Thailand third happiest country in Southeast Asia – new report 2025

Thailand continues to rank as one of the happiest countries in Southeast Asia, according to this year's World Happiness Report published in conjunction with the International Day of Happiness on March 20. In the latest measurement for the year 2024, Thailand ranks 60th globally, an improvement of two places from the previous year. In the three-year average for 2022–2024, which is often used in international comparisons, Thailand ranks even higher – in 49th place.

Strongest among the elderly

Thailand scores high in the category life satisfaction among people over 60 years old, where the country climbs to 39th place globally. This is significantly better than the global average, indicating that older people in Thailand experience a good quality of life compared to many other countries.

Among the top three in the region

Within Southeast Asia, Thailand is now the third happiest country, after Singapore and Malaysia. In Asia as a whole, Thailand ranks 9th.

What is behind the ranking?

World Happiness Report bases its assessment on six key factors that are considered to influence people's life satisfaction: financial security, social support, health and longevity, individual freedom, generosity and trust in social institutions. The report covers a total of 143 countries and is based on survey data from the Gallup World Poll, in collaboration with the UN Sustainable Development Network.

Comparison with neighboring countries

• Singapore: Rank 30 globally (1st in Southeast Asia)
• Malaysia: Rank 58 globally
• Thailand: Rank 60 globally
• Vietnam: Rank 54 globally
• Indonesia: Rank 80 globally
• Myanmar and Cambodia: Outside the top 100

Thailand Info has also analyzed this year's World Happiness Report and highlights six unexpected and important insights – about shared meals, helpfulness, intergenerational housing and why some countries climb while others fall. Read the analysis here:
Six insights from World Happiness Report 2025 - Thailand Info analyzes

Four new insights about Thailand in the happiness report

• Trust in strangers is moderate: In Thailand, many people believe that a stranger would return a lost wallet – but not everyone. The country ranks 67th out of 143 in this category. The highest level of trust is in Norway, where almost everyone expects honesty from strangers.
• Helpfulness in everyday life – but not at its best: Thailand ranks 87th when people are asked if they have recently helped a stranger, far behind Jamaica, whose residents are the most helpful in the world according to the report.
• Steady climb in happiness rankings: Thailand improves its position and is now ranked 60th in the latest survey (for 2024), two places better than the previous year. In the three-year average 2022–2024, the country ranks 49th.
• Differences in happiness between groups: The report shows that not everyone in Thailand is equally happy. There are noticeable differences in life satisfaction between different groups in the population – something that is also visible globally.

Text: The editorial staff

Image license: nk, Pixabay, original image