World Happiness Report flags social media’s toll on youth well-being; Finland tops rankings again

Heavy use of social media is linked to a sharp decline in well-being among young people, with teenage girls in English-speaking countries and Western Europe particularly affected, according to the World Happiness Report 2026 released on Thursday.

The annual study, published by the Wellbeing Research Center at the University of Oxford, also found that Finland remains the world’s happiest country for the ninth consecutive year. Other Nordic nations — Iceland, Denmark, Sweden and Norway — continue to dominate the top 10 rankings.

However, the report highlights a significant drop in life satisfaction among people under 25 in countries such as the United States, Canada, Australia and New Zealand over the past decade, pointing to prolonged social media use as a key factor behind the trend.

Costa Rica rises, Nordic nations stay dominant

Costa Rica emerged as a new entrant in the top five, climbing to fourth place after rising from 23rd in 2023. Researchers attribute this surge to strong family bonds and social connections.

“We think it’s because of the quality of their social lives and the stability that they currently enjoy,” said Jan-Emmanuel De Neve, director of the Wellbeing Research Center and co-editor of the report. He added that Latin American societies tend to have stronger social and family ties, contributing to higher overall well-being.

Finland and its Nordic peers continue to rank highly due to a combination of economic prosperity, relatively equal wealth distribution, robust welfare systems, and high life expectancy.

At the other end of the spectrum, countries affected by conflict continue to rank lowest. Afghanistan remains the unhappiest country, followed by Sierra Leone and Malawi.

The rankings are based on responses from about 100,000 people across 140 countries and territories, in partnership with Gallup and the UN Sustainable Development Solutions Network.

Teenage girls most at risk

Participants rated their lives on a scale of 0 to 10. Among under-25s in English-speaking and Western European nations, scores have dropped by nearly one point over the past decade.

The report finds a particularly strong negative link between heavy social media use and well-being among teenage girls. For instance, 15-year-old girls who spend five or more hours daily on social media report significantly lower life satisfaction compared to those who use it less.

Interestingly, young people who spend less than one hour per day on social media report the highest well-being levels — even higher than those who do not use it at all. However, adolescents currently spend an average of around 2.5 hours daily on these platforms.

Researchers suggest that improving the “social” aspect of social media could help mitigate its negative effects.

Algorithms and influencers under scrutiny

The report points to algorithm-driven feeds, influencer culture and highly visual content as key contributors to declining well-being, as they tend to encourage unhealthy social comparisons. In contrast, platforms focused on direct communication appear to have less harmful effects.

In some regions, including the Middle East and South America, the relationship between social media use and well-being is more positive, and youth well-being has remained stable despite high usage levels.

For the second consecutive year, no English-speaking country features in the top 10. The United States ranks 23rd, Canada 25th, and the United Kingdom 29th.

The findings come amid growing global debate, with several countries either imposing or considering restrictions on social media use among minors.