• Nordic countries continue to be the happiest in the world, with Finland ranking first for the eighth year in a row.
• Lesotho saw the biggest increase in their happiness score out of all countries surveyed, jumping by 0.6 points from 3.2 in 2024 to 3.8 in 2024. However, the country remains among the least happiest countries in the world.
• Costa Rica climbed to #6 from #12 last year, marking the highest ranking ever for a Latin American country​.
• Afghanistan's saw the largest score decreases, dropping by 0.4 points from 1.7 in 2023 to 1.4 in 2024–the lowest score ever recorded in the history of the report. The country has been the unhappiest country in the world since 2020.
• Notable departures from the top 10 include Australia, which slipped from #10 to #11.
• Denmark, Iceland, and Sweden follow closely behind, preserving their respective rankings from last year’s report.
• Israel dropped from #5 to #8 this year but remains in the top 10. Despite the ongoing Gaza war—which began in 2023 and is largely reflected in this year’s three-year average—Israel remains one of the world’s happiest countries.