
- Tunisia (4.422)
- Kenya (4.470)
- Chad (4.471)
- Gambia (4.485)
- Mauritania (4.505)
- Burkina Faso (4.548)
- Niger (4.556)
- Pakistan (4.657)
- Morocco (4.795)
- Namibia (4.832)
- Ukraine (4.873)
- Cameroon (4.874)
- State of Palestine (4.879)
- Nigeria (4.881)
- Azerbaijan (4.893)
- Iran (4.923)
- Senegal (4.969)
- Turkiye (4.975)
- Guinea (5.023)
- Ivory Coast (5.080)
- Gabon (5.106)
- Laos (5.139)
- Nepal (5.158)
- Iraq (5.166)
- Georgia (5.185)
- Mozambique (5.216)
- Congo (Brazzaville) (5.221)
- Tajikistan (5.281)
- Albania (5.304)
- Hong Kong S.A.R. of China (5.316)
- Algeria (5.364)
- North Macedonia (5.369)
- South Africa (5.422)
- Armenia (5.455)
- Bulgaria (5.463)
- Indonesia (5.568)
- Venezuela (5.607)
- Colombia (5.695)
- Mongolia (5.696)
- Montenegro (5.707)
- Kyrgyzstan (5.714)
- Ecuador (5.725)
- Bolivia (5.784)
- Russia (5.785)
- Moldova (5.816)
- Mauritius (5.816)
- Dominican Republic (5.823)
- Peru (5.841)
- Jamaica (5.842)
- Libya (5.866)
- Bosnia and Herzegovina (5.877)
- Greece (5.934)
- Croatia (5.942)
- Bahrain (5.959)
- Honduras (5.968)
- China (5.973)
- Malaysia (5.975)
- Thailand (5.976)
- Paraguay (5.977)
- Hungary (6.017)
- Portugal (6.030)
- Vietnam (6.043)
- Philippines (6.048)
- South Korea (6.058)
- Japan (6.060)
- Cyprus (6.068)
- Kazakhstan (6.188)
- Argentina (6.188)
- Uzbekistan (6.195)
- Latvia (6.234)
- Slovakia (6.257)
- Brazil (6.272)
- Nicaragua (6.284)
- Guatemala (6.287)
- Italy (6.324)
- Malta (6.346)
- Panama (6.358)
- Chile (6.360)
- Serbia (6.411)
- Spain (6.421)
- Poland (6.442)
- Estonia (6.448)
- El Salvador (6.469)
- Romania (6.491)
- Taiwan Province of China (6.503)
- Singapore (6.523)
- Kosovo (6.561)
- Saudi Arabia (6.594)
- France (6.609)
- Uruguay (6.611)
- Mexico (6.678)
- Germany (6.719)
- United States (6.725)
- United Arab Emirates (6.733)
- Slovenia (6.743)
- United Kingdom (6.749)
- Lithuania (6.818)
- Czechia (6.822)
- Ireland (6.838)
- Belgium (6.894)
- Canada (6.900)
- Austria (6.905)
- Kuwait (6.951)
- Costa Rica (6.955)
- New Zealand (7.029)
- Australia (7.057)
- Switzerland (7.060)
- Luxembourg (7.122)
- Norway (7.302)
- Netherlands (7.319)
- Israel (7.341)
- Sweden (7.344)
- Iceland (7.525)
- Denmark (7.583)
- Finland (7.741)
Lmao I just looked at the post on Jerboa and it started a numbered list from 143, it should be counting down.
You would think, spending time here, that America is some hell scape where everyone is miserable and simply fighting to stay alive.
When according to this, Americans are among the happiest in the world.
Number 10.
UK is 20, Germany is 23.
I would think things are better in Germany overall, but they just have higher standards.
Or maybe, just maybe, America is not the shit hole the propaganda is trying to make it out to be.
Don’t get me wrong, we have our problems and it’s not all peaches and cream, but it’s overall a pretty good place to live, even if you are poor. Maybe especially if you’re poor due to our services and access to things like clear water. Obviously not comparing to some of our peers, but across the world it’s pretty good.
As a European I agree, visiting the US I’m always shocked how nice places are, like Baltimore has got a great atmosphere and a lot of really cool places, Pittsburgh was really cool too with the big fountain and everyone enjoying the river and stuff. They’re both cities I hear people shit on endlessly but compared to most cities I’ve visited in Europe they’re really nice.
My main culture shock in the US is how friendly everyone is, I told a crackhead I didn’t have any cash on me and he recognized my accent said ‘welcome to america’ and it felt like he meant it, my top ten friendliest interactions with strangers are all in the US or Germany.
Your police and boarder control are absolutely crazy of course, it’s scary that there are so many nuts with guns and some of your prices are just fucking wild but all in all anyone saying it’s 3rd world or dystopic is living in a weird fantasy.
I’d agree with you. I live in the UK, but just recently went to Florida. When I came back I couldn’t get over how much of a shithole the UK was - compared to Florida!!
I have been living in Botswana for the past two years, and I’m genuinely surprised where it is on this list. Yeah, people here don’t have the greatest deal, but there’s freaking universal healthcare here. The country has been extremely politically stable since independence. There’s no way people are less happy here than those who are in active war zones.
How integrated are you into the local community? How well do you speak the local language? I’m a foreigner living abroad and I would never trust either my own perception of this place nor 99% of other foreigners’ perceptions.
I see your point. I know that there are folks unhappy with the current government, but to be fair, who isn’t? The San have also been pretty fucked over by the government.
Can I ask how you ended up there in the first place? I can scarcely think of a more interesting place on earth.
My wife is finishing up a global health pediatric fellowship. She arrived in 2021, and I came out about a year later because I was finishing up chaplaincy training and I had a contract to finish out for a synagogue I was working for.
Taiwan Province of China
Ewww. It’s Taiwan, Republic of China #1! (ROC 1912 vs. PRC 1949)
If ROC still claims the mainland I guess Taiwan the island would just be another province
They can’t remove the obsolete claim because China’s Anti-Secession Law promises war if they do. Last time it was 1992 when they agreed about “one China, ROC or PRC, not both”.
Huh, I never knew they actually can’t even give up that claim. It makes sense but also kinda funny.
😎
Surprised by how hiɡh up Mexico is!
The Conservative take would be that Americans are unhappy because we are ambitious go-getters who are never satisfied.
Took the words right out of my brother’s mouth.
[sigh] Oh, laddie, I remember when I was but a wee lad and satire was possible…
notably finland has one of the best education systems
I imagine that having something in recent history to compare yourself to has a significant impact. So, if there are people that have the USSR in their living memory, and then get to live free, they’ll have a little more perspective on how much worse things could be.
Then an American with the 90s in living memory will recall what functional government that even had its budget in the green felt like.
Canada is ranked 58 for people under 30, yet 8 for over 60. It’s a nice place if you can make it that far!
Over 60 has all the wealth, obviously they’re happy.
Did they really interview a statistically respective portion of the ivory coast to get this almost worthless metric? Seems a huge amount of resources which could have gone somewhere useful if so.
Someone’s bitter that their country is ranked far down the list… 😛
It’s because they have no natural predators. Everyone else running scared
