Nordics, Netherlands, Mexico: What Can We Learn From The World’s Happiest Countries?

It’s World Happiness Day today (20 March), and the annual World Happiness Report has been unveiled in celebration. It’s a record low for the UK, which sits in the global happiness ranking at 23 – the lowest we’ve sat since 2017 – just one pip ahead of the US in 24th.

Up in the top spots are the usual Nordic contenders: Finland takes the top spot, followed by Denmark, Iceland and Sweden, with Norway joining them in seventh. Nearby European neighbours include the Netherlands in fifth and Luxembourg in ninth. Less typical top 10 countries include Costa Rica in sixth and Mexico in 10th – both entering the top 10 for the very first time, and bumping the likes of Australia and Switzerland out of the upper echelons.

What do all of these countries have in common? It’s all about community and relationships, the World Happiness Report’s editorial board says – and that’s why countries like Mexico and Costa Rica, for example, are so much happier than the US despite being much less wealthy.

‘Happiness isn’t just about wealth or growth,’ says Jon Clifton, CEO of Gallup, whose data the report draws on. ‘It’s about trust, connection and knowing people have your back. This year’s report proves we underestimate how kind the world really is. If we want stronger communities and economies, we must invest in what truly matters: each other.’

Here’s what we here in the UK can learn from some of those top 10 happiest countries.

What Can Britain Learn From The Happiest Countries In The World?

Finland is the happiest country in the world. (Pictured: Helsinki)

The Nordics

Holidaying in the Nordics feels like visiting a utopia. Generally considered to include Denmark, Finland, Iceland, Norway and Sweden, all five Nordic nations make it into the top 10 happiest countries in the world – and there’s a lot they have to boast about. ‘Nordic countries like Finland continue to benefit from universally available and high-quality health, education and social support systems. Inequality of wellbeing is also low,’ says Ilana Ron-Levey, managing director at Gallup.

But state welfare systems aren’t the only thing cheering Nordic people up: it’s the people, too. John F. Helliwell – an economist at the University of British Columbia and a founding editor of the World Happiness Report – is a long-time lost wallet researcher. The idea is that, if you drop your wallet in the street and someone picks it up and gives it back to you, the likelihood is, the nation has a higher sense of happiness. ‘The wallet data are so convincing because they confirm that people are much happier living where they think people care about each other,’ Helliwell says. ‘The wallet dropping experiments confirm the reality of these perceptions, even if they are everywhere too pessimistic.

‘Having a welfare state doesn’t find lost wallets and return them to the owners,’ Helliwell adds. ‘Those are individuals caring about the people with whom they live.’

Mexico

Sunny, colorful, stunning natural scenery and brimming with delicious, low-cost food: what’s not to love about Mexico?

Just clinching its first top 10 position on the World Happiness Report this year, coming in at 10th, Mexico may have a violent recent-history, but things have clearly turned around. Why? According to the report, it’s that sense of community. ‘This year’s report pushes us to look beyond traditional determinants like health and wealth,’ says Jan-Emmanuel De Neve, director of Oxford’s Wellbeing Research Centre. ‘It turns out that sharing meals and trusting others are even stronger predictors of wellbeing than expected. In this era of social isolation and political polarisation we need to find ways to bring people around the table again – doing so is critical for our individual and collective wellbeing.’

Sharing meals is important for wellbeing across the globe, and household size is closely linked to happiness, too, with the happiest people in Mexico living in homes of four to five people. The same is true in Costa Rica, which enters the top 10 for the first time in sixth place. In contrast, solo dining has increased 53 percent over the last two decades in the US, and solo-living is on the rise in Europe.

‘Mexico is economically poorer than the average European country,’ the report reads. ‘However, larger households imply a potential advantage to build positive social interactions within the household, which could partially counterbalance the differences in income with Europe. This is one of several plausible explanations for why most Latin American countries report higher wellbeing than predicted by their GDP per capita.’

The Netherlands

Just across the North Sea, people in the Netherlands are incredibly happy, with the nation ranked fifth. While it’s not in the Nordic coterie, the Dutch people have much in common with their northern neighbours: high GSP, low corruption and a culture that emphasises work-life balance. In fact, bragging about working all the time is a social faux pas in the Netherlands – and the nation doesn’t like complainers, either.

There’s also the fine art of niksen: the Dutch practice of doing nothing at all. This lifestyle is a stress-reliever in the Netherlands, with a nationwide understanding that it’s OK to stop and exist without the constant pressure to be busy, socialising or occupied. They’re certainly not the most ambitious people, but that’s exactly why Dutch people are so happy: no pressure to overperform, and plenty of time to exist without social expectations.

What Are The Happiest Countries In The World?

Here are the top 25 happiest countries in the world.

1. Finland
2. Denmark
3. Iceland
4. Sweden
5. Netherlands
6. Costa Rica
7. Norway
8. Israel
9. Luxembourg
10. Mexico
11. Australia
12. New Zealand
13. Switzerland
14. Belgium
15. Ireland
16. Lithuania
17. Austria
18. Canada
19. Slovenia
20. Czech Republic
21. United Arab Emirates
22. Germany
23. United Kingdom
24. United States
25. Belize

What Are The Unhappiest Countries?

At the very bottom of the ranking once again is Afghanistan as the least happy country in the world (147th), joined by the likes of Sierra Leone (146th), Lebanon (145th), Malawi (144th) and Zimbabwe (143rd).

How Is It Measured?

The World Happiness Global Ranking is determined by a three-year average in each population’s assessment of their quality of life. The Oxford Wellbeing Research Centre collaborates with the UN Sustainable Development Solutions Network to draw on Gallup World Poll data to collate the numbers, before using interdisciplinary experts from economics, psychology, sociology and beyond to explain the variations across countries and over time using the following key factors:

• GDP per capita
• Healthy life expectancy
• Having someone to count on
• A sense of freedom
• Generosity
• Perceptions of corruption