How happy do you think Americans are in relation to people in other countries?
If you rated us in the top ten, you’d be wrong. At least that’s what the Legatum Prosperity Index suggests. The annual list is based off a study of 142 countries that are ranked on 89 factors in 8 categories such as economics, personal freedom and health, to determine where people enjoy the best quality of life and are the happiest.
For the first time in the index’s history, the states fell out of the top 10 and landed on number 12. So what were the countries with the happiest people and what were some of the factors that earned them their rankings?
Check out the list.
10) Ireland – This country of around 4.5 million made it in the top 10 with its highest scores in the Personal Freedom and Safety & Security categories, both of which ranked as the fourth highest over the rest of the countries.
9) Switzerland – This nation, known for its bountiful natural beauty had the highest score of any country for its both its economy and governance. These stats helped the country reach the ninth spot on the list.
8) Netherlands – The country’s name means “low lands” in Dutch, due to its closeness to sea levels, but the people’s spirits seem to be rather high, as its eighth spot placement suggests. The country’s best score was in the Social Capital category, where it placed sixth worldwide. Health followed right behind with a seventh spot placement.
7) Finland – The seventh largest European country landed the seventh highest overall spot on the happiness list. What a happy coincidence, right? It rated third in both the Safety & Security and Entrepreneurship & Opportunity categories.
6) Canada – Sure this country gets a lot of flak from its American neighbor but that hasn’t stopped it from placing at the sixth level. One big factor might be its top score on the Personal Freedom category, in which it beat out all other nations.
5) New Zealand – This Oceanic island followed Canada with the second rank in the Personal Freedom category, and the very top spot for its education ranking. It also held the second spot for governance.
4) Australia – Right behind New Zealand is Australia in the Education category, and the third for the Personal Freedom category. Although it didn’t do quite as well as New Zealand in those categories, it still fared better with its health and economic standing, making it the fourth on the list.
3) Sweden – Another fun ranking coincidence: The third largest country in the EU has the third place on this list. It ranks the second highest in entrepreneurship & opportunity in the world and the 4th in governance.
2) Denmark – This Nordic country enjoys a rich and vibrant history. It also enjoys the first, second and third world ranking in the Entrepreneurship & Opportunity, Social Capital and Governance categories, respectively. These stats factored in to make the country the second highest on the Legatum Prosperity Index.
1) Norway – The “Happiest Country in the World” title belongs to Norway. The Scandinavian country had high marks all across the board: It earned the top social capital ranking; the second highest in economy and Safety & Security; fourth in the Health and Entrepreneurship & Opportunity categories; and the sixth highest in education and personal freedom. Its lowest score was for governance at the 13th spot, but when you consider that is out of 142 countries, it doesn’t seem that bad at all.
We don’t know about you, but we’re thinking about packing our bags and buying a one-way ticket to Norway
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