The latest World Happiness Report indicates that Australia has not made the top 10 happiest countries list.
Last year, Australia barely made the top tier but now sits at 11th place, with New Zealand just behind in 12th spot.
As usual, Nordic countries remain at the top of the rankings with Finland, Denmark, and Iceland occupying the first three positions.
How do the report’s rankings work?
The World Happiness Report offers annual insights into global wellbeing, highlighting leading countries, struggling countries, and global trends influencing happiness.
The report draws on data from the Gallup World Poll, which samples over 100,000 individuals from more than 140 countries on their quality of life and daily emotions among other factors.
Respondents evaluate their current life using a ladder scale, ranging from 0 (worst possible life) to 10 (best possible life). Each country’s happiness rank is an average of three years of these numerical responses.
Key findings from the data
This year’s report emphasizes the impact of caring and sharing on happiness, illustrating the benefits for both those giving and receiving care.
It challenges the pervasive pessimism about others’ kindness, showing that incidents of returned wallets surpassed expectations, indicating that we underestimate others’ generosity.
Moreover, societies that exhibit higher benevolence tend to have the most profound effects on their least happy members.
Finally, kindness saw a global uptick during the Covid-19 pandemic due to increased needs and responses, creating a “kindness bump.”
Which countries are the happiest?
Nordic countries, including Finland, Denmark, Iceland, and Sweden, continue to dominate the happiness rankings in that order.
The top 20 includes Costa Rica at sixth, Mexico at tenth, and Israel at eighth, reflecting a shift where western industrial countries are now less content than they were between 2005 and 2010.
In contrast to 2013, when all top 10 countries were western industrial nations, only seven remain in that category today.
Switzerland, Canada, and Australia are amongst the countries that have dropped out of the top 10 since 2013.
Top 10 Happiest Countries in the World, 2025:
- Finland
- Denmark
- Iceland
- Sweden
- The Netherlands
- Costa Rica
- Norway
- Israel
- Luxembourg
- Mexico
