Finland was ranked as the happiest country in the world for the ninth consecutive year in the World Happiness Report 2026, while Romania climbed one place, placing 34th out of 150 countries.

The report, published annually around the United Nations’ International Day of Happiness, ranks over 140 countries based on how people evaluate their own lives. The data mainly come from the Gallup World Poll survey, with researchers also analyzing factors such as social support, healthy life expectancy, freedom, generosity, and perceptions of corruption.

This year, the authors of the report focused on the negative effects of social media on young people. “Dramatic declines” in happiness levels have been recorded among young people under 25 in the United States, Canada, Australia, and New Zealand, “especially among girls,” according to the report. By contrast, in other regions of the world, there is an increase in the average level of reported happiness among young people. 

“Most young people in the world are happier today than 20 years ago, and this is a trend that deserves our attention,” said Jon Clifton, CEO of Gallup, who contributed to the report. He emphasizes that the impact of social media use on well-being is “complex.” Among the factors influencing this are time spent on platforms, the type of platform, how it is used, as well as demographic factors such as gender and socio-economic status.

“Intensive use is associated with a significantly lower level of well-being, but those who deliberately move away from social networks also seem to lose certain positive effects,” explains Jan-Emmanuel De Neve, one of the report’s authors, professor of economics at the University of Oxford and director of its Wellbeing Research Center.

Calculated as a three-year average, the happiness index takes into account six factors, including GDP per capita, healthy life expectancy, social support, freedom to make life choices, generosity, and perceptions of corruption.

The Nordic countries continue to dominate the top of the ranking, with Iceland, Denmark, Sweden, and Norway joining Finland to occupy five of the top six places this year. Costa Rica ranks fourth, entering the top 5 for the first time and achieving the best ranking ever reached by a Latin American country. France is ranked 35th (33rd in 2025). 

For the first time, no English-speaking country appears in the top 10 since the report was first published in 2012. 

Out of the 147 countries included in the report, the lowest levels of life satisfaction were recorded in Taliban-ruled Afghanistan.

radu@romania-insider.com

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