Share of people who say they are satisfied with their life in France

France: Share of people who say they are satisfied with their life was 84.1% in 2016. ▲ Rising

Latest (2016)
84.1%
Change on year
down 1.7%
World rank
16th
of 34 countries
All-time high
85.5%
in 2015
All-time low
67.0%
in 1988
Years of data
42
1973–2016

Share of people who say they are satisfied with their life in France, 1973–2016

0204060801973199420161973: 77 %1975: 73.9 %1976: 71.1 %1977: 70.1 %1978: 70.4 %1979: 69.4 %1980: 71.2 %1981: 70 %1982: 76.3 %1983: 73.4 %1984: 71.7 %1985: 70.7 %1986: 72.4 %1987: 73.1 %1988: 67 %1989: 76.6 %1990: 77 %1991: 77.1 %1992: 72.5 %1993: 70.8 %1994: 74.7 %1996: 79.2 %1997: 73.8 %1998: 72.2 %1999: 80 %2000: 80.2 %2001: 79.1 %2002: 78.6 %2003: 75.4 %2004: 82 %2005: 82.5 %2006: 85 %2007: 83.4 %2008: 79.1 %2009: 83.5 %2010: 83 %2011: 80 %2012: 85.1 %2013: 83.4 %2014: 84.2 %2015: 85.5 %2016: 84.1 %

Source: Eurobarometer (2017) – processed by Our World in Data. Measured in %.

Analysis

France recorded 84.1% for share of people who say they are satisfied with their life in 2016.

The figure is down 1.7% on the previous year and down 1.1% over ten years.

Over the whole period, share of people who say they are satisfied with their life in France peaked at 85.5% in 2015 and was at its lowest, 67.0%, in 1988.

That places France 16th out of 34 countries with data for 2016, putting it in the middle of the range.

The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 42 years of available data.

Share of people who say they are satisfied with their life in France, year by year

Annual values for Share of people who say they are satisfied with their life in France, 1973 to 2016.
Year % Change
1973 77.0%
1975 73.9% -4.1%
1976 71.1% -3.8%
1977 70.1% -1.5%
1978 70.4% +0.5%
1979 69.4% -1.4%
1980 71.2% +2.5%
1981 70.0% -1.7%
1982 76.3% +9.0%
1983 73.4% -3.7%
1984 71.7% -2.4%
1985 70.7% -1.4%
1986 72.4% +2.4%
1987 73.1% +1.0%
1988 67.0% -8.4%
1989 76.6% +14.4%
1990 77.0% +0.5%
1991 77.1% +0.1%
1992 72.5% -5.9%
1993 70.8% -2.4%
1994 74.7% +5.5%
1996 79.2% +6.1%
1997 73.8% -6.9%
1998 72.2% -2.2%
1999 80.0% +10.8%
2000 80.2% +0.3%
2001 79.1% -1.4%
2002 78.6% -0.7%
2003 75.4% -4.1%
2004 82.0% +8.8%
2005 82.5% +0.5%
2006 85.0% +3.1%
2007 83.4% -1.8%
2008 79.1% -5.2%
2009 83.5% +5.6%
2010 83.0% -0.7%
2011 80.0% -3.5%
2012 85.1% +6.3%
2013 83.4% -2.0%
2014 84.2% +1.0%
2015 85.5% +1.5%
2016 84.1% -1.7%

Averages by decade

DecadeAverage LowestHighest Years
1970s 72.0% 69.4% 77.0% 6
1980s 72.2% 67.0% 76.6% 10
1990s 75.2% 70.8% 80.0% 9
2000s 80.9% 75.4% 85.0% 10
2010s 83.6% 80.0% 85.5% 7

Countries ranked near France

  1. 13 Slovenia 88.5% compare
  2. 14 Czechia 86.1% compare
  3. 15 Austria 84.7% compare
  4. 17 Poland 82.4% compare
  5. 18 Cyprus 80.5% compare
  6. 19 Estonia 80.3% compare

See the full ranking of 34 places →

More reference data data for France

All data for France →

Frequently asked questions

What is share of people who say they are satisfied with their life in France?
Share of people who say they are satisfied with their life in France was 84.1% in 2016, according to Eurobarometer (2017) – processed by Our World in Data.
What is the highest share of people who say they are satisfied with their life recorded in France?
The highest recorded value was 85.5% in 2015.
What is the lowest share of people who say they are satisfied with their life recorded in France?
The lowest recorded value was 67.0% in 1988.
How does France rank for share of people who say they are satisfied with their life?
France ranks 16th out of 34 countries with data for 2016.
Is share of people who say they are satisfied with their life rising or falling in France?
Over the last ten years it is down 1.1%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
Where does this France data come from?
The figures come from Eurobarometer (2017) – processed by Our World in Data, published as part of Share of people who say they are satisfied with their life. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.

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Share of people who say they are satisfied with their life in France. Statizoid, drawing on Eurobarometer (2017) – processed by Our World in Data. Retrieved 31 August 2026, from https://reference.statizoid.com/stat/share-of-people-who-say-they-are-happy-eurobarometer/france/

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About this data

Indicator
Share of people who say they are satisfied with their life
Unit
%
Source
Eurobarometer (2017) – processed by Our World in Data
Licence
CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data)
Coverage
34 places, 751 data points, 1973–2016
Last refreshed

Share of people answering "very satisfied" or "fairly satisfied" to the question "On the whole, are you very satisfied, fairly satisfied, not very satisfied, or not at all satisfied with the life you lead?"