The Happiest and Unhappiest Countries in The World

The residents of Finland are officially the world's happiest people in 2024, according to a report from the United Nations and Oxford University.

The Scandinavian country topped the World Happiness Report, which includes 143 countries, for the seventh year in a row.

Famed for saunas and reindeer, the country has a population of approximately 5.6 million.

At the other end of the scale, Afghanistan came last in the ranking.

Meanwhile, happiness levels in the UK appear to be dropping as the country fell to 20th place – down from 19th in 2023. The United States has fallen out of the top 20 for the first time, a decline largely due to dissatisfaction among younger Americans.

Methodology
For the report, researchers surveyed over 100,000 people in more than 140 countries between 2021 and 2023 through the Gallup World Poll. Participants were asked to evaluate their happiness on a scale from 0–10, with 10 representing "the best possible life for them."

Researchers also evaluated six factors that could explain different levels of happiness in each country:

• Social support
• GDP per capita
• A healthy life expectancy
• Freedom to make life choices
• Generosity
• Perception of corruption

The happiest countries in the world
This year, the 10 happiest countries in the world were:

1. Finland (Score: 7.741)

2. Denmark (Score: 7.583)

3. Iceland (Score: 7.525)

4. Sweden (Score: 7.344)

5. Israel (Score: 7.341)

6. Netherlands (Score: 7.319)

7. Norway (Score: 7.302)

8. Luxembourg (Score: 7.122)

9. Switzerland (Score: 7.060)

10. Australia (Score: 7.057)

According to USA Today, the top 10 countries in the happiness ranking have largely remained the same over time, with Nordic countries near the top. Finland has also ranked first in happiness for seven years in a row.

The least happy places to live, the majority from Africa
Unsurprisingly, many countries impacted by war or political turmoil reported low – or falling – happiness levels.

Ukraine came 105th in the ranking, down from 92nd in 2023. Meanwhile, Russia was placed 72nd, down two places from the previous year.

Across all regions, negative emotions were more prevalent in female respondents.

The unhappiest countries in the world
This year, the 10 unhappiest countries in the world were:

1. Afghanistan (Score: 1.721)

2. Lebanon (Score 2.707)

3. Lesotho (Score: 3.186)

4. Sierra Leone (Score: 3.245)

5. Congo (Kinshasa) (Score: 3.295)

6. Zimbabwe (Score: 3.341)

7. Botswana (Score: 3.383)

8. Malawi (Score: 3.421)

9. Eswatini (Score: 3.502)

10. Zambia (Score: 3.502)

When conducting the research, scientists asked tens of thousands of participants about various factors contributing to a person’s overall well-being.

These included earnings, health, kindness, freedom to do as they pleased, and perceived levels of government corruption.

Based on these answers over three years, each country was given a happiness score from zero to 10 – with Finland scoring 7.74 and Afghanistan receiving 1.72.

For context, the UK’s score came in at 6.72.

The research also reported an increase in what it described as ‘benevolence’ following the Covid-19 pandemic.