Nigeria ranks 105 out of 147 nations on global happiness index

News Express |20th Mar 2025 | 228

Mass of Nigerians

Nigeria secured the 105th spot out of 147 nations in the 2025 World Happiness Report, unveiled on Thursday, March 20. The report was compiled by the Wellbeing Research Centre at the University of Oxford in collaboration with Gallup, the UN Sustainable Development Solutions Network and an independent editorial board.

Finland retained its title as the world’s happiest country, followed by Denmark and Iceland. The rankings are based on factors related to social, physical, and emotional well-being.

The top four nations – Finland, Denmark, Iceland, and Sweden – maintained their positions from the 2024 rankings while Norway landed at No. 7.

For the first time, two Latin American nations made it into the top 10: Costa Rica at No. 6 and Mexico at No. 10.

The Netherlands (No. 5), Israel (No. 8), and Luxembourg (No. 9) completed the top 10 list.

The United States, which fell out of the top 20 for the first time last year, now ranks No. 24.

Last year’s report focused on happiness disparities across age groups, noting a decline in well-being among younger populations in multiple countries.

The US reached its highest ranking of No. 11 back in 2012. The latest report also highlights a 53% rise in the number of Americans dining alone over the past 20 years.

The decline in happiness is not exclusive to the US. The United Kingdom, now at No. 23, recorded its lowest average life satisfaction since 2017. Meanwhile, Canada, which has seen a downward trend in happiness over the past decade, remained in the top 20 at No. 18.

Afghanistan ranked last at No. 147, followed by Sierra Leone (No. 146), Lebanon (No. 145), Malawi (No. 144), and Zimbabwe (No. 143), rounding out the five lowest-ranking countries in terms of happiness.

World’s 25 happiest countries in 2025

Finland

Denmark

Iceland

Sweden

Netherlands

Costa Rica

Norway

Israel

Luxembourg

Mexico

Australia