The UK is ranked in the top 20 countries for needing the most money to achieve optimal happiness
Have you ever wondered how much money you would need to be truly happy? Researchers in this new study have the answers, and it’s no surprise that the cost varies around the world.
Some may say, “Money can’t buy you happiness,” but others argue that this is simply not true. Take living in the UK for example, where millions of people are experiencing stress caused by a cost of living crisis, where increases in the cost of food, rent, energy bills and mortgage interest rates radically change a person’s quality of life.
Surely a few extra pounds would make life a little easier, giving us time to be a little happier? A new study conducted by S.Money in 174 countries around the world has found the optimal amount of money a person needs each year to be happy. The researchers claim that any amount above these totals “has no effect on an individual’s happiness,” even if that total is miles away from the millions.
Not surprisingly, the country with the highest cost of happiness in the world is Iran, needing a total of $239,700 to achieve optimal happiness – that’s about £192,286.14 in GDP. Yemen comes in second with US$172,140 / £137,817, followed by Australia with US$121,191 or £97,026.
Meanwhile, the lowest price for happiness belongs to Sierra Leone, where it takes just $8,658 (£6,945) a year to feel joyful. Suriname comes in second with just $10,255 (£8,226.51), followed by Madagascar with $11,355 (£9,108.92). The researchers used data from a Purdue University study on the relationship between happiness and income to come to their findings.
However, don’t be tempted by these numbers to jump on a plane and move to another country, as Mark Schulz, associate director of the Study of Adult Development at Harvard University, warns that happiness is not limited to money. “Money can’t buy us happiness, but it is a tool that can give us security, security and a sense of control over our lives. Ultimately, life is really about connection with others. It’s our relationship,” he said. That makes us happy.”
Countries with the highest cost of happiness:
- Iran – $239,700 / £192,286.14
- Yemen – US$172,140 / £137,817
- Australia – $121,191 / £97,026.
- Zimbabwe – $118,342 / £94,933.36
- Norway – $117,724 / £94,437.60
- Switzerland – $115,745 / £92,850.06
- New Zealand – $114,597 / £91,929.14
- Israel – $112,506 / £90,251.75
- Iceland – $111,908 / £89,772.04
- United States – $105,000 / £84,230.48
Countries with the lowest cost of happiness:
- Sierra Leone – $8,658 / £6,945.40
- Suriname – US$10,255 / £8,226.51
- Madagascar – $11,355 / £9,108.92
- Guyana – US$11,707 / £9,391.30
- Sudan – USD 11,845 / GBP 9,502.00
- Nicaragua – $11,941 / £9,579.01
- Colombia – $12,159 / £9,753.89
- Gambia – $12,597 / £10,105.25
- Bolivia – $12,795 / £10,264.09
- Ghana – $12,949 / £10,387.62
The UK ranks very high in the top 174 countries listed, coming in at 18th most expensive at an average of $85,440/£68,404 – more than double the average UK salary of £32,000. The study also looked at the cost of happiness in each city in the UK, with London clearly topping the list with £79,524 needed to achieve optimal happiness. Cambridge came in second place with £74,808, followed by Guildford in Surrey with £74,273.
The lowest cost of happiness in the UK belongs to Leicester, where the study claims £61,117 a year is needed. In Cardiff, the cost is £63,357, in Liverpool it is £68,182, in Edinburgh it is £65,816 and in Belfast it is £66,232. US cities, compared to UK destinations, need a lot more money to be happy. In the US, Knoxville needs the lowest amount of $88,032, which equates to about £70,618.83, and Santa Barbara needs about $162,721 (£130,533.97) to achieve optimal happiness.
The cost of happiness in UK cities each year:
- London – $103,083 / £79,524 (highest annual income)
- Cambridge – $96,971 / £74,808
- Guildford – $96,276 / £74,273
- Brighton – $93,358 / £72,022
- Bristol – $91,136 / £70,307
- Oxford – $90,997 / £70,219
- Reading – $90,580 / £69,897
- Manchester – $88,913 / £68,611
- Liverpool – $88,357/£68,182
- Bournemouth – $88,079/£67,968
- Glasgow – $87,940 / £67,860
- Nottingham – $86,829 / £66,982
- Plymouth – $86,690/£66,875
- Leeds – $86,134 / £66,446
- Belfast – $85,856 / £66,232
- Derby – $85,301 / £65,803
- Edinburgh – $85,301 / £65,816
- Newcastle upon Tyne – $84,745 / £65,387
- Norwich – $84,606 / £65,280
- Southampton – $84,189/£64,959
- Exeter – $83,078 / £64,107
- Sheffield – $83,078 / £64,107
- Cardiff – $82,105 / £63,357
- Portsmouth – $82,105 / £63,369
- Coventry – $81,689 / £63,047
- Aberdeen – $81,411 / £62,833
- Birmingham – $80,855 / £62,404
- Dundee – $79,327/£61,224
- Leicester – $79,188 / £61,117 (lowest annual income)
The researchers at S.Money came up with these numbers by looking at a Purdue University study on the relationship between happiness and income. They scored the Satiety Point for Life Evaluation – a scale from the World Gallup survey that measures how well an individual views their life. S.Money explained: “The saturation point of LE refers to the income point at which any further increase in income will have no effect on an individual’s happiness.
“The numbers in the study grouped countries into world regions and quoted satiety points relative to the purchasing power of Americans. So, to discover the local price of happiness by country, we converted these numbers back to local currencies using country-specific purchasing power ratios. Sourced from the International Monetary Fund Purchasing power ratios represent the number of local currency units equal to the purchasing power of one US dollar in the United States.
“Finally, we converted local currencies back to US dollars using current exchange rates provided by Google Finance. This is the price of happiness. Additionally, we calculated the price of happiness for selected cities within each country by adjusting the country’s price of happiness according to the cost of living for each of cities and countries in the Numbeo Index.