Each year, the United Nations releases a list of the happiest countries in the world—places where, on average, people have self-reported high levels of satisfaction with their lives. The goal of the study is to find out what, exactly, makes people happier so they can develop policies to increase well-being. It’s also handy data for travelers to have in their back pocket when narrowing down where to go in 2025.
The latest World Happiness Report, released on March 20, 2025 (which is World Happiness Day), is based on a three-year average of each population’s assessment of their quality of life. It takes into account six key factors that impact happiness: social support, income, health, freedom, generosity, and the absence of corruption. It also investigates the distribution of happiness within countries. Spoiler alert: Countries where the “happiness gap” is smaller—where the population has a similar experience of and access to the six factors listed above—tend to be happier overall.
Clearly, calculating happiness is no simple task, with various factors influencing happiness on both an individual and societal level. This year, the UN’s report also includes an analysis on the wellbeing benefits of benevolent acts such as donating, volunteering, and helping strangers—concluding that “expecting kindness from others” and living in a “caring community” are strong predictors of happiness. During 2020, researchers reported a global surge in benevolent acts, specifically in the helping of strangers. In 2024, this COVID-era surge in benevolence declined year-over-year but remains over 10% higher than 2017–19 levels almost everywhere in the world. Hopefully this trend continues as “increased wellbeing is more likely when people are embedded in mutual and frequent caring interactions,” the research says.
No matter where you are in the world, forming friendships, sharing meals, and living with other people are three additional actions the report recognizes as having a positive impact on happiness. Below, we break down the ranking of the happiest countries in the world in 2025.
This story has been updated with new information since its original publication date. A version of this article was originally published on Condé Nast Traveller UK.
How does the study work?
The World Happiness Report is based on self-assessments of survey respondents, who rate their own lives by placing themselves on the Cantril Scale. This is essentially ranking where you would put yourself on a ladder of self-satisfaction: the top of the ladder, or 10, would be the happiest you can be, while the bottom of the ladder, or 0, would be the least happy you can be.
The study then measures and investigates a number of factors that could correlate with the variations in the average happiness of each country’s population. While experts explain the results using the six factors stated above, it is important to remember that the ranking itself is based on the answers given by people at the time of questioning, so it does not always take into account recent cultural, political, or societal events.
What is the happiest country in the world?
Once again, Nordic countries dominate the top of this year’s list. In 2025, Finland has been ranked the No. 1 happiest country in the world for the eighth year running.
Is the US on the list of the happiest countries?
The United States has fallen to its lowest-ever position on the world happiness ranking at No. 24. The US is one of a handful of countries where “deaths of despair” (death by suicide or substance abuse) remain high and are continuing to rise. Globally, deaths of despair have declined since 2000 in 75% of 59 countries included in the study.
While the US and UK have both dropped in the rankings, Costa Rica (No. 6) and Mexico (No. 10) are now both in the top 10. Lithuania—which made headlines last year for having the highest happiness ratings for those under thirty years old—has also risen in rankings this year, alongside Slovenia and Czechia.
