Mapped: Global Happiness by Country in 2025

Kayla Zhu
2025-03-21 13:56:00
www.visualcapitalist.com

Visualizing The World’s Happiest Countries in 2025

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In an increasingly complex world, happiness remains humanity’s universal pursuit.

Measuring happiness remains a challenge, requiring the blend of objective metrics and subjective experiences, but it offers invaluable insights into the true health of societies beyond economic indicators alone.

In this map, we visualize the findings from the 2025 edition of the World Happiness Report, an annual publication that ranks global happiness based on life evaluations, social support, freedom to make life choices, GDP per capita, and other well-being indicators. It uses data from the Gallup World Poll and additional sources.

The World Happiness Report then averages the scores from life evaluations per country over a three-year period (2022–2024 for this year’s edition) and ranks countries from highest to lowest. Read more about the report’s methodology at the bottom of the article.

Ranked: The Most & Least Happy Countries in 2025

Below, we show the full rankings from the World Happiness Report 2025, and each country’s score.

Rank	Country Name	Region	Average Happiness Score (2022-2024)
1	Finland	Europe	7.7
2	Denmark	Europe	7.5
3	Iceland	Europe	7.5
4	Sweden	Europe	7.3
5	Netherlands	Europe	7.3
6	Costa Rica	Central America	7.3
7	Norway	Europe	7.3
8	Israel	Middle East	7.2
9	Luxembourg	Europe	7.1
10	Mexico	North America	7.0
11	Australia	Oceania	7.0
12	New Zealand	Oceania	7.0
13	Switzerland	Europe	6.9
14	Belgium	Europe	6.9
15	Ireland	Europe	6.9
16	Lithuania	Europe	6.8
17	Austria	Europe	6.8
18	Canada	North America	6.8
19	Slovenia	Europe	6.8
20	Czechia	Europe	6.8
21	United Arab Emirates	Middle East	6.8
22	Germany	Europe	6.8
23	United Kingdom	Europe	6.7
24	United States	North America	6.7
25	Belize	Central America	6.7
26	Poland	Europe	6.7
27	Taiwan	Asia	6.7
28	Uruguay	South America	6.7
29	Kosovo	Europe	6.7
30	Kuwait	Middle East	6.6
31	Serbia	Europe	6.6
32	Saudi Arabia	Middle East	6.6
33	France	Europe	6.6
34	Singapore	Asia	6.6
35	Romania	Europe	6.6
36	Brazil	South America	6.5
37	El Salvador	Central America	6.5
38	Spain	Europe	6.5
39	Estonia	Europe	6.4
40	Italy	Europe	6.4
41	Panama	Central America	6.4
42	Argentina	South America	6.4
43	Kazakhstan	Asia	6.4
44	Guatemala	South America	6.4
45	Chile	South America	6.4
46	Vietnam	Asia	6.4
47	Nicaragua	Central America	6.3
48	Malta	Europe	6.3
49	Thailand	Asia	6.2
50	Slovakia	Europe	6.2
51	Latvia	Europe	6.2
52	Oman	Middle East	6.2
53	Uzbekistan	Asia	6.2
54	Paraguay	South America	6.2
55	Japan	Asia	6.1
56	Bosnia and Herzegovina	Europe	6.1
57	Philippines	Asia	6.1
58	Republic of Korea	Asia	6.0
59	Bahrain	Middle East	6.0
60	Portugal	Europe	6.0
61	Colombia	South America	6.0
62	Ecuador	South America	6.0
63	Honduras	Central America	6.0
64	Malaysia	Asia	6.0
65	Peru	South America	5.9
66	Russia	Europe	5.9
67	Cyprus	Europe	5.9
68	China	Asia	5.9
69	Hungary	Europe	5.9
70	Trinidad and Tobago	North America	5.9
71	Montenegro	Europe	5.9
72	Croatia	Europe	5.9
73	Jamaica	Central America	5.9
74	Bolivia	South America	5.9
75	Kyrgyzstan	Asia	5.9
76	Dominican Republic	Central America	5.8
77	Mongolia	Asia	5.8
78	Mauritius	Africa	5.8
79	Libya	Africa	5.8
80	Moldova	Europe	5.8
81	Greece	Europe	5.8
82	Venezuela	South America	5.7
83	Indonesia	Asia	5.6
84	Algeria	Africa	5.6
85	Bulgaria	Europe	5.6
86	North Macedonia	Europe	5.5
87	Armenia	Asia	5.5
88	Hong Kong	Asia	5.5
89	Albania	Europe	5.4
90	Tajikistan	Asia	5.4
91	Georgia	Europe	5.4
92	Nepal	Asia	5.3
93	Laos	Asia	5.3
94	Türkiye	Asia	5.3
95	South Africa	Africa	5.2
96	Mozambique	Africa	5.2
97	Gabon	Africa	5.1
98	Côte d’Ivoire	Africa	5.1
99	Iran	Middle East	5.1
100	Congo	Africa	5.0
101	Iraq	Middle East	5.0
102	Guinea	Africa	4.9
103	Namibia	Africa	4.9
104	Cameroon	Africa	4.9
105	Nigeria	Africa	4.9
106	Azerbaijan	Asia	4.9
107	Senegal	Africa	4.9
108	Palestine	Middle East	4.8
109	Pakistan	Asia	4.8
110	Niger	Africa	4.7
111	Ukraine	Europe	4.7
112	Morocco	Africa	4.6
113	Tunisia	Africa	4.6
114	Mauritania	Africa	4.5
115	Kenya	Africa	4.5
116	Uganda	Africa	4.5
117	Gambia	Africa	4.4
118	India	Asia	4.4
119	Chad	Africa	4.4
120	Burkina Faso	Africa	4.4
121	Benin	Africa	4.4
122	Somalia	Africa	4.3
123	Mali	Africa	4.3
124	Cambodia	Asia	4.3
125	Ghana	Africa	4.3
126	Myanmar	Asia	4.3
127	Togo	Africa	4.3
128	Jordan	Middle East	4.3
129	Liberia	Africa	4.3
130	Madagascar	Africa	4.2
131	Zambia	Africa	3.9
132	Ethiopia	Africa	3.9
133	Sri Lanka	Asia	3.9
134	Bangladesh	Asia	3.9
135	Egypt	Africa	3.8
136	Tanzania	Africa	3.8
137	Eswatini	Africa	3.8
138	Lesotho	Africa	3.8
139	Comoros	Africa	3.8
140	Yemen	Middle East	3.6
141	Democratic Republic of the Congo	Africa	3.5
142	Botswana	Africa	3.4
143	Zimbabwe	Africa	3.4
144	Malawi	Africa	3.3
145	Lebanon	Middle East	3.2
146	Sierra Leone	Africa	3.0
147	Afghanistan	Middle East	1.4

Nordic countries continue to dominate global happiness rankings, with Finland maintaining its first-place position for the eighth consecutive year with a steady score of 7.7, unchanged from last year.

Denmark, Iceland, and Sweden follow closely behind, preserving their respective rankings from last year’s report.

Notable departures from the top 10 include Australia, which slipped from #10 to #11.

Israel dropped from #5 to #8 this year but remains in the top 10. Despite the ongoing Gaza war—which began in 2023 and is largely reflected in this year’s three-year average—Israel remains one of the world’s happiest countries.

One of the biggest shifts in rankings came from Costa Rica, which climbed from #12 to #6, achieving both the highest-ever ranking for a Latin American country and the strongest placement of any non-European nation in this year’s report.

Most and Least Happy Countries by Region

In this table, we show the most and least happy countries in each region.

Region	Happiest Country	2024 Happiness Score	Least Happiest Country	2024 Happiness Score
North America	Costa Rica	7.3	Dominican Republic	5.8
South America	Uruguay	6.7	Venezuela	5.7
Europe	Finland	7.7	Ukraine	4.7
Middle East	Israel	7.2	Afghanistan	1.4
East Asia	Taiwan	6.7	Bangladesh	3.9
Africa	Mauritius	5.8	Sierra Leone	3.0
Oceania	Australia & New Zealand	7.0	—	—

Sixth-ranked Costa Rica is the happiest country in North America, surpassing both the U.S. and Canada. On the other end, the Dominican Republic (#76) ranks as the least happy in the region, likely due to economic challenges and inequality.

Uruguay, ranked 28th this year, continues to be South America’s happiest country. Meanwhile, Venezuela (#82) also remains the least happy due to ongoing economic collapse, political instability, and mass emigration, which have severely affected quality of life.

In Europe, Ukraine (#111) ranks the lowest, still suffering from the ongoing impacts of war, economic instability, and uncertainty about the future.

In the Middle East, last-place Afghanistan remains the world’s least happy country, with ongoing conflict, restrictions on freedoms—particularly for women—and economic hardship leading to the lowest recorded happiness score. The country has been the unhappiest country in the world since 2020.

This year, Taiwan surpassed Singapore as East Asia’s happiest country with a rank of #27. Bangladesh ranked the lowest among Asian economies at #134 due to economic struggles and ongoing political instability.

In Africa, which has the lowest average scores in the world, Mauritius (#78) is the continent’s happiest country, thanks to relative prosperity compared to its neighbors. In contrast, second-last Sierra Leone has the lowest happiness score on the continent, reflecting high poverty levels, political corruption, and weak infrastructure.

In the Oceania region, Australia and New Zealand both record high scores of 7.0, just shy of the top 10. Both countries benefit from high life expectancy and strong social infrastructure.

Which Countries Saw the Greatest Change in Happiness?

Below, we show the three countries that saw the largest increases to their happiness scores from last year, and the three countries that saw the greatest decreases.

Country	2023 Happiness Score	2024 Happiness Score	Change in score
Lesotho	3.2	3.8	0.6
Lebanon	2.7	3.2	0.5
Zambia	3.5	3.9	0.4
Sierra Leone	3.3	3.0	-0.3
Kuwait	7.0	6.6	-0.3
Afghanistan	1.7	1.4	-0.4

Lesotho saw the biggest increase in their happiness score out of all countries surveyed, jumping 0.6 points from 3.2 to 3.8. However, despite this improvement, it remains among the least happy nations in the world.

Similarly, Lebanon and Zambia also experienced the largest increases in scores but still rank near the bottom, highlighting how even the most improved countries continue to struggle with deep-rooted economic and political challenges.

Conversely, some of the world’s least happy countries saw their scores decline further. Sierra Leone, Kuwait, and Afghanistan recorded the largest drops, with declines ranging from 0.3 to 0.4 points.

Which Countries Moved Up the Happiness Rankings Most?

Looking at ranking shifts, Latin American countries made the biggest jumps, signaling a rebound in optimism despite economic and political challenges. Colombia, Mexico, and Ecuador saw the largest gains, climbing 17, 15, and 12 spots, respectively.

Colombia moved from #78 to #61, Mexico entered the top 10 for the first time, rising from #25 to #10, and Ecuador improved from #74 to #62.

Meanwhile, the United States dropped one spot from #23 to #24, continuing a downward trend that has persisted since 2016. Declining social trust and rising inequality remain key factors in the U.S.’s long-term slide in happiness rankings.

Learn More on the Voronoi App

To compare country happiness rankings from a different source, check out this graphic that visualizes the happiest countries among the world’s major economies, based on analysis from Ray Dalio’s Great Powers Index 2024.

The post Mapped: Global Happiness by Country in 2025 appeared first on Visual Capitalist.

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