Only 33% of Filipinos consider themselves ‘very happy’

The latest survey released by the Social Weather Stations (SWS) on Friday showed that only three in 10 Filipinos, or 33 percent, consider themselves “very happy.”

The data came from a survey conducted from 24 to 30 November last year, involving 1,200 adult Filipinos interviewed face-to-face, with an even distribution of 300 respondents each from Luzon, Visayas, and Mindanao.

Respondents were asked: “If you were to consider your life in general these days, how happy or unhappy would you say you are on the whole?”

The highest share of “very happy” respondents came from the Visayas at 40 percent, followed by Mindanao at 34 percent and Luzon at 32 percent. The National Capital Region (NCR) recorded the lowest at 24 percent.

In terms of educational background, college graduates posted the highest proportion of “very happy” responses at 41 percent, followed by senior high school graduates at 34 percent, elementary graduates at 31 percent, and elementary undergraduates at 27 percent.

Meanwhile, 50 percent of respondents described themselves as “fairly happy,” three percentage points lower than the 53 percent recorded in March 2025. The highest figures were from Metro Manila and Mindanao at 52 percent, followed by Balance Luzon and the Visayas at 49 percent.

About 15 percent said they are “not very happy,” with the highest proportion from Metro Manila at 21 percent, followed by Balance Luzon at 17 percent, Mindanao at 12 percent, and the Visayas at 8 percent.

For those who said they are “not at all happy,” Metro Manila and the Visayas both recorded the highest at 3 percent, followed by Balance Luzon and Mindanao at 2 percent.

In the latest global survey, the Philippines ranked 57th out of 143 countries in the World Happiness Report, dropping four spots from last year’s 53rd rank. Key indicators in the ranking include Gross Domestic Product (GDP) per capita, social support, healthy life expectancy, freedom to make life choices, generosity, and low perceptions of corruption.