Life satisfaction in Bhutan is comparable to countries of similar income levels

In 2008, Bhutan started measuring the “Gross Happiness Index” as an official metric to track the well-being of its population. As a result, it’s often coined the “Land” or “Kingdom of Happiness”.

Bhutan tracks gross happiness with in-depth surveys, which other countries do not. How does it compare across similar metrics where we can make these comparisons? Despite its reputation, it’s actually not an outlier.

Self-reported life satisfaction is one internationally comparable metric measured in the annual World Happiness Report. Respondents in every country are asked to rate their lives based on a 10-step ladder, where 0 represents the worst possible life, and 10 is the best.

Self-reported life satisfaction tends to be higher in richer countries, although there is a spread among countries with similar gross domestic product (GDP) per capita. The chart plots one against the other.

For its income level, Bhutan has a fairly average life satisfaction score; in the global comparison, it’s about as happy as we would expect based on the incomes of people in the country.

See the data tab for the full list of countries.