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The United States has fallen to its lowest happiness ranking ever, according to the annual World Happiness Report released Thursday to mark the International Day of Happiness.
The United States' 24th place is its lowest ranking since the report was first published in 2012, when it ranked as high as 11th. This year, Germany overtook the US, improving from 24th to 22nd place in the index.
Meanwhile, Finland has been ranked as the country with the happiest population in the world for the eighth year in a row. Finns who were asked to evaluate their lives gave an average score of 7.736 (out of 10).
The Nordic countries were all in the top 10, with Finland followed by Denmark in second place, Iceland in third, and Sweden in fourth, as was the case last year. Norway came in seventh. Costa Rica (6th place) and Mexico (10th) are represented in the top ten for the first time.
The World Happiness Report is a global study that ranks countries according to the happiness of their populations. The happiness researchers, who asked people around the world to rate their lives, identified a number of key factors that generally make people happier, such as social support, income, health, freedom, and perceptions of corruption.
A total of 147 countries were ranked, with Afghanistan coming in last with an average score of 1.364.
Less well-being as more Americans eat alone
The growing number of people eating alone is one reason for the decline in well-being in the United States, the report said, adding that in 2023, about one in four Americans reported eating all their meals alone the previous day.
"The number of people dining alone in the United States has increased by 53% over the past two decades," the researchers said, noting that sharing meals "is strongly linked with well-being."
The report also noted that the United States was one of the few countries to see an increase in so-called "deaths of despair" (from suicide or substance abuse) at a time when such deaths are declining in most countries.
The report surveyed people worldwide in 2022-2024, before US President Donald Trump's return to the White House in January, which has since shaken up national and global affairs.
