The latest World Happiness Report for 2025 reveals a fascinating landscape of well-being across the Balkan region. While Finland maintains its top global position, several Balkan nations have shown significant shifts in their rankings, indicating evolving levels of perceived happiness among their populations. This report offers valuable insights into the factors contributing to these changes.
Balkan Happiness: A Shifting Landscape
The 2025 World Happiness Report highlights notable movements within the Balkan countries. Slovenia continues to lead the region, climbing two spots globally to rank 19th. Kosovo holds steady at 29th, while Serbia made a significant leap of five positions to 31st. Conversely, some nations experienced declines, with Croatia dropping nine spots to 72nd and Greece seeing a substantial decrease of 17 positions to 81st.
Key Takeaways
- Slovenia’s Ascent: Slovenia’s consistent high ranking and further improvement suggest strong underlying factors contributing to its citizens’ happiness, potentially including economic stability, social support, and healthy life expectancy.
- Serbia’s Progress: Serbia’s notable rise indicates positive developments in areas such as social freedom, generosity, or perceptions of corruption, which are key metrics in the report.
- Declines in Croatia and Greece: The significant drops for Croatia and Greece warrant further investigation into potential challenges impacting their populations’ well-being, such as economic pressures, social unrest, or changes in public services.
- Regional Disparities: The report underscores the diverse experiences within the Balkan region, with some countries making strides in happiness while others face setbacks.
Detailed Balkan Rankings
The following table provides a detailed overview of the Balkan countries’ rankings in the 2025 World Happiness Report, alongside their change from the previous year:
| Country | 2025 Rank | Change from Previous Year |
|---|---|---|
| Slovenia | 19 | +2 |
| Kosovo | 29 | = |
| Serbia | 31 | +5 |
| Romania | 35 | -3 |
| Bosnia & Herz. | 56 | +9 |
| Montenegro | 71 | +5 |
| Croatia | 72 | -9 |
| Greece | 81 | -17 |
| Bulgaria | 85 | -4 |
| N. Macedonia | 86 | -2 |
| Albania | 89 | … |
Factors Influencing Happiness
The World Happiness Report typically assesses happiness based on six key variables:
- GDP per capita: Economic prosperity plays a significant role.
- Social support: The presence of someone to count on in times of trouble.
- Healthy life expectancy: The number of years a person can expect to live in good health.
- Freedom to make life choices: The perceived liberty to choose one’s life path.
- Generosity: The extent to which people donate to charity.
- Perceptions of corruption: The level of trust in government and business.
Changes in these factors likely contribute to the shifts observed in the Balkan countries’ rankings. Further analysis of each nation’s specific performance across these indicators would provide deeper insights into the drivers of their happiness levels.
