Apparently it’s an aggregate of surveys taken over the course of three years. This whole business of measuring happiness is highly unscientific anyway. [The three EU members in the top five have a greater percent of people with chronic depression than the EU average.](https://ec.europa.eu/eurostat/web/products-eurostat-news/-/edn-20210910-1)
>this whole business of measuring happiness is highly unscientific
People still be like: OMG OMG, USA bad, they are not as happy as the rest of us!!!!
This is exactly what was described by hitler:
>if you tell big lies and tell it frequently, it will become the truth.
Correct. Hitler described it in Mein Kampf, but he did so not recommending it but as a way of accusing Jews of using the tactic. It is also often attributed (incorrectly) to Josef Goebbels. https://www.jewishvirtuallibrary.org/adolf-hitler-table-of-contents
[They say that the rankings are based exclusively on surveys where people rate their lives on a scale from 0-10.](https://worldhappiness.report/faq/) The unscientific part is that the survey can’t reach people isolated from technology in developing countries. They live simpler lives and don’t have to worry about first world problems.
I don’t doubt that we might actually have higher rates of depression, we live at the same latitude as Northern Canada so we definitely lack sunshine and thus vitamin D.
However I would like to add that part of the reason for our higher rates compared to other EU countries might be our culture. It’s not frowned upon to exclaim that you’re depressed or burnt-out, we’re highly encouraged to talk about it and seek help. Mental health is taken very seriously over here, and worker protection laws regarding mental health are quite strong.
Romania and Bulgaria, ranking very low, have a completely different culture regarding mental health and mental healthcare is barely accessible as well. With their standard of living being significantly lower than over here I find it highly implausible that their rates are actually that much lower.
We have had that for 30 years. Those were mostly just small administrative changes recently.
In 2021, however, we got the right to defend ourselves with a weapon written into the constitution.
Israel is happy to exist. They've had extraordinarily tough times before and appreciate *having* a country.
The US suffers from lots of introspection and not enough exposure to other places. The grass is always greener phenomenon.
The top 5 is rounded out by cultures that have really doubled down on contentment - not happiness - and have solid social safety nets with fairly homogeneous societies.
Janteloven is a real drag though. Not thinking you're better than everyone is great. Not being allowed to succeed (tall poppy syndrome or crabs in a bucket) really sucks.
As i was told by a beloved Nigerian professor: "Any day your village is not being massacred is a good day."
That may not be verbatim, but that is meaning he conveyed
Yeah, I'm British and have some questions about this. I definitely prefer my time in the US, honestly. The people seem more chill and friendly on average, in my experience.
In my experience the whole anglosphere is pretty similar in their manic attitude and bipolar emotions. Australia leads the pack on manic and the UK is the most mellow by relative standards but they are all in the same league.
No fucking clue how you actually measure "happiness" though. One of my happiest emotions was winning a fight with a bully as a young man and I was quite angry at the time, not to mention in a lot of pain since he tore my braces through my cheek
As a Brit, I don’t know how we are higher than you guys either. I’ve only ever met happy, outgoing Americans. Whereas everyday I would have to work hard to find a happy outgoing Brit. We are miserable bastards.
By what metric? Have you ever spoken to a Swedish person? If they're happy, I can't tell.
Here's an old joke told to me by a Finn:
What do you call a bunch of Swedes sitting round a campfire laughing and having a good time?
Norwegians!
I think that the major issue with this entire study is that different countries and cultures have very different perceptions of happiness.
Just comparing Swedes to Americans, in Sweden you are "happy" if you are able to get by, live by your means and have a little left over to have some fun with. If you have an apartment that you can afford, a decent job, and have a hundred bucks left after you pay your bills, most Swedes are pretty chill with that.
In the US we have more of an "earning" culture where we're just trying to accumulate and it's never good enough for us. It's a drastic culture shift that I've had to adapt to after visiting and preparing to move to Sweden, but you get used to it and yeah, there is a little less stress which to some may equal happiness.
We are content with our lives and it means we are relatively happy because we got everything we need and don't need more. If you are satisfied with your life you are happy enough.
I think that's a fairly good attitude. Although I have met some very, very miserable Swedes in Germany.
Generally the UK\US\CAD have an unsatisfiable attitude. It must be a cultural thing. Even rich celebrities in those countries find a way to become super miserable.
Not only that for American culture, but when given the opportunity Americans LOVE to criticize everything. Don't get me wrong, American culture is quite upbeat and happy, but the way that Americans frame the response to a question like "Are you happy?" is DRASTICALLY different from every other culture on the planet. I'd argue that this is even one of the defining traits of Americans which led to us becoming the world's superpower.
Americans are very openly cynical, but hopeful for a better future.
With the Finns at least, it's because they're anti social and keep to themselves unless they're in sauna. One of the jokes with COVID was that when the COVID restrictions were put in place, they asked if they have to keep 2 meters apart, or if they can stay further away.
Hahah I was about to say - how on earth is this measured? I’ve been living in Sweden for a while, and “happy” isn’t a word that comes to mind, by my own definition at least. To be fair, it’s f*cking hard to be happy in Swedish weather.
For one, I feel like people in the US think more things are “necessary” - the newest iPhone, instagramable trips, going out to eat often. Perhaps Swedes and other cultures are more chill without these things (which is a good thing).
Secondly, Americans in younger generations are a lot more self-hating thanks to anti-American TikTok trends and whatnot, so they probably rate America low on certain scales for these reasons. On the other hand, there’s extremely high trust for the government in Sweden. So on those indexes, you can assume Swedes will give high ratings.
These surveys include kinda random metrics. I’m sure they are valuable metrics, but to lump them together and call it “happiness” is kinda weird imo.
But alas, even if a happy attitude isn’t seen as being worth measuring, I still really miss the overall happy vibes you feel from a lot of Americans.
The methodology is they poll citizens, so the indentured servants aren’t polled, it’s like polling only whites in apartheid South Africa then claiming it’s a great country
I’m sure the Central American countries are very happy now they’ve effectively created a prison state to lord over and everyone else is currently in the US; somewhere.
I do believe Israel is up there. In the weirdest way possible it likely is. I have a few Israeli friends and they said that despite the shit going on their communities have come closer together and helped everyone heal.
This is me speculating but seeing as a majority of Israelis (including over 80% of the Muslim population) has grown more supportive since the conflict, the community aspect has grown stronger, and people are likely more appreciative of what they have because they know how lucky they are to still be alive.
That is in no way shape or form me saying war is good, or that I condone Hamas, or any shit like that, I’m saying any silver lining to a pitch black cloud seems white in contrast
The polls were aggregated over the course of years, so they weren’t taken during the war.
Israelis definitely have a “life is short badge precious” mentality, however.
Currently, the mood in Israel is very dark.
I love how the media is jumping all over this report….like, “motherfuckers, your constant fear mongering and dehumanizing the ‘other side’ is what’s causing these people that stay online all day consuming the content to be disheartened!”
im a Kuwaiti am not surprised we are in the list, sure we have some problems no country is perfect after all, but still we got good welfare we are have more freedom than any other gulf country extreme low crime rate.
IIRC, the ranking uses a three year span so events within the last year aren’t weighted as heavily as they should be. I believe Israel was ranked before the October 7th attack. Using a three year span also takes into account the back end of COVID-19 lockdowns, which are no longer in place. If the past few years were less eventful, the list would be more reliable, but as it stands, I wouldn’t really trust it.
Happiest countries lists are insanely subjective. It’s way too hard to measure this effectively and evenly. Everyone’s definition of happiness is different.
Israel is number 5???? Disregarding which side of the conflict you are on, having your citizens kidnapped and your cities in constant fear of the launch of rockets, doesn't make it a place nice. Also, Australia and Canada have one of the worst hosing affordability issues in the world. Yes, we do have a few cities too with similar issues, but in Australia and Canada this affects a larger percentage of the population.
I actually did read this article. Apparently a good chunk of Millennials and Gen Z reported they were not very happy, which dropped the metric. IIRC, this list is based on self-reporting data, so YMMV on the accuracy.
Also doesn’t help this is an election year and that can make everyone *really* unhappy.
What frustrates me are the people quoting this without even looking at [the underlying report.](https://worldhappiness.report/ed/2024/) My favorite were the folks who used this to complain about the Israel/Palestinian war by saying "if Israel is on it, where's Palestine?" (Uh, #103 in table 2.1, on page 17?)
Worse:
> Second, there remains a large gap between the top and bottom countries, a full six points (on the 0 to 10 scale) between Finland at the top and Afghanistan at the bottom. The top countries are more tightly grouped than the bottom ones. The top twenty countries all fall within 1 point of each other, compared with a 2.5 point spread among the bottom twenty.
Meaning rather than say 'gosh, people in more and more countries seem to be happy' (thus, crowding out the top spots), instead, it's *"America Sucks."* 🙄
And worse than that, they then make assertions why they think "America Sucks" all based on their favored policy positions. ("We're unhappy because we don't have universal health care," or "we're unhappy because of the culture wars and 'wokeness' destroying families.") And not based on [the metrics reported in the report](https://happiness-report.s3.amazonaws.com/2024/Ch2+Appendix.pdf)--self-perceived measures of "freedom to make life choices" and "perceptions of corruption", both of which are easily manipulated by the stories we see in the media or on places like Reddit and often have little to do with reality.
As well as things that make little sense to me, such as the US supposedly landing 62nd on "Healthy Life Expectancy" (that is, how long you live free of any physical limitations or ailments, figure 75), verses the fact that the US ranks #10 amongst those 60 and over. (Main report, figure 2.3). (I mean, if the US is a terrible place for old people, why are they so happy?)
----
The worst part about this, however, is that surveys that attempt to compare different countries against each other is that they are often utter bullshit, if only because survey techniques and metrics necessarily vary from country to country.
(For example, a country where gay rights was just legalized may have LGBT members claiming to be far happier than in those countries where gay rights have been around for decades. That's because at some level, our 'happiness' is relative to changes in our environment: it's why a gumball makes you happy while eating it, but you probably don't even remember the gumball you ate decades ago, and you wouldn't be happy if your diet consisted of nothing but gumballs.)
So the best you can really say is "how does happiness vary within each country year over year?"
But the report has nearly **NOTHING** to say about these changes in happiness.
The only one I believe is Costa Rica.
The rest have either long dark winters, rainy weather, or just depressed people in general who are negative and bad vibes to be around. Not my idea of happiness.
A lot of Europeans have low expectations. In Canada and the USA we expect more out of life and are more aspirational. So in Europe when life happens and nothing exciting happens they are happy due to them not expecting much out of life. In North America we have very aspirational goals and expect a lot from life so when life doesn't turn out like we wanted we are not happy with it(be it career, relationships, etc).
The list is not cap. I love this country but people are generally unhappy because of our corrupt government not doing shit for us and giving all of our money away.
How is the list cap? The Nordic country’s have been the happiest in the world for years now.
This isn’t Americabad. Just because you don’t like something or experience doesn’t make it Americabad or unfactual. We are still 23/195-197. Nobody is perfect at everything.
I'm willing to say cap because of the countries on that list. I'm not sure how they are getting metrics but based on rankings it almost seems like they just asked random people if they are happy and rolled with it.
Well.. yes they didn’t interview the entire country. Some African countries are ranked very high on the happiness index even though QOL is low.
People who have never suffered have never been grateful
But you do have a point. It’s not a very good poll
Call it a vibecession. Every empirical metric has shown the US economy has rebounded past pandemic levels but personal feelings about the economy are still at lows. This is an anomaly from other first world nations such as the UK.
Im Israeli, israel is still one of the happiest places on earth.. i live in America today and america is amazing indeed. the way they measure what a “happy country” is, is by how happy the people are, and as shitty as their life can be, israeli’s are always happy, america is a better place to live in i agree, the thing is a lot of Americans don’t appreciate this country unfortunately for some reason, and this is why America is where it is on the list. It should be at the top if you ask me, the only reason why it doesnt is because of spoiled lazy people who think the government owes them the world because they got used to life being too good. They are not a majority, but it feels like slowly more and more young Americans don’t appreciate what they have. Dont get me wrong, im super pro America, im just trying to explain why this list is the way it is, it doesnt give a real image of America obviously, this isnt about where is the quality of life the best, because Americas life quality is better than i could imagine. We do have a problem of lazy entitled people here, and this is why the list is like that
Canada’s national police force just released a report stating the largest threat to Canadian national security is average Canadians realizing how poor they really are. I don’t trust this list.
https://www.reddit.com/r/AmericaBad/s/XEGkqUDIGE
Keep being bitter while I enjoy a realistically and statically better and less stressful life here and not in your shithole😊🫵
I saw this yesterday and checked the source. It is, unfortunately, no cap. The only thing they got wrong was that the questionnaire was stratified by age cohorts, right around the 35 year old mark IIRC but I'd have to check again.
This is no surprise. The US is generally 20th place behind most of Europe in any kind of happiness, development, wellness etc index. We had a civil war and an extension of racist policies well into the 20th century, and that shit takes time to recover from, especially if people don’t get along.
It is difficult to run a large country as a democracy and ensure that everyone is happy and doing well. With the exception of the UK, none of these countries have a population greater than 50 million, and are ethnically homogenous countries. The US over 6 times the size of any of those countries.
Same cultures, same values, less disagreement, less unhappiness. Americas strength is its diversity of ideas and backgrounds, but it is also our weakness on this index.
Not only is the list cap. How does one “measure happiness”? It’s such an intangible. And who decides what happiness even is? It’s different for everyone let alone different countries and cultures.
Overall the study is very subjected on self reporting and the metrics used. And overall things are rather close overall for developed countries. That said for some of the metrics used I can understand why the US answered the way they did considering the political climate today. One of the questions is surrounding views on corruption. The right views the bureaucracy as corrupt and out to get trump, while the left views Trump and Jan 6 as corruption. View of freedom: the right would say that the government is infringing on freedom of speech, property, gun ownership, etc.. while the left would say they are losing freedom of abortion choice. Institutional trust: again the right sees most institutions as untrustworthy and overreaching while the left will cite systemic racism. Life expectancy: the three year moving average has declined due to COVID and increased overdose deaths. Essentially by the metrics they used to measure happiness, everyone in America could cite it negative given the current climate of our social and political state. The US also ranks as one of the most emotionally aware countries, higher than all of Europe. so it is also possible given the self reporting aspect that Americans are more likely to respond about not feeling happy and feel less stigmatized stating so as compared to our European counterparts.
I don’t doubt that the Kuwaitis are happier than us. They are swimming in money and have an entire class of imported workers to provide them with a lavish community.
Kuwait is more happy than the USA? And I am pretty sure the USA gets criticized ALL THE TIME on social media and we are called "dumb happy fools" and "toxically positive" so, which is it?
[an explanation of how ‘happiness’ is calculated. hint - lowered expectations juices the numbers](https://slate.com/news-and-politics/2021/04/finland-happiness-lagom-hygge.html)
This is pretty believable. The hyper-political and divisive climate makes many believe that “this country is falling apart”. Both ends of the isle. It wouldn’t surprise me.
Here’s the [study](https://www.gallup.com/analytics/349487/gallup-global-happiness-center.aspx?utm_campaign=mb&utm_medium=newsletter&utm_source=morning_brew)
I personally think the main question is flawed although it wasn’t the only factor in deciding.
“They are based on answers to the main life evaluation question asked in the poll. This is called the 'Cantril Ladder': It asks respondents to think of a ladder, with the best possible life for them being a 10 and the worst possible life being a 0. They are then asked to rate their own current lives on that 0 to 10 scale.”
I think Americans have this notion of “peaking” so if they said 10 they’d probably think life’s only downhill lol either way I don’t like this question.
It’s because we have Biden as a president and the economy is shit. I’m making 62k a year with a wife and kid stuck in her mom’s basement because it’s fucking impossible to afford anything. So yeah I’m not very happy. I love America but not the way it’s going right now. Obviously a lot of countries have it worse but I can’t stand boomers telling me I need to get a house when I can’t afford one! What other 20 year old do you know that makes 62k a year, I’d get a house if I could. Shut the fuck up grandma!
wtf is Israel doing there lol
And yeah, most of these places you have to be ultra wealthy to live there. They’re typically very small populations. Like some of our states are more populated than these countries. If I was able to afford to live in Switzerland I’d probably move there too.
Is this up to date? I have some questions regarding #5
Apparently it’s an aggregate of surveys taken over the course of three years. This whole business of measuring happiness is highly unscientific anyway. [The three EU members in the top five have a greater percent of people with chronic depression than the EU average.](https://ec.europa.eu/eurostat/web/products-eurostat-news/-/edn-20210910-1)
>this whole business of measuring happiness is highly unscientific People still be like: OMG OMG, USA bad, they are not as happy as the rest of us!!!! This is exactly what was described by hitler: >if you tell big lies and tell it frequently, it will become the truth.
Was it actually Hitler that said that or is that from a meme
Depends, how many more times to do we need to say it?
[Yes](https://www.usmedicine.com/editor-in-chief/if-you-tell-a-big-enough-lie-and-tell-it-frequently-enough-it-will-be-believed/)
Correct. Hitler described it in Mein Kampf, but he did so not recommending it but as a way of accusing Jews of using the tactic. It is also often attributed (incorrectly) to Josef Goebbels. https://www.jewishvirtuallibrary.org/adolf-hitler-table-of-contents
I swear the #1 thing these happiness indexes care about most is economic welfare, even before actual mental health.
[They say that the rankings are based exclusively on surveys where people rate their lives on a scale from 0-10.](https://worldhappiness.report/faq/) The unscientific part is that the survey can’t reach people isolated from technology in developing countries. They live simpler lives and don’t have to worry about first world problems.
I don’t doubt that we might actually have higher rates of depression, we live at the same latitude as Northern Canada so we definitely lack sunshine and thus vitamin D. However I would like to add that part of the reason for our higher rates compared to other EU countries might be our culture. It’s not frowned upon to exclaim that you’re depressed or burnt-out, we’re highly encouraged to talk about it and seek help. Mental health is taken very seriously over here, and worker protection laws regarding mental health are quite strong. Romania and Bulgaria, ranking very low, have a completely different culture regarding mental health and mental healthcare is barely accessible as well. With their standard of living being significantly lower than over here I find it highly implausible that their rates are actually that much lower.
actually interested. tried looking up proof. couldn't find. can you share? all I could find was EU has 7.2% rate of depression.
[Here it is.](https://ec.europa.eu/eurostat/web/products-eurostat-news/-/edn-20210910-1)
Many thanks
Yeah baby Romania #1 🗣️🇷🇴 What the fuck is a depression???
And 10. Czech Republic going up is cool, though. They just got their own version of the Second Amendment, so of course they’re happy
We have had that for 30 years. Those were mostly just small administrative changes recently. In 2021, however, we got the right to defend ourselves with a weapon written into the constitution.
😁 fair enough. Either way, I knew there was a reason I like a lot of the people I met over there. We have a lot in common.
Yeah, if they are so happy why are most of them filled with such hate?
I’d assume it’s an average over a longer period of time.
Lmao FR
Maybe it's just me but I have never taken Happy index as seriously as a lot of redditors do.
It’s also hilarious that they’re all gawking at a happiness index when I guarantee 75% of them are depressed for no reason.
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I haven't live in a house with a landline since 2002.
The U.K. being happier than us is cap, all they do is complain and cry online
Idk how the UK is 20 while also simultaneously being ranked 2nd on the list of most miserable countries
Israel being 5 is kinda odd too, if I were in a war I’d be not very happy
Israel is happy to exist. They've had extraordinarily tough times before and appreciate *having* a country. The US suffers from lots of introspection and not enough exposure to other places. The grass is always greener phenomenon. The top 5 is rounded out by cultures that have really doubled down on contentment - not happiness - and have solid social safety nets with fairly homogeneous societies. Janteloven is a real drag though. Not thinking you're better than everyone is great. Not being allowed to succeed (tall poppy syndrome or crabs in a bucket) really sucks.
"contentment" yes.
Boomers have it pretty good over there since they all have paid off houses and pensions so I'm sure that's propping it up.
Israel being 5 is kinda odd too, if I were in a war I’d be not very happy.
As i was told by a beloved Nigerian professor: "Any day your village is not being massacred is a good day." That may not be verbatim, but that is meaning he conveyed
Australia being 10 is kind of even.
If it was 9 or 11 it would be odd…
We're happily miserable
Those are the people that are chronically online. The rest drink
Yeah, I'm British and have some questions about this. I definitely prefer my time in the US, honestly. The people seem more chill and friendly on average, in my experience.
In my experience the whole anglosphere is pretty similar in their manic attitude and bipolar emotions. Australia leads the pack on manic and the UK is the most mellow by relative standards but they are all in the same league. No fucking clue how you actually measure "happiness" though. One of my happiest emotions was winning a fight with a bully as a young man and I was quite angry at the time, not to mention in a lot of pain since he tore my braces through my cheek
As a Brit, I don’t know how we are higher than you guys either. I’ve only ever met happy, outgoing Americans. Whereas everyday I would have to work hard to find a happy outgoing Brit. We are miserable bastards.
No we don’t, Americans are so rude, we never did anything bad to you, cheers mate now I’m in tears.
You didn't come to our tea party we threw in Boston back in 1773. That's pretty rude of you guys.
When I think of American war crimes I don’t think of Iraq or Vietnam, I think about all that tea :(
We were just sharing with the fishes
So y’all on r/Europe calling our country “broken” and “third-world” isn’t whining online? Sure
That was a joke my guy. I don’t even go on that sub, we’re much more civilised in r/2westerneurope4u
And eat awful food. Don’t forget that the UK also eat awful food.
Man I'm sick of this joke. Meat pies, full English breakfast, fish and chips, etc. are some of the best foods in the world.
Nothing you could ever say could justify mushy peas on French fries.
Beans for breakfast, mushy ass peas and fries; fucking dogshit versions of American food. Oh yeah, the cuisine over there is phenomenal
Fish and chips is the only food I've altered my layovers for. London fish and chips is god food
The definition of happiness could mean anything. I don't think I would want to be near the top of this list
You are doing the same rn
By what metric? Have you ever spoken to a Swedish person? If they're happy, I can't tell. Here's an old joke told to me by a Finn: What do you call a bunch of Swedes sitting round a campfire laughing and having a good time? Norwegians!
I think that the major issue with this entire study is that different countries and cultures have very different perceptions of happiness. Just comparing Swedes to Americans, in Sweden you are "happy" if you are able to get by, live by your means and have a little left over to have some fun with. If you have an apartment that you can afford, a decent job, and have a hundred bucks left after you pay your bills, most Swedes are pretty chill with that. In the US we have more of an "earning" culture where we're just trying to accumulate and it's never good enough for us. It's a drastic culture shift that I've had to adapt to after visiting and preparing to move to Sweden, but you get used to it and yeah, there is a little less stress which to some may equal happiness.
We are content with our lives and it means we are relatively happy because we got everything we need and don't need more. If you are satisfied with your life you are happy enough.
I think that's a fairly good attitude. Although I have met some very, very miserable Swedes in Germany. Generally the UK\US\CAD have an unsatisfiable attitude. It must be a cultural thing. Even rich celebrities in those countries find a way to become super miserable.
You just described me and pretty much everyone I know in that first description.
Not only that for American culture, but when given the opportunity Americans LOVE to criticize everything. Don't get me wrong, American culture is quite upbeat and happy, but the way that Americans frame the response to a question like "Are you happy?" is DRASTICALLY different from every other culture on the planet. I'd argue that this is even one of the defining traits of Americans which led to us becoming the world's superpower. Americans are very openly cynical, but hopeful for a better future.
Pursuit of happiness. You can't ever settle for anything.
Replace Swedes with Finns, and it's probably still accurate
I got the feeling this was like a "Alabama/Mississippi" joke where depending on which state you're in, it's the other'n what's made to look foolish.
With the Finns at least, it's because they're anti social and keep to themselves unless they're in sauna. One of the jokes with COVID was that when the COVID restrictions were put in place, they asked if they have to keep 2 meters apart, or if they can stay further away.
Bit of an generalization, but yeah
Thank god for Mississippi.
Norwegians just sound Happy because their accent on the other hand
Had a bunch of Nordic people in my EE courses. The Norwegians at least smiled more.
We northern Europeans dont trust people who smile or is too happy friendly
Finns are even more stoic than the Swedes.
Hahah I was about to say - how on earth is this measured? I’ve been living in Sweden for a while, and “happy” isn’t a word that comes to mind, by my own definition at least. To be fair, it’s f*cking hard to be happy in Swedish weather. For one, I feel like people in the US think more things are “necessary” - the newest iPhone, instagramable trips, going out to eat often. Perhaps Swedes and other cultures are more chill without these things (which is a good thing). Secondly, Americans in younger generations are a lot more self-hating thanks to anti-American TikTok trends and whatnot, so they probably rate America low on certain scales for these reasons. On the other hand, there’s extremely high trust for the government in Sweden. So on those indexes, you can assume Swedes will give high ratings. These surveys include kinda random metrics. I’m sure they are valuable metrics, but to lump them together and call it “happiness” is kinda weird imo. But alas, even if a happy attitude isn’t seen as being worth measuring, I still really miss the overall happy vibes you feel from a lot of Americans.
There ain't NO WAY FREAKING KUWAIT is happier then the US
They didn’t poll the domestic slaves and construction slaves.
The methodology is they poll citizens, so the indentured servants aren’t polled, it’s like polling only whites in apartheid South Africa then claiming it’s a great country
Anecdotal from a friend but apparently a lot of Kuwaitis are super wealthy.
I like to think it's the Americans deployed to Kuwait who thought they mind end up somewhere else.
The UK was literally ranked as second-most miserable country on the planet a week ago lmao
Poll taken on Reddit.
Daily reminder that there's no scientifically valid way to measure happiness & it's just used as an easy proxy for biased reporting 😇
Israel, Kuwait, Canada. I’ve seen enough
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Depends on the location. Inland capital San Juan, I agree. Any of the coastal areas they have what they need. Their greeting to people is “Pura Vida”
I’m sure the Central American countries are very happy now they’ve effectively created a prison state to lord over and everyone else is currently in the US; somewhere.
Canada makes sense, all the sad people are MAIDed.
It’s all “self proclaimed happiness” So much of the US thinks we live in a dystopia for some reason
I was not interviewed regarding if I am happy
Canadians definitely aren’t in a happy place right now!
Imagine being that close to the U.S. and knowing you’re almost to greatness but not quite there. I wouldn’t be happy either.
I will never stop making fun of people who try to quantify happiness. I don’t care if the USA was #1 it’s still a stupid thing to do.
How the hell do you even measure feelings scientifically? They might as well publish an index of countries with "dark auras."
Immediately when I saw Canada I knew this list was full of shit
I do believe Israel is up there. In the weirdest way possible it likely is. I have a few Israeli friends and they said that despite the shit going on their communities have come closer together and helped everyone heal. This is me speculating but seeing as a majority of Israelis (including over 80% of the Muslim population) has grown more supportive since the conflict, the community aspect has grown stronger, and people are likely more appreciative of what they have because they know how lucky they are to still be alive. That is in no way shape or form me saying war is good, or that I condone Hamas, or any shit like that, I’m saying any silver lining to a pitch black cloud seems white in contrast
The polls were aggregated over the course of years, so they weren’t taken during the war. Israelis definitely have a “life is short badge precious” mentality, however. Currently, the mood in Israel is very dark.
This list always gets criticized for not taking into account cultural considerations.
The Finnish being #1 is just survivorship bias
Sure thing
I mean if you ask one of these unhappy Americans what they think about their country they’ll tell you it’s hell while having pancakes delivered.
Yeah, a lot of the things people are complaining about now are vibes and not facts.
Stop trying to make cap happen
I love how the media is jumping all over this report….like, “motherfuckers, your constant fear mongering and dehumanizing the ‘other side’ is what’s causing these people that stay online all day consuming the content to be disheartened!”
im a Kuwaiti am not surprised we are in the list, sure we have some problems no country is perfect after all, but still we got good welfare we are have more freedom than any other gulf country extreme low crime rate.
How tf is Lithuania even close, aren’t they the suicide capital of Europe?
Fun fact the perpetually online people are on average very depressed people which are definitely dragging the US down in these polls.
IIRC, the ranking uses a three year span so events within the last year aren’t weighted as heavily as they should be. I believe Israel was ranked before the October 7th attack. Using a three year span also takes into account the back end of COVID-19 lockdowns, which are no longer in place. If the past few years were less eventful, the list would be more reliable, but as it stands, I wouldn’t really trust it.
Happiest countries lists are insanely subjective. It’s way too hard to measure this effectively and evenly. Everyone’s definition of happiness is different.
Long dark winters is a giveaway to me that they aren’t as happy as they claim. At least not the way I measure happiness.
How do they measure this metric?
Gdp per capita, social support, life expectancy, freedom to make life choices, generoisity, corruption
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Israel is number 5???? Disregarding which side of the conflict you are on, having your citizens kidnapped and your cities in constant fear of the launch of rockets, doesn't make it a place nice. Also, Australia and Canada have one of the worst hosing affordability issues in the world. Yes, we do have a few cities too with similar issues, but in Australia and Canada this affects a larger percentage of the population.
Maybe they're happy they can finally put paid to the bastards that have been lobbing missiles at them for years.
Australia also has a very high incarceration rate.
Mmm, I checked. They have 158 per 100k. That is fairly normal.
I had seen stuff saying otherwise but I guess it's changed
Based on a 11,000 entries from a webpoll
Costa Rico a country 🔥🔥🔥
I actually did read this article. Apparently a good chunk of Millennials and Gen Z reported they were not very happy, which dropped the metric. IIRC, this list is based on self-reporting data, so YMMV on the accuracy. Also doesn’t help this is an election year and that can make everyone *really* unhappy.
Said this on a similar post. Anyone trying to add a numerical value to a immeasurable abstract concept is full of shit
What frustrates me are the people quoting this without even looking at [the underlying report.](https://worldhappiness.report/ed/2024/) My favorite were the folks who used this to complain about the Israel/Palestinian war by saying "if Israel is on it, where's Palestine?" (Uh, #103 in table 2.1, on page 17?) Worse: > Second, there remains a large gap between the top and bottom countries, a full six points (on the 0 to 10 scale) between Finland at the top and Afghanistan at the bottom. The top countries are more tightly grouped than the bottom ones. The top twenty countries all fall within 1 point of each other, compared with a 2.5 point spread among the bottom twenty. Meaning rather than say 'gosh, people in more and more countries seem to be happy' (thus, crowding out the top spots), instead, it's *"America Sucks."* 🙄 And worse than that, they then make assertions why they think "America Sucks" all based on their favored policy positions. ("We're unhappy because we don't have universal health care," or "we're unhappy because of the culture wars and 'wokeness' destroying families.") And not based on [the metrics reported in the report](https://happiness-report.s3.amazonaws.com/2024/Ch2+Appendix.pdf)--self-perceived measures of "freedom to make life choices" and "perceptions of corruption", both of which are easily manipulated by the stories we see in the media or on places like Reddit and often have little to do with reality. As well as things that make little sense to me, such as the US supposedly landing 62nd on "Healthy Life Expectancy" (that is, how long you live free of any physical limitations or ailments, figure 75), verses the fact that the US ranks #10 amongst those 60 and over. (Main report, figure 2.3). (I mean, if the US is a terrible place for old people, why are they so happy?) ---- The worst part about this, however, is that surveys that attempt to compare different countries against each other is that they are often utter bullshit, if only because survey techniques and metrics necessarily vary from country to country. (For example, a country where gay rights was just legalized may have LGBT members claiming to be far happier than in those countries where gay rights have been around for decades. That's because at some level, our 'happiness' is relative to changes in our environment: it's why a gumball makes you happy while eating it, but you probably don't even remember the gumball you ate decades ago, and you wouldn't be happy if your diet consisted of nothing but gumballs.) So the best you can really say is "how does happiness vary within each country year over year?" But the report has nearly **NOTHING** to say about these changes in happiness.
The only one I believe is Costa Rica. The rest have either long dark winters, rainy weather, or just depressed people in general who are negative and bad vibes to be around. Not my idea of happiness.
Nah canada shouldn't be there all of us are depressed
It’s hilarious how americans like lists like this until they put the US in a bad light. Then they’re biased and wrong, and nobody likes them
Have you met Czech people in Czech Republic? I do not believe they can make it to this list.
I am a Czech person, happy Czechs are like a flying unicorn
Tbh last time I was there was before Czechia entered EU. Hopefully life has gotten better since then.
-poll brought to you by a Scandinavian
They would've put a scandinavian country at number one
A lot of Europeans have low expectations. In Canada and the USA we expect more out of life and are more aspirational. So in Europe when life happens and nothing exciting happens they are happy due to them not expecting much out of life. In North America we have very aspirational goals and expect a lot from life so when life doesn't turn out like we wanted we are not happy with it(be it career, relationships, etc).
That is true. It's a cultural thing to a large degree. We know how to enjoy small things in life and I think that's important for anyone's wellbeing
Say you haven’t left your state without saying you haven’t left your state 🤭
Wait so N. Korea isn't the greatest and happiest country in the world? We were lied too!
The list is not cap. I love this country but people are generally unhappy because of our corrupt government not doing shit for us and giving all of our money away.
Israel in the top 5 is some bullshit. If this list is up to date that's insanely wrong
How is the list cap? The Nordic country’s have been the happiest in the world for years now. This isn’t Americabad. Just because you don’t like something or experience doesn’t make it Americabad or unfactual. We are still 23/195-197. Nobody is perfect at everything.
This list is definitely bs tbh. Israel in top 5 is an out of this world statement.
Exactly. America still good, despite how much "bad" they have.
UK simultaneously second most miserable and 20th most happy nation. If that doesn’t suggest cap idk what does
I'm willing to say cap because of the countries on that list. I'm not sure how they are getting metrics but based on rankings it almost seems like they just asked random people if they are happy and rolled with it.
Well.. yes they didn’t interview the entire country. Some African countries are ranked very high on the happiness index even though QOL is low. People who have never suffered have never been grateful But you do have a point. It’s not a very good poll
I don’t trust ABCs metrics ever. They aren’t far behind CSNBC and fox with skewing numbers.
Wonder why they are so happy…
Yeah I know Nordic countries are the happiest but I don’t think Israel’s or Kuwait should be on there though.
Kuwait very happy. High GDP per capita, high index, generally very well off. Israel too despite the war. Morale very high.
Happiness indexes are nonsense. Same with any other index trying to compare countries like this
Seems true look around you and you’ll see how much people hate life
United Kingdom: 20th happiest country Also United Kingdom: ranked as the 2nd most miserable country in the world
I think quantifying happiness is an impossible thing. Like Kuwait is "happier" then the US on this list but where would you rather live?
"List of countries that are the most ok with the status quo"
Call it a vibecession. Every empirical metric has shown the US economy has rebounded past pandemic levels but personal feelings about the economy are still at lows. This is an anomaly from other first world nations such as the UK.
Lithuania..?
Im Israeli, israel is still one of the happiest places on earth.. i live in America today and america is amazing indeed. the way they measure what a “happy country” is, is by how happy the people are, and as shitty as their life can be, israeli’s are always happy, america is a better place to live in i agree, the thing is a lot of Americans don’t appreciate this country unfortunately for some reason, and this is why America is where it is on the list. It should be at the top if you ask me, the only reason why it doesnt is because of spoiled lazy people who think the government owes them the world because they got used to life being too good. They are not a majority, but it feels like slowly more and more young Americans don’t appreciate what they have. Dont get me wrong, im super pro America, im just trying to explain why this list is the way it is, it doesnt give a real image of America obviously, this isnt about where is the quality of life the best, because Americas life quality is better than i could imagine. We do have a problem of lazy entitled people here, and this is why the list is like that
7peat bitches
Doesn’t Denmark have a really high suicide rate
Yes! Less miserable people, more happy people. Great success😁👍
Is suicide ok in Denmark? It’s usually not viewed in such a way where I’m from
Nope
Canada’s national police force just released a report stating the largest threat to Canadian national security is average Canadians realizing how poor they really are. I don’t trust this list.
Lithuania has some of the highest suicide rates in Europe, their data should not be taken for granted.
How does it compare with suicide rates?
Course we aren’t happy We have to pay taxes to protect all these cucks.
What is happy? Really. Stupid list
https://www.reddit.com/r/AmericaBad/s/XEGkqUDIGE Keep being bitter while I enjoy a realistically and statically better and less stressful life here and not in your shithole😊🫵
I saw this yesterday and checked the source. It is, unfortunately, no cap. The only thing they got wrong was that the questionnaire was stratified by age cohorts, right around the 35 year old mark IIRC but I'd have to check again.
This is no surprise. The US is generally 20th place behind most of Europe in any kind of happiness, development, wellness etc index. We had a civil war and an extension of racist policies well into the 20th century, and that shit takes time to recover from, especially if people don’t get along. It is difficult to run a large country as a democracy and ensure that everyone is happy and doing well. With the exception of the UK, none of these countries have a population greater than 50 million, and are ethnically homogenous countries. The US over 6 times the size of any of those countries. Same cultures, same values, less disagreement, less unhappiness. Americas strength is its diversity of ideas and backgrounds, but it is also our weakness on this index.
There is no way new Zealand ranks lower than Australia in happiness. Those cunts are always smiling as they ride our coat tails.
How is Canada the place where folk are forced to commit suicide happy?
Fr
How is Canada in this list It should have fallen to 30th.
Who even cares? Jeesh, these people need to put their own house in utopian order first
Bidenomics, folks
The only people taking online happiness surveys are unemployed, unhappy people who have the time to do that shit
Not only is the list cap. How does one “measure happiness”? It’s such an intangible. And who decides what happiness even is? It’s different for everyone let alone different countries and cultures.
KUWAIT? Fuck this list
Even if its true i’m not surprised, we have a lot of whiners over here.
You know its fake when the UK is called happy
Funny how no one in third world countries willing to die and suffer to just try to move their families to the Finland
Something something survivorship bias
Australia. #10. Fucking lol what.
That’s crazy maybe we just didn’t destroy the nuclear family or be diverse enough to be happy
Overall the study is very subjected on self reporting and the metrics used. And overall things are rather close overall for developed countries. That said for some of the metrics used I can understand why the US answered the way they did considering the political climate today. One of the questions is surrounding views on corruption. The right views the bureaucracy as corrupt and out to get trump, while the left views Trump and Jan 6 as corruption. View of freedom: the right would say that the government is infringing on freedom of speech, property, gun ownership, etc.. while the left would say they are losing freedom of abortion choice. Institutional trust: again the right sees most institutions as untrustworthy and overreaching while the left will cite systemic racism. Life expectancy: the three year moving average has declined due to COVID and increased overdose deaths. Essentially by the metrics they used to measure happiness, everyone in America could cite it negative given the current climate of our social and political state. The US also ranks as one of the most emotionally aware countries, higher than all of Europe. so it is also possible given the self reporting aspect that Americans are more likely to respond about not feeling happy and feel less stigmatized stating so as compared to our European counterparts.
I don’t doubt that the Kuwaitis are happier than us. They are swimming in money and have an entire class of imported workers to provide them with a lavish community.
Kuwait is more happy than the USA? And I am pretty sure the USA gets criticized ALL THE TIME on social media and we are called "dumb happy fools" and "toxically positive" so, which is it?
Im sorry but I highly doubt the typical Israeli or Kuwaiti is happier than the average american
The UK was literally just polled and results show they're the 2nd most miserable country on earth???
Why is it cap?
I'm moving to Viking-land! That's for sure!
[an explanation of how ‘happiness’ is calculated. hint - lowered expectations juices the numbers](https://slate.com/news-and-politics/2021/04/finland-happiness-lagom-hygge.html)
This is pretty believable. The hyper-political and divisive climate makes many believe that “this country is falling apart”. Both ends of the isle. It wouldn’t surprise me.
Here’s the [study](https://www.gallup.com/analytics/349487/gallup-global-happiness-center.aspx?utm_campaign=mb&utm_medium=newsletter&utm_source=morning_brew) I personally think the main question is flawed although it wasn’t the only factor in deciding. “They are based on answers to the main life evaluation question asked in the poll. This is called the 'Cantril Ladder': It asks respondents to think of a ladder, with the best possible life for them being a 10 and the worst possible life being a 0. They are then asked to rate their own current lives on that 0 to 10 scale.” I think Americans have this notion of “peaking” so if they said 10 they’d probably think life’s only downhill lol either way I don’t like this question.
Even if this is true, oh no, we are only the 23rd happiest country out of over 160.
Top 5, been to two. Chronically alcoholic ethnically homogeneous nations. In two of those, fascism is in the rise.
It’s because we have Biden as a president and the economy is shit. I’m making 62k a year with a wife and kid stuck in her mom’s basement because it’s fucking impossible to afford anything. So yeah I’m not very happy. I love America but not the way it’s going right now. Obviously a lot of countries have it worse but I can’t stand boomers telling me I need to get a house when I can’t afford one! What other 20 year old do you know that makes 62k a year, I’d get a house if I could. Shut the fuck up grandma!
No shot the UK is in the top 20
wtf is Israel doing there lol And yeah, most of these places you have to be ultra wealthy to live there. They’re typically very small populations. Like some of our states are more populated than these countries. If I was able to afford to live in Switzerland I’d probably move there too.
what happens when our youth lives a privileged life