Finland has been named the world's happiest country yet again! This is the 8th straight year that the Nordic nation managed to retain the top spot, as per the World Happiness Report 2025.
While India made slight improvement in its happiness quotient, it has still not managed to make it to the top 100. As per the report, India stood at 118 among 147 countries, up from 126 last year. But surprisingly, even war-torn nations like Israel (8) and Ukraine (111) have fared better than India.
The report, which focuses on the impact of caring and sharing on people’s happiness including how sharing a meal increases happiness, also finds people in Pakistan are happier than India. Even though cash-strapped Pakistan's rank dropped from 108 to 109, the country outscored India.
Even though India ranked 118th overall, in terms of the 'Country rankings for six measures of benevolence', it was listed much higher at 57 for how people donated; at 10 for how people volunteered; 74 for helping a stranger, and in case of wallet returned by a neighbour (115), stranger (86) and police (93).
The 13th edition of the annual report was released on Thursday coinciding with the International Day of Happiness that falls on March 20 each year.
Afghanistan is again ranked as the unhappiest country in the world, with Afghan women saying their lives are especially difficult. Sierra Leone in western Africa is the second unhappiest, followed by Lebanon, ranking the 3rd from the bottom.
Nordic nations rank among the top places for expected and actual return of lost wallets, the study found. Bhutan, which focuses on Gross National Happiness, does not feature in the ranking of the 147 countries in this year's World Happiness Report.
As per the latest findings, believing in the kindness of others is also much more closely tied to happiness than previously thought. As an example, the report suggests that people who believe that others are willing to return their lost wallet is a strong predictor of the overall happiness of a population.
The United States not only failed to make the top 10 but also slipped to its lowest-ever position in the happiness ranking at 24. Last year, it dropped out of the top 20 for the first time since the 2012. According to the report, the number of people dining alone in the US has increased 53% over the past two decades.
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