The Happiest Countries In The World 2018

INTRODUCTION

Money alone can't make you happy—the strength of social support networks, healthy life expectancy, individual freedom, philanthropy and perceived absence of corruption in government and business matter too. Alongside income, these are the six key indicators that support well-being according to the UN's 2018 World Happiness Report (WHR), a landmark survey aimed at improving policymakers' awareness and increasing public happiness.

The 2018 report ranked 156 countries surveyed by the Gallup World Poll. A new nation—Finland—scored the highest, but the top 10 positions are held by the same countries as in the past two years (although with some swapping places). In addition, this year's report evaluated the level of happiness of immigrants in 117 countries—an important measure, the report’s authors say, as a higher degree of acceptance towards migrants is shown to increase the happiness of both newcomers and the locally born. It is not by chance that the 10 happiest countries have foreign-born population shares averaging 17.2%, about double the world average.

Does that mean that these nations have discovered a magical formula for happiness? Perhaps. However, while there is much to learn from the highest-ranking countries in the list, hard lessons can be gauged also from those that experienced the biggest drops. The UN report devotes a special chapter to why the US continues to slip downward despite having among the highest income per capita. This year the world’s largest economy is in 18th place, five positions lower compared to 2016, as it grapples with crises of obesity, substance abuse and depression. 

It is Venezuela, however, that recorded the biggest relative fall in happiness, surpassing even war-ravaged Syria: the country's difficult political, social and economic situation is particularly reflected in people’s evaluation of subjective well-being, which recorded a sharp reduction. The report, however, also notes that Latin American nations generally rank higher than their average per capita income would suggest, especially in contrast to many fast-growing Asian countries. Latin America suffers from unequal distribution of income and high corruption and crime rates, yet it has consistently scored relatively well in the happiness report. The authors of the survey attributed this to “the abundance of family warmth and other supportive social relationships frequently sidelined in favor of an emphasis on income measures in the development discourse”.

Make no mistake: countries at the bottom of the list such as Burundi or the Central African Republic are desperately poor. But money isn't everything.

#10 | AUSTRALIA

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Down one place from last year, Australians are slightly unhappier than they were in 2017, but still among the most content people in the world. With Australia's high wages, employment rate, life expectancy, and natural beauty this shouldn't come as a surprise. It is altruism, however, that helps them reach such heights in the happiness charts: the land down under is one the most-accepting for migrants, with a foreign-born share of its population of 28%, the highest in the top 10. And not just that: around 40% of Australians are registered as volunteers. A record hard to beat.

#9 | SWEDEN

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Sweden climbed a spot up from last year.  Sweden has consistently ranked high in the list thanks to its affluence, strong social support networks and perceived honesty and accountability of its institutions. The Scandinavian country also boasts an enviable work-life balance: it offers the longest paid vacation period compared to any other country in the world—25 days—while new parents can take up 480 days during which they receive 80% of their salary. One downside? Taxes are high: this year, the personal income tax rate was registered at 61.85%. Fiscal revenues, however, are used for universal health care, free university and a great number of social programs to help people learn new skills and take advantage of jobs opportunities.

#8 | NEW ZEALAND

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Home to 4 million people (and 30 million sheep), New Zealand dropped five places in the survey. This lapse is likely to not last long: Kiwis take seriously their happiness. The new center-left coalition government is set to launch soon the first "Wellbeing Budget" in the history of policymaking, which is aimed at ensuring that objectives such as improving housing, cutting greenhouse gas emissions and reducing child poverty are considered alongside fiscal matters in budgetary decisions. Shouldn't these be priorities for all nations?

#7 | CANADA

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Maintaining its position at 7th place from last year, Canada fared even better in the ranking of  the most-accepting countries for migrants, where it comes in fourth place. In general, the report's authors say, immigrants are about as happy as the people born locally, with the difference being under 0.1 point out of 10 (their degree of happiness is affected not just by how happy and welcoming are the locals, but also on the level of happiness of where they emigrated from). "Immigrant happiness, like that of the locally born depends on a range of features of the social fabric, extending far beyond the higher incomes traditionally thought to inspire and reward migration," the report reads: "Once the overall quality of life is taken into account, there is no happiness gain from moving to a higher income country". 

#6 | THE NETHERLANDS

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In sixth place, the Dutch are as happy as they were in 2017—which is quite a lot. Scoring high in all six measures of happiness, people in the Netherlands are more affluent, educated and free to make their own life choices than at any point in their country’s history. They are so content with their way of living that they even managed to eradicate teenage angst: according to a research by the national statistics office CBS, 94% of youngster between the age of 12 and 18 claim to be very happy with their lives. But isn't the whole country at constant risk of being swallowed up by rising seas because it is below sea level? Not at all—while rising sea levels caused by global warming are certainly a concern, only 26% of the land and 21% of the population are located below sea level. In addition, the country is protected from flooding and storm surges by an extensive and sophisticated series of walls, dikes, dams, floodgates, drainage ditches, canals, and pumping stations.

#5 | SWITZERLAND

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Dropping from the top spot in 2015 and the fourth in the last two years, Switzerland is still a pretty sweet place to call home. And not just for its postcard landscapes and clean air: the Swiss enjoy state of the art infrastructure and education services, a favorable tax regime and a booming economy. This nation of just 8.4 million is also one of the top countries in the world in terms of life expectancy: in fourth position after Japan, Iceland and Italy, its citizens live on average until age 73, four more years than Americans.

#4 | ICELAND

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Iceland routinely tops a wide variety of quality of life rankings. Chosen by the World Economic Forum as the best country in the world for gender equality and by the Global Peace Index as the most peaceful in 2018, it is one of the most environmentally-friendly too. Iceland have also the highest per capita publication of books: 10% of its residents will write one in their lifetime, which must be something that makes them really happy. With its enchanting landscapes, low taxes and free healthcare and education, it is no surprise that Iceland is so close to the top of the UN index.  

#3 | DENMARK

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Denmark has been sliding in the ranking from first in 2016 to second in 2017, and third this year. Among nations so closely grouped in average scores, the authors of the report note, it is something to be expected. And Danes, certainly, have little reason to complain: their country scores high when it comes to work-life balance, environment and healthcare. It also boasts a 100% literacy rate and one of the smallest wealth gaps in the world.  On top of that, Denmark offers additional proof that those migrants who move to less happy countries lose, while those who move to happier countries gain: its foreign-born citizens, second in the special UN ranking, are even happier than the born locally.
 

#2 | NORWAY

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As one of the most prosperous countries in the world, Norway enjoys quality free healthcare and education, high life expectancy and small income gap. If these are all familiar attributes, it is because Nordic countries share similar social and political models and values. As a result, all of them feature among the 10 happiest nations in the world. While Norwegians lose last year's top spot, it's doubtful anyone will be torn about placing second in a happiness survey.

#1 | FINLAND

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Finland vaults from fifth place to the top of the rankings this year. Its 5.5 million residents enjoy high standards of living, low corruption levels and more forest per square mile than any European country. Finland not only has the happiest people, but it is home to the world’s happiest immigrants. Interestingly, the country's average per capita income ranks only in the mid-20s worldwide, much lower than that of other Nordic countries or the US. The Finns, the UN report points out, really know how to get the most happiness out of their comparatively modest wealth.

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