Six Factors Explained

SDSN

World Happiness Report rankings explained. Income, health, having someone to count on, having a sense of freedom to make key life decisions, generosity, and the absence of corruption all play strong roles in supporting life evaluations.

Life evaluations from the Gallup World Poll provide the basis for the annual happiness rankings. They are based on answers to the main life evaluation question. The Cantril ladder asks respondents to think of a ladder, with the best possible life for them being a 10 and the worst possible life being a 0. They are then asked to rate their own current lives on that 0 to 10 scale. The rankings are from nationally representative samples over three years.

This promotion was an accompaniment to the 2023 World Happiness Report. The illustrations (Lisa Dröes) bring these factors to colorful life and make us a little happier.