Finland is once again the happiest country in the world , according to the annual report marking the United Nations International Day of Happiness on March 20.
It's not just the cool weather, where the aurora borealis dances across the winter sky and where the sun shines day and night in the summer, but the social conditions in Finland that put the country at the top of the rankings.
Helsinki, the capital of Finland. Photo: scanrail
The report is based on survey data from people in more than 140 countries. Countries are ranked on their happiness levels based on how their average citizens rated their lives three years earlier. The report is a collaboration between Gallup, the Oxford Centre for Wellbeing, the United Nations Sustainable Development Solutions Network and an editorial board.
"Finland is rich in all the social conditions that are conducive to happiness, such as wallets being returned if lost, people helping each other on a daily basis, and education and health care opportunities that are of very high quality and widely distributed," said John Helliwell, founding editor of the World Happiness Report.
He also noted that Finnish people are willing to share with newly arrived immigrants.
The report looks at six key indicators to measure well-being: GDP per capita, social support, healthy life expectancy, freedom, generosity and perceptions of corruption.
Finland's Nordic neighbors also ranked high in the top 10: Finland was followed by Denmark, Iceland in third, Sweden in fourth and Norway in seventh.
Israel surprisingly came in fifth place, despite its conflict with Hamas since October 7 last year. The report explained that Israel's ranking was based on a three-year average, meaning that "catastrophic events occurring in a particular year" were not enough to influence the overall three-year rating.
Also making the top 10 are the Netherlands (6th), Luxembourg (8th), Switzerland (9th) and Australia (10th).
The US (23rd) and Germany (24th) dropped out of the top 20 partly due to rising happiness levels in other countries – notably the Czech Republic (18th), Lithuania (19th) and Slovenia (21st). The UK came in 20th.
While Lithuania ranked 19th overall, it was the happiest country among respondents under 30. For those over 60, Lithuania came in 44th.
In contrast, in the US and Canada, happiness scores for people under 30 were significantly lower than those over 60. Among those under 30, the US ranked 62nd, while for those 60 and over, it ranked 10th. Canada ranked 58th among those under 30 and 8th among those 60 and over.
San Francisco, USA. Photo: VCG
Mr Helliwell said the low happiness rankings among young people in these countries were not due to lower education levels, lower incomes or poorer health.
“They’re hearing news that makes them unhappy and then sharing it, and that can make them unhappy too,” he explained, attributing the drop in happiness in part to the information young people in the four English-speaking countries consume.
“Globally, young people aged 15 to 24 improved their life satisfaction between 2006 and 2019 and has remained stable since then,” the report said. “But the picture varies by region. Young people’s well-being fell in North America, Western Europe, the Middle East, North Africa and South Asia. In the rest of the world, it rose.”
The report also found an increase in generosity during the pandemic across all generations, but it was particularly pronounced among young people. “In some countries that are not very happy, people are still able and willing to do charitable acts for others. That gives hope for the future.”
The 20 happiest countries in the world in 2024
1. Finland
2. Denmark
3. Iceland
4. Sweden
5. Israel
6. Netherlands
7. Norway
8. Luxembourg
9. Switzerland
10. Australia
11. New Zealand
12. Costa Rica
13. Kuwait
14. Austria
15. Canada
16. Belgium
17. Ireland
18. Czech Republic
19. Lithuania
20. United Kingdom
Bottom of the list
Afghanistan remains the world's lowest-ranked country for happiness. Lebanon, Lesotho, Sierra Leone and Congo also come in at the bottom of the list.
Hoai Phuong (according to CNN)
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