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Life satisfaction (0–10)

The UK ranks 14th of 28 on Life satisfaction (0–10) (2025)

The UK ranks 14th of 28 on Life satisfaction (0–10) in 2025: 6.69, unit Cantril ladder, mean of 0–10 (three-year average), against an EU27 median of 6.63. Source: World Happiness Report (Gallup life evaluations), life_evaluation_3yr_avg, snapshot of 6 November 2026.

Average self-rated life evaluation on a 0 to 10 ladder, from Gallup surveys, averaged over three years.

Caveat. Survey-based and averaged over three years, so it moves slowly. Coverage starts in the mid-2000s; earlier years are blank.

The UK

Life satisfaction (0–10)

6.69Cantril ladder, mean of 0–10 (three-year average)(2025)

14th of 28Moved down 4 places from 2016 to 2025.
EU27 median
6.63 Cantril ladder, mean of 0–10 (three-year average)
UK minus EU27 median
+0.07 Cantril ladder, mean of 0–10 (three-year average)

League table

Values in Cantril ladder, mean of 0–10 (three-year average). Countries ranked by value, 1 = top of the table, 28 with a value.

Life satisfaction (0–10), 2025: league table of countries
1Finland7.762025
2Denmark7.542025
3Sweden7.262025
4Netherlands7.222025
5Luxembourg7.062025
6Ireland6.932025
7Belgium6.932025
8Germany6.882025
9Slovenia6.872025
10Austria6.852025
11Czechia6.822025
12Poland6.772025
13Lithuania6.702025
14United KingdomUK6.692025
15Romania6.632025
16France6.592025
17Italy6.572025
18Spain6.542025
19Malta6.442025
20Estonia6.412025
21Latvia6.372025
22Slovakia6.262025
23Cyprus6.132025
24Portugal6.032025
25Croatia6.012025
26Hungary5.942025
27Bulgaria5.702025
28Greece5.702025

Trend, 2000 to 2025

Life satisfaction (0–10), 2000 to 2025Line chart, 2000 to 2025: the UK (heavy ink line), Germany, France, Italy and Spain (solid lines), and reference countries (faint lines). Dotted segments are IMF projections and are not ranked. Shaded bands and markers show events.Cantril ladder, mean of 0–10 (three-year average)6.06.57.07.5201520202025123Norway7.2Switzerland7.0Australia6.9Germany6.9United States6.8Canada6.7United Kingdom6.7France6.6Italy6.6Spain6.5Japan6.1Life satisfaction (0–10), 2000 to 2025Line chart, 2000 to 2025: the UK (heavy ink line), Germany, France, Italy and Spain (solid lines), and reference countries (faint lines). Dotted segments are IMF projections and are not ranked. Shaded bands and markers show events.Cantril ladder, mean of 0–10 (three-year average)6.06.57.07.52020123NorwaySwitzerlandAustraliaGermanyUnited StatesCanadaUnited KingdomFranceItalySpainJapan
  • Heavy ink line: United Kingdom
  • France
  • Germany
  • Italy
  • Spain
  • Thin grey lines, reference countries (not the big four): Australia, Canada, Japan, Norway, Switzerland, United States
  • Shaded: 2008–09 financial crisis
  • Shaded: 2020–21 Covid-19 pandemic
  • Shaded: 2022–23 energy price shock
  • Marker 1: EU referendum (23 June 2016)
  • Marker 2: UK leaves the EU (31 January 2020)
  • Marker 3: Transition period ends; Trade and Cooperation Agreement in force (1 January 2021)
Trends show what happened, not why; Covid, energy prices and policy changes overlap the same years. Dotted lines are projections and are not ranked.

UK rank over time

Rank 1 is the top of the table; the line is drawn with rank 1 at the top. Each year is ranked on that year's values.

UK rank, 2011 to 2025: 9th to 14th7th10th12th14th201520202025June 201614thUK rank, 2011 to 2025: 9th to 14th7th10th12th14th2020June 201614th

2011: 9th · 2025: 14th

Sources and method

Average self-rated life evaluation on a 0 to 10 ladder, from Gallup surveys, averaged over three years.

Source: World Happiness Report (Gallup life evaluations) · series life_evaluation_3yr_avg· vintage 2026 · fetched 2026-11-06

Helliwell, Layard, Sachs, De Neve, Aknin and Wang (eds.), World Happiness Report, 2026. University of Oxford: Wellbeing Research Centre. Based on the Gallup World Poll.

Licence: No formal licence found. Report data (Figure 2.1) is free to download with a required citation; Gallup World Poll data beyond the published files is restricted (Gallup Analytics subscription). Permission not confirmed for redistribution beyond country-level published values.