Since 2012, the Sustainable Development Solutions Network (SDSN), a global initiative for the United Nations, has produced the World Happiness Report. SDSN employs an international group of economists, neuroscientists, and statisticians to survey citizens on their subjective wellbeing and produce a comprehensive list of the happiest countries in the world.

Assessing happiness

SDSN highlight that their rankings are not an index like the longer running Human Development Index (HDI) and more recent Happy Planet Index (HPI). These are often influenced by sponsors, be they governmental or corporate. They also draw only partly on self-assessment — or make no use of them at all.

SDSN stress that their findings draw heavily on data from population samples in each country who assess happiness through a life evaluation, producing subjective wellbeing data. That is not to say the report is without a scientific basis. Economic and social influences are considered along with the survey (namely GDP per capita, social support, life expectancy, freedom to make life choices, generosity and perceptions of corruption), but the focus is on how happy citizens say they are; not how happy statisticians think they should be.

The geography of happiness

Unsurprisingly, there is a strong correlation between unhappiness and the poorest, most fragile countries. Troubled African states along with countries suffering under conflict and instability such as Syria, Afghanistan and Myanmar account for the vast majority of the lowest rankings.

Also rather predictably, North American and European (particularly Scandinavian) countries feature highly in the rankings. Although, spare a thought for Bulgaria, by far the unhappiest country in Europe at number 134 — well below its neighbours.

The rankings

Rank Country Average 1 Switzerland 7.587 2 Iceland 7.561 3 Denmark 7.527 4 Norway 7.522 5 Canada 7.427 6 Finland 7.406 7 Netherlands 7.378 8 Sweden 7.364 9 New Zealand 7.286 10 Australia 7.284 11 Israel 7.278 12 Costa Rica 7.226 13 Austria 7.2 14 Mexico 7.187 15 United States 7.119 16 Brazil 6.983 17 Luxembourg 6.946 18 Ireland 6.94 19 Belgium 6.937 20 UAE 6.901 21 United Kingdom 6.867 22 Oman 6.853 23 Venezuela 6.81 24 Singapore 6.798 25 Panama 6.786 26 Germany 6.75 27 Chile 6.67 28 Qatar 6.611 29 France 6.575 30 Argentina 6.574 31 Czech Republic 6.505 32 Uruguay 6.485 33 Colombia 6.477 34 Thailand 6.455 35 Saudi Arabia 6.411 36 Spain 6.329 37 Malta 6.302 38 Taiwan 6.298 39 Kuwait 6.295 40 Suriname 6.269 41 Trinidad and Tobago 6.168 42 El Salvador 6.13 43 Guatemala 6.123 44 Uzbekistan 6.003 45 Slovakia 5.995 46 Japan 5.987 47 South Korea 5.984 48 Ecuador 5.975 49 Bahrain 5.96 50 Italy 5.948 51 Bolivia 5.89 52 Moldova 5.889 53 Paraguay 5.878 54 Kazakhstan 5.855 55 Slovenia 5.848 56 Lithuania 5.833 57 Nicaragua 5.828 58 Peru 5.824 59 Belarus 5.813 60 Poland 5.791 61 Malaysia 5.77 62 Croatia 5.759 63 Libya 5.754 64 Russia 5.716 65 Jamaica 5.709 67 Cyprus 5.689 68 Algeria 5.605 69 Kosovo 5.589 70 Turkmenistan 5.548 71 Mauritius 5.477 72 Hong Kong 5.474 73 Estonia 5.429 74 Indonesia 5.399 75 Vietnam 5.36 76 Turkey 5.332 77 Kyrgyzstan 5.286 78 Nigeria 5.268 79 Bhutan 5.253 80 Azerbaijan 5.212 81 Pakistan 5.194 82 Jordan 5.192 83 Montenegro 5.1922 84 China 5.14 85 Zambia 5.129 86 Romania 5.124 87 Serbia 5.123 88 Portugal 5.102 89 Latvia 5.098 90 Philippines 5.073 91 Somaliland region 5.057 92 Morocco 5.013 93 Macedonia 5.007 94 Mozambique 4.971 95 Albania 4.959 96 Bosnia and Herzegovina 4.949 97 Lesotho 4.898 98 Dominican Republic 4.885 99 Laos 4.876 100 Mongolia 4.874 101 Swaziland 4.867 102 Greece 4.857 103 Lebanon 4.839 104 Hungary 4.8 105 Honduras 4.788 106 Tajikistan 4.786 107 Tunisia 4.739 108 Palestinian Territories 4.715 109 Bangladesh 4.694 110 Iran 4.686 111 Ukraine 4.681 112 Iraq 4.677 113 South Africa 4.642 114 Ghana 4.633 115 Zimbabwe 4.61 116 Liberia 4.571 117 India 4.565 118 Sudan 4.55 119 Haiti 4.518 120 Congo (Kinshasa) 4.517 121 Nepal 4.514 122 Ethiopia 4.512 123 Sierra Leone 4.507 124 Mauritania 4.436 125 Kenya 4.419 126 Djibouti 4.369 127 Armenia 4.35 128 Botswana 4.332 129 Myanmar 4.307 130 Georgia 4.297 131 Malawi 4.292 132 Sri Lanka 4.271 133 Cameroon 4.252 134 Bulgaria 4.218 135 Egypt 4.194 136 Yemen 4.077 137 Angola 4.033 138 Mali 3.995 139 Congo (Brazzaville) 3.989 140 Comoros 3.956 141 Uganda 3.931 142 Senegal 3.904 143 Gabon 3.896 144 Niger 3.845 145 Cambodia 3.819 146 Tanzania 3.781 147 Madagascar 3.681 148 Central African Republic 3.678 149 Chad 3.667 150 Guinea 3.656 151 Ivory Coast 3.655 152 Burkina Faso 3.587 153 Afghanistan 3.575 154 Rwanda 3.465 155 Benin 3.34 156 Syria 3.006 157 Burundi 2.906 158 Togo 2.839

Download the full happiness report here.

This article originally appeared on Atlas & Boots — Travel with Abandon and is republished here with permission.