Top 20 Happiest Countries in 2024: US Not Included
The 2024 World Happiness Report, showcasing the happiest countries globally, was unveiled today on International Day of Happiness. Shockingly, the United States failed to make it to the top ranks and is placed at No. 23. The rankings placed the United Arab Emirates at 22 and Slovenia at 21.
The top 20 happiest countries, according to the World Happiness Report, are as follows: Finland, Denmark, Iceland, Sweden, Israel, Netherlands, Norway, Luxembourg, Switzerland, Australia, New Zealand, Costa Rica, Kuwait, Austria, Canada, Belgium, Ireland, Czechia, Lithuania, and the United Kingdom.
Nordic countries continue to dominate the happiness rankings, with hardly any populous countries making it to the top spots. The report highlights that only the Netherlands and Australia in the top ten and Canada and the United Kingdom in the top twenty have populations over 30 million and 15 million respectively.
When analyzing happiness across different age groups, the United States ranked well for individuals aged 60 and above but fared poorly for those under 30, with a ranking of 63.
The World Happiness Report is a collaboration between Gallup, the Oxford Wellbeing Research Centre, the UN Sustainable Development Solutions Network, and the WHR Editorial Board. It evaluates happiness and well-being as essential criteria for government policies and reviews global happiness levels and variations.
Researchers of the World Happiness Report utilize data from the Gallup World Poll, where responses from over 100,000 individuals worldwide are collected. Understanding happiness involves individuals ranking their happiness on a imaginary scale of a ladder with 10 steps representing different levels of personal satisfaction.
Factors influencing happiness, according to the SDSN, include social support, GDP per capita, healthy life expectancy, freedom to make life choices, generosity, and perception of corruption. These factors play a significant role in determining the happiness levels of individuals and populations.
Overall, the World Happiness Report reveals key insights into global happiness trends and factors contributing to well-being.
