Heavy social media use is linked to a decline in well-being among young people, particularly teenage girls in English-speaking countries and Western Europe, according to the World Happiness Report 2026 published Thursday.
World Happiness Report 2026: Social Media’s Impact on Youth Well-being
The annual report, published by the Wellbeing Research Centre at the University of Oxford, also found that Finland is the happiest country in the world for the ninth consecutive year, with other Nordic nations – Iceland, Denmark, Sweden, and Norway – ranking among the top 10.
Life evaluations among those under 25 in the United States, Canada, Australia, and New Zealand have dropped significantly over the past decade, with long hours spent on social media identified as a key contributing factor.
Costa Rica Rises in Rankings
Costa Rica made a notable jump to fourth place this year, rising from 23rd in 2023. The report attributes this improvement 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, an Oxford economics professor who directs the Wellbeing Research Centre and co-edits the World Happiness Report.
“Latin America more generally has strong family ties, strong social ties, a great level of social capital, as a sociologist would call it, more so than in other places,” he said.
The consistent high ranking of Finland and other Northern European countries is attributed to a combination of wealth, its equitable distribution, a high life expectancy, and a robust welfare system that protects citizens from economic downturns.
Countries in or near conflict zones continue to occupy the bottom of the rankings, with Afghanistan ranked as the unhappiest country, followed by Sierra Leone and Malawi.
The country rankings are based on data collected from approximately 100,000 people across 140 countries and territories, who were asked to rate their own lives. The study was conducted in partnership with Gallup and the United Nations Sustainable Development Solutions Network, with approximately 1,000 people contacted annually via telephone or in person.
Teenage Girls Particularly Vulnerable
Under-25s in English-speaking and Western European countries reported a nearly one-point drop in life evaluation scores over the past decade. The report highlights a negative correlation between well-being and extensive social media use, particularly among teenage girls.
For example, 15-year-old girls who spend five or more hours daily on social media reported lower life satisfaction compared to those with less usage.
Researchers found that young people who use social media for less than one hour per day report the highest levels of well-being, even exceeding those who do not use social media at all.
“It is clear that we should look as much as possible to put the ‘social’ back into social media,” De Neve said.
Algorithmic Feeds and Influencers as Contributing Factors
The report notes differing results in regions like the Middle East and South America, where youth well-being has not declined despite high social media usage. This is attributed to various continental differences.
The most problematic platforms are those with algorithmic feeds, influencer-driven content, and a focus on visual material, as they tend to encourage social comparisons. Platforms primarily used for communication are associated with better well-being.
For the second consecutive year, no English-speaking countries appear in the top 10. The United States ranks 23rd, Canada 25th, and Britain 29th.
The report’s focus on social media comes as an increasing number of countries consider or implement bans on social media access for minors.
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