Happiest Countries in the World (2019)

Last Updated: 11/15/2019

Want to know which is the happiest country in the world? Here’s an updated list of the happiest countries in the world 2019. 

Measuring happiness is somewhat complex since the definition of happiness varies from person to person. However, every year, the World Happiness Report ranks 153 countries worldwide after how happy the citizens perceive themselves. 

The following six factors are used to rank the happiest countries in the world: levels of GDP, life expectancy, generosity, social support, freedom, and corruption. These are currently the most accurate ways of measuring happiness on a global scale. 

Finland

Finland is the happiest country in the world of 2019 with a total of 7769 happiness points. It’s the second year in a row that the Finns can pride themselves on being the happiest people in the world. 

They also ranked first in the Happiness report of 2016 and have consistently been ranking at the top for many years. The three biggest factors behind Finland’s success are a high GDP per capita, Social Support, and the absence of corruption.

Finland is especially famous for the Sauna lifestyle and even Burger King in Helsinki has its own sauna.

Photo: Shutterstock

Denmark

Denmark is another happy country in Scandinavia and it scores high across all categories. The Danish lifestyle and “Hygge” has become famous worldwide. The Danes can pride themselves on having one of the smallest wealth gaps in the world as well as great social support.

What’s also interesting and quite surprising is the fact that Denmark is also the country that has the least happy expats in the world.

Photo: Shutterstock

Norway

Norway dropped one position from 2018 but remains as one of the top 3 happiest countries in the world. Just like Finland and Denmark, Norway is scoring high across all categories. 

Norwegians can enjoy an excellent life expectancy, high GDP per capita, and freedom. They also have something that is quite unique, known as Allemansretten, which also exists in Sweden and Finland.

Allemansretten is a law that gives people the right to access to nature, regardless of being private or public land.

Photo: JaHu83 / Shutterstock.com

Iceland

Iceland is dubbed as the land of fire and ice, and for those traveling there, it’s possible to experience all kinds of weather in a single day. Since the banking crisis in 2008, this tiny island nation has risen and is now thriving. 

It’s a rather isolated country with a relatively small population of some 360 000 people. In addition to beautiful landscapes, Iceland is also known for its education, health care system, and gender equality.

Photo: Vova Shevchuk/Shutterstock

Netherlands

The Dutch can pride themselves on being one of the 5 happiest countries in the world. The Netherlands actually went up one spot compared to last year. 

The Netherlands is home to Amsterdam and has become famous worldwide as one of the most liberal countries in the world. Additionally, Dutch people are known for being relaxed and easy-going while at the same time being creative and business-minded. 

Photo: Daniel Pieterson/Shutterstock

Switzerland

Switzerland is one of the richest countries in the world and the Swiss people can enjoy an incredibly high standard of life. In 2015, it was ranked as the happiest country in the world, but since then it has dropped down to 5th place. 

Despite that, it continues to score high across all categories, including life expectancy, GDP per capita, and absence of corruption. Another thing that’s quite unique with Switzerland is the fact that Swiss citizens can collect signatures to question a law that was recently passed. 

Furthermore, the Swiss Alps are famous worldwide as well as Swiss chocolate and watches. 

Photo: Tomsickova Tatyana/Shutterstock

Sweden

Sweden has been getting some bad publicity this year, but overall it remains as one of the happiest nations in the world. Social support, freedom of life choices and absence of corruption are some of the main contributors. 

Swedes are in general quite happy and satisfied with their life situation. There is a Swedish word known as Lagom, which means just about right, not too much and not too little. It’s well integrated into Swedish culture and everyday life. 

Photo: Sergey Mikheev / Shutterstock.com

New Zealand

New Zealand is famous for many things, and happiness is just one of them. It’s also only one out of two countries in the top 10 happiest countries in the world that aren’t located in Europe. 

New Zealand remains at the same position (8th) as the previous year in the annual happiness report. 

Photo: ChameleonsEye/Shutterstock

Canada

Canadians are known for being the most polite people in the world, and Canada is a big role model when it comes to multiculturalism. The country scores high in every category and has been ranking at the top for many years. 

Photo: ESB Professional/Shutterstock

Austria

Austria is one of the 10 happiest countries in the world after climbing 2 positions in the last happiness report, pushing out Australia from the top 10.

There are many reasons for the high score in Austria, but the two main contributors are social support and the absence of corruption. Furthermore, Vienna is now also considered as one of the most liveable cities in the world. 

Austria is known for its beautiful mountains and elegant architecture as well as charming small towns such as Hallstatt.

Photo: sakkmesterke/Shutterstock

What do the world’s happiest countries have in common?

It’s important to take a closer look at what the happiest countries in the world have in common. That is the key for other nations to improve in the future. These countries are some of the richest countries in the world and they continue to rank in the top year after year.

If the world can become a happier place, that will lead us closer to global peace and thriving of all nations, and not just a few. If we can come together as a species and learn from each other’s mistakes and help one another, it’s certainly possible. 

Here are some of the common denominators among the happiest countries in the world.

• Well-educated people
• Social support is widely available
• Low crime rate and high safety levels
• Absence of war with little to no involvement in international conflicts
• Most of their citizens feel that they are free to make their own life choices
• Their economies are thriving and all of them have a high GDP per capita
• The average life expectancy is longer than most other countries
• Several of them rank high per generosity levels

Photo: Standret/Shutterstock

The least happy countries in the world 2019

Unfortunately, not all countries are as happy as the happiest countries in the world. There is still a lot of misery, poverty, wars, and corruption around the world. 

South Sudan is the least happy country in the world 2019, which is perhaps not very shocking since there’s an on-going humanitarian crisis.  The same goes for the Central African Republic, which is ranked as the poorest country in the world. 

However, there are some surprising countries in the bottom as well, such as Tanzania, Rwanda, and Botswana. The main reason for this is because of low scores on GDP per capita, social support, healthy life expectancy as well as freedom to make life choices. 

1. South Sudan
2. The central African Republic
3. Afghanistan
4. Tanzania
5. Rwanda
6. Yemen
7. Malawi
8. Syria
9. Botswana
10. Haiti

Happiness Report 2019

Here’s the full list of the happiest countries in the world 2019, ranked by United Nations Sustainable Development Solutions Network. The full happiness report can be read here. 

Which is the happiest country in the world 2019?

Finland has been awarded the status of being the happiest country in the world 2019. Finland was also ranked number one in the happiness report 2018. 

Were you surprised to find out about the happiest countries in the world? Leave a comment below!