After a slight dip in 2020, the 2022 World Happiness Report sees the Netherlands reclaim its spot as the fifth happiest country in the world, beating the likes of Sweden, New Zealand, and Germany. 

The World Happiness Report 2022

2022 marks the 10th annual edition of the World Happiness Report - the ranking of 146 countries across the globe according to how happy their citizens perceive themselves to be. This year has the theme “Happiness, benevolence, and trust during COVID-19 and beyond,” and - unsurprisingly - explores the long-term impacts of the coronavirus pandemic on overall wellbeing and mental health using data from 2019, 2020, and 2021. 

The ranking is compiled using data from the Gallup World Poll, in which respondents are asked to evaluate the happiness of their own lives on a scale of one to 10. All countries involved in the ranking are then awarded an overall average score out of 10, which is in turn compared to the benchmark set by the imaginary country Dystopia - home to the world’s least-happy people. 

For the fifth year in a row, 2022 sees Finland claim the coveted top spot, with a score significantly ahead of the other countries in the top 10. Rounding out the top five are Denmark, Iceland, Switzerland and, of course, the Netherlands. 

The Netherlands as the world’s fifth happiest country

The Netherlands saw its position dip slightly in 2020, but since 2021, the country has been able to reclaim and hang on to its fifth-place position. This year sees the country achieve a score of 7,415 out of 10. 

Interestingly, researchers found that 97,6 percent of respondents from the Netherlands felt at peace with their life, while 86,9 percent felt the various aspects of their lives were in balance.

The report looked into how COVID-19 affected the emotions of each country, and found that the citizens and residents of the Netherlands experienced a notable rise in feelings of anxiety and sadness in the five weeks following the outbreak of the virus. 

The top 10 happiest countries in the world

According to the 2022 report, the 10 happiest countries in the world are:

1. Finland (7,821)
2. Denmark (7,636)
3. Iceland (7,55)
4. Switzerland (7,512)
5. The Netherlands (7,415)
6. Luxembourg (7,404)
7. Sweden (7,384)
8. Norway (7,365)
9. Israel (7,364)
10. New Zealand (7,200)

The countries occupying the bottom spots in this year’s ranking are Zimbabwe, Lebanon, and Afghanistan. Click here to read the full report.