Finland has been ranked as the happiest country in the world for the sixth year in a row, with a happiness score significantly ahead of all other countries.
The enduring effects of the COVID-19 pandemic, coupled with the war in Ukraine, and worldwide inflation made 2022 a year of global crises but the human resolve to be happy has been “remarkably resilient,” says the 2023 World Happiness Report, which recorded global satisfaction averages as high as those in the pre-pandemic years.
The report, which draws on global survey data from people in more than 150 countries, placed Finland in the top position for the sixth year in a row.
Other countries in the top ten include Denmark, Iceland, Israel, Netherlands. While Sweden, Norway, Switzerland, Luxembourg and New Zealand make up 6,7,8,9, and 10th position.
The report utilized the World Happiness Report—an annual survey of how satisfied citizens are worldwide—to map out the world’s happiest and least happy countries.
Nigeria, the largest black nation on earth, comes 95th- in the report, out of 150 countries polled in the report. Ukraine a current war zone, is ranked even higher than Nigeria – at 92.
To create the index the map is based on, researchers simply asked people how satisfied they are with their lives. Scores were assigned using these self-reported answers from people living within various countries, as well as quality of life factors. While there may be no perfect measure of happiness around the world, the report is a robust and transparent attempt to understand happiness at the global level.