Finland tops World Happiness Report 2025 for the 8th year, scoring 7.74. Here’s what makes Finns the happiest and what India can learn. Photo: Freepik.
For so many years, Finland has been named the happiest country in the world. 2005 was the eighth straight year when the country came at the top of the World Happiness Report. The annual report, released on the UN’s International Day of Happiness, evaluates the quality of life in more than 140 countries. It considers the responses of the residents to measure overall well-being.
The latest report, which was released in 2025, ranked 147 countries. It used indicators such as social support, health, freedom, generosity, perceptions of corruption, and GDP. The report works on a Global Happiness Scale of 0–10. In the scale, 10 represents the best possible life. Finland secured an average score of 7.74 in 2025.
Finland was followed by Denmark, Iceland, Sweden, and the Netherlands. All these countries are known for strong welfare systems, high living standards, and balanced work cultures.
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According to researchers, it is not wealth and health that matter only. Several smaller factors significantly contribute to the happiness of people. These include sharing meals with others, having someone to rely on during difficult times, and even household size. The study found that in regions like Mexico and Europe, households with four to five members reported the highest happiness levels.
So, coming to Finland, beyond the social structures, it is its decentralised, publicly funded healthcare system that plays a key role in its high happiness ranking. The country has a very small private healthcare sector, which makes the overall system more efficient and accessible.
Finland also has reliable public transport and a high ranking of Helsinki Airport. It is rated as the best in northern Europe. This also contributes to residents’ sense of ease and satisfaction.
India improved its position slightly, rising from 126 in 2024 to 118 in the 2025 World Happiness Report. However, India remains a low-ranking country. It is ranked below several conflict-affected countries such as Ukraine, Mozambique, and Iraq. Afghanistan is the unhappiest country in the world, according to the report.
India performed strongly on social support. This was attributed to its tradition of community networks and multigenerational households. However, the country scored poorly in the freedom of choice category, which measures whether individuals feel they have autonomy in shaping their lives.
So if India wants to improve its rank on the list, the task is clear. It is known that India can not copy Finland completely, given the difference in the demography and geography of the two countries. However, India as a country can still learn from Finland by investing more in public infrastructure-related projects. The government needs to focus more on healthcare, education, social welfare, and public transport.
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Zubair Amin is a Senior Journalist at NewsX with over seven years of experience in reporting and editorial work. He has written for leading national and international publications, including Foreign Policy Magazine, Al Jazeera, The Economic Times, The Indian Express, The Wire, Article 14, Mongabay, News9, among others. His primary focus is on international affairs, with a strong interest in US politics and policy. He also writes on West Asia, Indian polity, and constitutional issues. Zubair tweets at zubaiyr.amin
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