Canada remains one of the happiest countries as its ranking drops

Despite a year marked by an affordability crisis and ongoing trade tensions, Canada remains among the happiest countries in the world, although its position seems to be slipping.

The latest World Happiness Report is out, and people can rest assured that Canada is among the happiest countries in the world. The report uses data compiled from 2025 and takes into account well-being data from 140 countries and how residents in these countries rate their own lives.

"By making the essential insights from wellbeing science accessible to all, we give everyone the knowledge to create more happiness for themselves and others," reads the report.

For the ninth consecutive year, Finland ranks as the happiest country in the world, while Iceland climbed one spot to take second place. Denmark slipped one position to third, and Sweden also dropped one spot to fifth. Costa Rica, meanwhile, is having a moment — it rose two places to claim the fourth spot, and it's the only South American country in the top five.

At the bottom of the list is Afghanistan, which remains at number 147 for the second year. Sierra Leone also remained in the 146th spot this year.

So how did Canada fare this year?

The good news: Canada still ranks among the 25 happiest countries in the world. The not-so-good news? It landed in 25th place in 2025, a sharp drop of seven spots from its 18th place ranking in 2024, and its lowest position since the report started collecting data in 2011.

Not that it's any consolation, but we're not the only ones seeing our happiness levels drop.

"In general, the Western industrial countries are now less happy than they were between 2006 and 2010," states the report. "Fifteen of them have had significant drops, compared to four with significant increases."

The focus of this year's report provides insight into the drop in rankings: increased use of social media among youth. Social media is affecting adolescent happiness on a scale large enough to impact overall population trends.

You can read the full report online.

What are your thoughts on this report? Let us know in the comments.