Finland has once again been named the happiest country in the world, topping the World Happiness Report for the eighth year straight. T
he 2025 report, released by the Wellbeing Research Centre at the University of Oxford, also ranked Denmark, Iceland, and Sweden in the next top spots.
The rankings are based on how people rate their own lives. Experts look at things like health, money, freedom, trust, and support from others. The study was done with help from the United Nations and research company Gallup.
The report found that being happy isn’t just about being rich. Simple things—like sharing meals, living with family, and having someone to count on—play a big role in how people feel about their lives. In places like Mexico and Europe, living in homes with four or five people tends to make people happier.
Interestingly, people who believe others will return a lost wallet are more likely to live in happy places. In Nordic countries like Finland and Sweden, people are among the most likely to return lost items.
New Zealand ranked 12th, just behind Australia and ahead of Switzerland. Meanwhile, the United States dropped to 24th place—its lowest ever—partly because more people are eating meals alone. The United Kingdom also saw a drop in happiness.
At the bottom of the list, Afghanistan was ranked the least happy country again, followed by Sierra Leone and Lebanon. The report also warned that nearly 1 in 5 young adults worldwide say they have no one they can rely on, which is worrying for future well-being.
