When speaking of the happiest countries in the world, Finland comes to mind or maybe even Denmark or Iceland and these are verified by the World Happiness Index which makes an annual report on the happiest countries in the world. However, the landscape looks a bit different when it comes to the happiest cities in the world and the city that claims the top spot may even be surprising.
According to the 2025 Time Out Index, Abu Dhabi was officially ranked the happiest city in the world. Abu Dhabi, which is the capital city of the United Arab Emirates (UAE) boasts a population of more than 2 million, making it the second-most populated city after Dubai. Abu Dhabi is the largest and wealthiest of the seven emirates which make up the UAE and was ranked as the safest city in the world by the statistical analysis website Numbeo for the ninth year running.
What makes Abu Dhabi the happiest?
The Time Out Index created the rankings based on feedback from a survey given by over 18,000 “urbanites around the globe”. The survey looked at parameters like culture, nightlife, affordability, safety, walkability and food and Abu Dhabi emerged as the clear winner. It ranked above even cities like Sydney, Medellin, Cape Town and Chicago among many others.
A multicultural hub, the capital city was highly rated by locals and visitors who agreed that living there made them happy, receiving a near-perfect score of 99 percent. Abu Dhabi, as the most prosperous city in the UAE, is dotted with palm trees, lit by a blazing sun and shielded by clear, blue skies. It boasts a well planned city scape, towering skyscrapers, numerous gardens and public beaches, a zoo, cuisines from all over the world, religious multiculturality and diverse sport culture. It’s safety ranking also eases residents’ minds and makes them happier.
93 percent of the Abu Dhabi residents who took the survey also said that they felt happiest in Abu Dhabi compared to anywhere else in the world. Earlier this year, the city was also ranked at the top spot for its walkability by Time Out.
The other cities on the list
Though no Indian cities made it to the top 3 of the Time Out Index 2025 ranking for the happiest cities in the world, Mumbai did manage to grab the 5th spot on the list. After Abu Dhabi, the second and third happiest cities were Medellín, Colombia and Cape Town, South Africa respectively.
Here’s the full list of the 20 happiest cities in the world:
- Abu Dhabi, UAE
- Medellín, Colombia
- Cape Town, South Africa
- Mexico City, Mexico
- Mumbai, India
- Beijing, China
- Shanghai, China
- Chicago, US
- Seville, Spain
- Melbourne, Australia
- Brighton, UK
- Porto, Portugal
- Sydney, Australia
- Chiang Mai, Thailand
- Marrakech, Morocco
- Dubai, UAE
- Hanoi, Vietnam
- Jakarta, Indonesia
- Valencia, Spain
- Glasgow, UK