UAE tops world happiness index among Muslim countries

OXFORD, UK (MNTV) – The United Arab Emirates has emerged as the highest-ranked Muslim-majority country in the world in the 2025 World Happiness Report, claiming the 21st spot globally in the annual rankings released this week. 

Kuwait, another Gulf nation, follows at 30th, ahead of other Muslim states like Saudi Arabia (32), Indonesia (83), Iran (99), Türkiye (94th), Pakistan (109th),and Bangladesh (134th).

Afghanistan, meanwhile, continues to rank as the least happy country in the world, placing 147th for the third consecutive year.

India, with its largest Muslim population in a non-Muslim country, has 118th rank in the world happiness index as per the report. 

Pakistan, with its worsened economic, political, and security situation has positioned itself ahead of India in overall index at 109. 

The report, published by the Wellbeing Research Centre at the University of Oxford in partnership with Gallup and the UN Sustainable Development Solutions Network, evaluates global happiness based on life evaluations submitted by residents, known as the Cantril Ladder.

The report uses data averaged over three years (2022–2024) to ensure stability and reliability.

Among Muslim-majority nations, UAE’s high ranking reflects significant progress in social support, perceptions of freedom, health outcomes, and economic indicators. 

Malaysia also performs well across several metrics, ranking 28th in volunteering and 81st in helping strangers, suggesting a strong culture of social engagement and community care.

Although Indonesia ranks below Saudi Arabia and Malaysia, it shows notable performance in generosity indicators, topping the global list for both donating and volunteering/ 

It ranks 59th in helping strangers—highlighting a strong tradition of community support despite overall lower life evaluation scores.

In contrast, Afghanistan continues to report the lowest life satisfaction globally, with an average Cantril score of 1.36, the lowest ever recorded in the report’s history. 

The situation is even more dire for Afghan women, whose average score is a staggering 1.16. The report attributes such low scores to ongoing conflict, humanitarian crises, and lack of basic freedoms and services.

Pakistan, Türkiye, Bangladesh, and India remain in the lower tier of the global rankings, with varying performance in indicators such as generosity, freedom to make life choices, and social trust. 

For example, India, a Hindu-majority country, ranks relatively well in volunteering (10th) but performs poorly in overall life evaluations and expectations of kindness. 

A key theme in the 2025 edition is “caring and sharing,” examining how acts of benevolence—such as donating, volunteering, and helping strangers—are linked to higher levels of individual and societal well-being. 

The report notes that expecting kindness from others is a stronger predictor of happiness than income or even freedom from corruption.

The report is based on the Gallup World Poll and considers variables such as GDP per capita, healthy life expectancy, social support, freedom, generosity, and perceptions of corruption. 

Globally, Nordic countries like Finland and Denmark dominate the rankings for both happiness and benevolence, driven by robust social safety nets and high levels of institutional trust. 

In contrast, many Muslim-majority and South Asian countries face economic and social challenges that impact their rankings.  

However, the strong performance of countries like Indonesia and Iran demonstrates that cultural and religious norms can foster high levels of benevolence even in the absence of extensive institutional support.  

The rankings underscore the importance of addressing economic and institutional challenges to enhance happiness and benevolence in Muslim-majority and South Asian countries. 

While nations like Indonesia and Iran excel in charitable acts, countries like Pakistan, India, and Bangladesh must focus on building institutional trust and encouraging organized charitable activities to improve their global standings.  

As these nations continue to navigate their developmental journeys, leveraging their strong communal values to build more inclusive and supportive societies will be key to achieving greater well-being for their citizens.