Germany vs United States: Share of people who say they are happy
Germany
86.4%
in 2022
United States
88.2%
in 2022
Germany rank
19th
United States rank
18th
Share of people who say they are happy over time
- Germany
- United States
How they compare
United States currently reports 88.2% against 86.4% in Germany, a difference of 1.8%.
Across all 7 years both countries report, United States has been ahead every year.
Germany ranks 19th and United States ranks 18th of 39 countries.
United States has averaged higher in every one of the 5 decades both report.
Head to head by decade
| Decade | Germany | United States | Difference | Ahead |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1980s | 79.1% | 90.3% | 11.2% | United States |
| 1990s | 80.9% | 90.9% | 9.9% | United States |
| 2000s | 83.8% | 93.1% | 9.3% | United States |
| 2010s | 82.6% | 91.3% | 8.8% | United States |
| 2020s | 86.4% | 88.2% | 1.8% | United States |
Averages of every year both report within each decade.
Frequently asked questions
- Which has higher share of people who say they are happy, Germany or United States?
- United States, at 88.2% against 86.4% in Germany as of 2022.
- What is the difference in share of people who say they are happy between Germany and United States?
- 1.8%, with United States ahead.
- How many years of comparable data are there for Germany and United States?
- 7 years are reported by both, from 1984 to 2022.
- How do Germany and United States rank globally for share of people who say they are happy?
- Germany ranks 19th and United States ranks 18th of 39 countries.
- Where does this data come from?
- Integrated Values Surveys (2024) – with major processing by Our World in Data, published as Share of people who say they are happy. Statizoid refreshes it automatically from the source and publishes the full history for both places.
Individual pages
About this data
% of respondents replying "very happy" or "quite happy" when asked "Taking all things together, would you say you are very happy, quite happy, not very happy or not at all happy?"