‘Don’t worry, be happy’: These are the top 20 happiest countries in the world
The key to happiness is one of life’s most pondered questions. While answers may vary and there isn’t a general consensus on what that “key” is, the place in which you live can certainly have an impact on your quality of life.
Back in March 2023, the World Happiness Report released a comprehensive ranking of the happiest countries in the world. According to CNN, the report is a culmination of survey data from people in more than 150 countries. The happiness of each country is determined by the average life evaluations over the course of three years. In the case of the 2023 rankings, data from 2020 to 2022 was analyzed.
Aside from the overall ranking, the report found that benevolence is around 25 percent higher than it was prior to the pandemic.
“Benevolence to others, especially the helping of strangers, which went up dramatically in 2021, stayed high in 2022,” John Helliwell, co-author of the World Happiness Report, told CNN.
Another major takeaway from the report is that despite the strain the pandemic put on the world, resilience was still quite high from 2020 to 2022. The report noted that the “remarkable resilient” life evaluations during this time period were on par with those in the three years prior to the pandemic.
“Even during these difficult years, positive emotions have remained twice as prevalent as negative ones, and feelings of positive social support twice as strong as those of loneliness,” Helliwell said in a news release.
Finns seem to have happiness down to an art
The World Happiness Report based its ratings of each nation using life evaluations data from Gallup World Poll. Countries were measured using the following metrics: healthy life expectancy, GDP per capita, social support, low corruption, community generosity and freedom to make important life decisions.
Finland clinched the top spot for the world’s happiest country and has been able to do so for six years in a row. Denmark, Iceland, Sweden and Norway – neighbors to the Nordic country – also ranked in the top 10.
Having made back-to-back appearances in the number one spot, Finland appears to be a reputable source when trying to determine what the key to happiness is. But what about this country allows it to consistently rise above the rest?
“Is it, are they doing things that we wish we’d seen before and we can start doing? Or is it something unique about their climate and history that make them different? And fortunately, at least from my perspective, the answer is the former,” said Helliwell.
The findings of the report indicate that placing the overall well-being of a society and its members has a positive impact on life evaluations, resulting in happier nations. The report states that “the objective of every institution should be to contribute what it can to human well-being.” This includes considering future generations and ensuring that basic human rights are preserved.
Where do other nations rank?
CNN notes that the same countries typically make appearances in the top 20 each year, but 2023 did see the movement of some countries and the emergence of a new one: Lithuania. In 2017, the country ranked 52nd, but worked its way up to claim the No. 20 spot this year. The Baltic country bumped France out of the slot, which now finds itself sitting at No. 21.
Israel also moved up this year, coming in at No. 4 compared to its No. 9 ranking in 2022. The Netherlands (No. 5), Switzerland (No. 8), Luxembourg (No. 9) and New Zealand (No. 10) also made it to the top 10, while Australia (No. 12), Canada (No. 13), Ireland (No. 14), the United States (No. 15) and the United Kingdom (No. 19) earned spots in the top 20.
Lower ranked nations
Two high profile countries in 2022 were Russia and Ukraine, due Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. The well-being of Ukrainian people was impacted by the invasion, as evidenced by the data, but the report notes that “despite the magnitude of suffering and damage in Ukraine, life evaluations in September 2022 remained higher than in the aftermath of the 2014 annexation, supported now by a stronger sense of common purpose, benevolence, and trust in Ukrainian leadership.”
The survey also acknowledged both Russia and Ukraine’s feelings toward their respective governments, determining that confidence increased for both countries in 2022, “but much more in Ukraine than in Russia.” Russia ranked No. 70 and Ukraine ranked No. 92.
The bottom two spots of the list were taken by Afghanistan (No. 137) and Lebanon (No. 136). The average life evaluations in both countries are more than five points lower (on a 0 to 10 scale) compared to the top 10 happiest countries.
A time to reflect
The turbulence of the pandemic resulted in a great deal of reflection, according to Helliwell.
“People are rethinking their life objectives,” Helliwell said to CNN. “They’re saying, ‘I’m going back, but what am I going back to? What do I want to go back to? How do I want to spend the rest of my life?’”
From this pondering, Helliwell hopes that it will encourage intentional thought about values and people.
“It isn’t really about the grades or the salary, it’s about cooperating with other people in a useful way. And of course, that’s useful for the world, but the whole point of this happiness research is that it’s also good for the people doing it,” Helliwell said. “In other words, you do end up feeling better about yourself if you’re actually looking after other people rather than number one.”
Top 20 happiest countries in the world
Finland
Denmark
Iceland
Israel
Netherlands
Sweden
Norway
Switzerland
Luxembourg
New Zealand
Austria
Australia
Canada
Ireland
United States
Germany
Belgium
Czech Republic
United Kingdom
Lithuania
Roshae Hemmings is an arts and culture magazine journalist from St. Louis, MO. A graduate from the Missouri School of Journalism, Roshae has bylines in the Columbia Missourian, Vox Magazine and 5280 Magazine discussing topics ranging from pop culture, social justice and eat and drink. She is a foodie at heart and enjoys eating food as much as learning about the story behind it. You can reach Roshae via email at roshaehemmings@detourxp.com.