Story at a glance
- A report published Wednesday ranked the United States as the 23rd happiest on the planet.
- The World Happiness Report ranked 143 countries on well-being and happiness.
- This is the first year the U.S. has not made it into the top 20 happiest countries in the report.
The United States fell to a new low in a world happiness ranking partly because of rising unhappiness among the nation’s young people.
The World Happiness Report, published Wednesday, ranked the U.S. as the 23rd happiest country out of 143, placing it right behind the United Arab Emirates and ahead of Germany.
Last year, the U.S. was ranked the 15th happiest country in the World Happiness Report.
This is the first time in the report’s 10-year history that the U.S. did not make the top 20 happiest countries on Earth.
It is also the first time the report offers global happiness rankings based on age.
Overall, young people between the ages of 15 and 24 report higher life satisfaction than older adults, except in North America.
In a global happiness ranking of people 60 years old and up, the United States ranks 10th. But the country falls to 62nd place in another global ranking of happiness among people under 30, the report shows.
In North America, young people are far more likely to suffer from loneliness than older people, the report shows.
Published on Mar 20,2024