Finland retains title as the world’s happiest country for the 8th consecutive year

For the eighth consecutive year, Finland has been named the world’s happiest country in the 2025 World Happiness Report, published on Thursday. The report, compiled annually by Gallup, the United Nations, and the University of Oxford’s Wellbeing Research Centre, surveys over 140 countries worldwide.

The rankings, which have traditionally been dominated by European nations, remain largely unchanged, with all but three of the top 10 countries coming from Europe. The top four positions in 2025 are once again an all-Nordic affair, with Finland in first place, followed by Denmark, Iceland, and Sweden.

The World Happiness Report evaluates subjective life satisfaction based on data from the Gallup World Poll, in collaboration with Oxford and the UN Sustainable Development Solutions Network. Interdisciplinary experts in economics, psychology, and sociology analyze this data to rank countries based on variables such as income (GDP per capita), healthy life expectancy, social support, freedom to make life choices, generosity, and freedom from corruption.

This year’s report introduces a new factor for assessing happiness: benevolent behavior. For the first time, researchers have looked at how acts of kindness and sharing impact well-being. Simple actions like sharing meals, having someone to rely on for support, and the size of one’s household were found to significantly influence happiness. In particular, households with four to five members in Mexico and Europe correlate with the highest levels of happiness.

While large family units are a common factor in fostering well-being, loneliness remains a growing issue, especially among young people. In 2023, 19% of young adults globally reported having no one to rely on for support, a 39% increase compared to 2006. However, believing in the kindness of others has emerged as a stronger determinant of happiness than previously understood.

At the other end of the scale, Afghanistan remains at the bottom of the rankings, with the bottom 10 countries showing only minor shifts in their positions.

The top 10 happiest countries in 2025 are:

1. Finland
2. Denmark
3. Iceland
4. Sweden
5. The Netherlands
6. Costa Rica
7. Norway
8. Israel
9. Luxembourg
10. Mexico

The report also noted changes in the rest of the top 10, with Costa Rica and Mexico moving up, pushing Switzerland and Australia down the rankings.