World Happiness Report: Scandinavian nations dominate index as UK slides

Success in the happiness league partly down to reactions to the danger of Covid-19

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  1. Finland. Getty Images

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  2. Iceland. Getty Images

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  3. Denmark. Getty Images

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  4. Switzerland. Getty Images

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  5. Netherlands. Getty Images

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  6. Sweden. Getty Images

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  7. Germany. Getty Images

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  8. Norway. Getty Images

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  9. New Zealand. Getty Images

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  10. Austria. Getty Images

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  11. Israel. Getty Images

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  12. Australia. Getty Images

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  13. Ireland. Getty Images

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  14. USA. Getty Images

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  15. Canada. Getty Images

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  16. Czech Republic. Getty Images

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  17. Belgium. Getty Images

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  18. United Kingdom. Getty Images

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  19. China. Getty Images

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  20. France. Getty Images

For pretty much everyone, 2020 forced a review of normal life, who to trust and who to keep in touch with, as more than 2.6 million people died in the coronavirus pandemic.
But for finding pleasure against the odds, Nordic and western European nations dominate a list of the world's happiest countries.
Finland, Iceland and Denmark are the three happiest countries in the world. For Finland it is the fourth successive year of cheer.
Two other Nordic countries are in the top 10 – Sweden and Norway – while New Zealand is the only non-European. The top 10 includes Switzerland, Netherlands, Germany and Austria.

This year, success was partly down to reactions to the danger of Covid-19 as much as the traditional happiness factors, such as trust and a lack of corruption.
"We need urgently to learn from Covid-19," said report co-editor Jeffrey Sachs, professor and director of the centre for sustainable development at Columbia University in New York.
"The pandemic reminds us of our global environmental threats, the urgent need to co-operate, and the difficulties of achieving co-operation in each country and globally."

The happiness study ranks countries using life evaluations based on interviews and the perceptions of the population in areas such as corruption, social life and general well-being.
The happiness index found trust and the ability to count on others to be major supports that improved life evaluations and helped a country rise in the table.
The US moved up from 18th to 14th place while the UK dropped from 13th to 18th.
"Surprisingly there was not, on average, a decline in well-being when measured by people's own evaluation of their lives," said the University of British Columbia's Prof John Helliwell, who contributed to the report.

"One possible explanation is that people see Covid-19 as a common, outside threat affecting everybody and that this has generated a greater sense of solidarity and fellow-feeling."

At the bottom end of the table, the effects of armed conflict and political upheaval were apparent.
Afghanistan was ranked the most unhappy place, followed by Zimbabwe, Rwanda and Botswana.