By Jeanne Bonner, CNN
(CNN) — If happiness were an Olympic event, the Nordic countries would be a guaranteed a spot on the podium.
Actually, all three spots on the podium.
According to the latest edition of the World Happiness Report, the three happiest countries in the world are Finland, Iceland and Denmark.
Finland was named the happiest country in the world for a record 9th time in a row, with Iceland, at No. 2, and Denmark in third place in the ranking, which is compiled by the Wellbeing Research Centre at the University of Oxford, and included in the annual report on global happiness.
Costa Rica had a strong showing, coming in at No. 4 — the highest ranking ever for a country from Latin America — but then it’s back to Nordic countries, with Sweden and Norway capturing the 5th and 6th places, respectively. Three other countries in Europe appear in the top 10: the Netherlands at No. 7, Luxembourg at No. 9 and Switzerland at No. 10.
Israel, the only country in the Middle East in the top 20, captured No. 8.
The US is in 23rd place this year, while Canada took the 25th spot, and the UK ranked 29th. This is the second consecutive year that none of the native English-speaking countries — the US, New Zealand, Ireland, Australia, Canada or the UK — appear in the top 10.
To determine the ranking, the Gallup World Poll asks respondents in 147 countries to evaluate their lives using the image of a ladder, with the best possible life as a 10 and the worst possible as a 0. Each respondent provides a numerical response on this scale, referred to as the Cantril Ladder.
Researchers look at six factors including GDP per capita, life expectancy, generosity and perceptions of freedom and corruption to help account for variations among countries. The rankings are based on a three-year average, which smooths out spikes and dips occasioned by big events such as war or financial downturns.
The Finns reported an average score of 7.764 to evaluate their life satisfaction.
Finland’s deep commitment to cooperation helps explain its staying power at the top of the ranking, John F. Helliwell, professor emeritus of economics at the University of British Columbia and a founding editor of the World Happiness Report, said in an interview.
“Successful societies cooperate in the face of adversity,” he said. “The Finns know this. And once you have the sense that you are in this together, there’s no end to what you can do.”
By comparison, respondents from the US had a life evaluation rating of 6.816 on average.
Youth crisis
The report’s writers have begun to pay attention to what they consider a crisis in youth happiness, first mentioned in the 2024 ranking.
In the latest edition, the survey found life evaluations among respondents under age 25 in the US, Canada, Australia and New Zealand have dropped by almost one full point on the scale of 0 to 10 over the last decade, a dramatic slide especially since the average satisfaction for young people in the rest of the world has increased, according to Gallup World Poll data.
“That’s a striking drop in youth wellbeing,” Helliwell said. “One of the culprits, especially in the US, is the extent and nature of social media use.”
But, the survey warns, “negative emotions are becoming more common in all global regions.”
Only three out of the six English-speaking countries made it into the top 20, despite being among the wealthiest countries in the world. New Zealand fared the best, coming in at No. 11, followed by Ireland at No. 13 and Australia at No. 15.
Internet consumption is high virtually everywhere, and that includes social media, the survey found.
But a key factor in the sharp drop in youth happiness, researchers said, is the number of hours young people spend consuming social media or gaming. And wh